Written by Adar Perez

As the 2023-24 school year came to a close, Shiurim had a variety of incentives to end the year with a bang. Depending on the amount of money raised in our recent fundraiser, each Shiur recieved either an incentive or a trip. The students of Rabbi Semmel’s 10th grade class have raise over 70,000 dollars, the most from any shiur of the school, and therefore we were able to receive a class trip and a barbeque. 

On the day of the trip, anticipation was felt throughout the air. We started out with an uplifting davening, followed by a quick Gemara shiur. After that, we had arrived at our first destination, Sky Zone. The place had a multitude of activities to do, and there were activities suitable for every kid. The bouncy basketball court was an exhilarating way to bond with friends and to exhibit teamwork, while the warped wall and the launchpads were great ways to show each’s unique athleticism. After our incredible time at Sky Zone, we all headed to K1Speed, a major GoKarting arena located in Burbank. This location held high-tech karts that would be able to go up to 30 miles per hour. The track was perfectly designed for drifting, and our class definitely took advantage of that. High action and intense races went on, and each student showed off their future driving skills. Finally, after an exhausting amount of exhilaration, we headed off to the city to eat at a restaurant called Geshmak. Many kids dreaded it, and thought that we had picked a terrible place to eat, but they were soon proved wrong. Their fried chicken was the best that I have ever had, and their Western burgers were highly praised. Finally, to end off the memorable day, we ended off with Mincha, and left the restaurant on our ways back to Valley Torah.

I would like to thank Rabbi Semmel and all of the students that participated in organizing this trip. It was very memorable and special to myself and many other students. It was a great way to end off an incredible year that we had, filled with Torah and inspiration.