After a long summer apart, all my friends and I gathered to share stories about our experiences from around the country and world. When one friend asked me what my favorite part of this summer was, I thought to myself, “Where should I start!?” Was it meeting and becoming close friends with 56 Jewish teens from all different political, religious and geographical perspectives? Or living in the George Washington University dorms right in the heart of Washington, D.C., and having the time and freedom to explore our country's capital? Maybe it was davening with Joe Lieberman or meeting John McCain? Or was it learning about different social issues from a Jewish and a political standpoint?

This past summer I had the opportunity to attend Summer JAM (Judaism, Activism, and Mitzvah Work), one of the summer programs of Panim, The Institute for Jewish Leadership and Values. Over the course of this four-week program, I was able to hear amazing speakers, make lifelong friends and have extraordinary opportunities.

During the program we took two different classes, which met three days a week. The first two weeks I took “The Ethics of War and Peace.” Along with the class that would always end in an intriguing discussion combining Jewish texts and current events, we had our community service project where we ran a day camp for refugee children. These children, who came from around the world, were some of the cutest and most resilient kids I have ever seen. Knowing that they might have gone through a life-threatening situation in a place like Ethiopia or Afghanistan, it was inspirational to see their constant smiles and positive attitudes.

The second two weeks I was part of the environment class for which we got to clean up the unsanitary Anacostia River that affects the poorer populations that tend to live in the nearby low-income housing. We also learned about and lobbied for issues surrounding renewable energy, global warming and other current environmental concerns.

In addition to classes, we saw an abundance of speakers, had two days of lobbying on Capitol Hill, participated in a chevruta text study, held small group discussions, and had many other education programs. We also had plenty of time to relax; we had days that were filled with baseball games, river inner-tubing, free time to explore the city, time at the beach and many moments of laughter and song.

One of the unique parts of Summer JAM was that it was a completely pluralistic community. Going into it I was skeptical about whether we would be able to form a place in which everyone could practice Judaism in his or her own way. It didn't take long to realize our group was a community of learning, sharing and understanding in which people were able to go outside of their comfort zone and frequently did. In the end it was an accepting environment in which each person found his or her own place.

So, after thinking back on the summer, I was ready to answer my friend's question. “I think my favorite moment of this summer was having a picnic on the national mall with some friends and eating the food we picked up at the farmer's market on campus. Between snapping pictures of each other and popping berries into our mouths, we had an intense discussion about social issues, politics and the future of Judaism.” What could be better?

Rachel Levenson is a senior at Mountain View High School in California. She is a member of the Peninsula Jewish Community Teen Foundation, where she sat on the board for two years. She has also been involved in many other philanthropy programs, including the Jewish Youth Funders! Advisory Board and Conference Planning Committee. Rachel is also the International Vice-President of USY for Social Action/Tikun Olam, which helps allocate over $300,000 that USY raises each year.