IC, a moment in time where Jewish teens all migrate to one state for a once-in-a-lifetime learning experience, to reunite with their friends, to moshpit together at concerts, and more! You may have seen various articles on here about what different teens recommend bringing to IC, but have you ever wondered what staff brings to IC? Well I’m here to tell you just that! So far, staff's favorite things to bring to IC are:

1. Comfy shoes (NRE Regional Director Tarryn Winik says,  “Most importantly, I bring 2-3 pairs of shoes to switch between days. IC is a lot of walking so my absolute go-to shoes for IC are my Blundstones and Asics!”  NTO Regional Director Courtney Fields also says she brings about 2-3 pairs of shoes as well! She recommends Nike’s, On’s, and Allbirds.)

2. A reusable water bottle (Tarryn says her favorite water bottle to stay hydrated with is the Owala water bottle, This brand comes in various fun colors and hers is a quote-on-quote lovely light blue color that will ~obviously~ match the staff vests!)

3. A huge hit from staff is a belt bag/a fanny back which I definitely couldn’t agree more #LiterallyALifeSaver (Tarryn recommends the Baggu Fanny pack to keep all her day-to-day essentials close by)

4. PORTABLE CHARGERS!! Definitely lots of portables… hard to spot an outlet at IC sometimes! (Courtney says the newest one is the iWalk portable charger :) ) 

5. Emergen C packets/LOTS of snacks, Jen says she is a big fan of bringing lots of snacks to IC! Some of her favorites are Twizzlers, Chex mix, and dried fruits (the best of every world as quoted by her) and she also says don’t forget to hydrate! 

6. A hair clip to keep your hair up and out of your face for the whole day.

7. Eye masks!, LSR staff Sarah (also known as yonas) stated “We bring these because we need a moment of stress relief, and we have to look awake but we are EXHAUSTED” Yonas also quoted bringing chocolate-covered espresso beans is a life saver as it may seem she's just eating candy when in reality she’s doing her best to make up for 2 hours of sleep.

8. Chapstick/Vaseline (Can’t be having crusty lips at IC!)

9. Hand sanitizer (always practice clean hygiene!)

10. A positive attitude and ALL of their energy! 

All of these answers are absolutely amazing and I would love to extend my gratitude and thanks to all the staff that chose to participate! I am deeply grateful for your answers, Huge thanks to; 

Andrea Lefton (BBYO Staff)

Jen Appel (BBYO Staff)

Tarryn Winik (NRE- NoVa council)

Sarah Yonas (LSR) 

Courtney Fields (NTO #74 (Go penguins!!!) )

I truly hope this article can be helpful to you readers in some way whether its realizing “hey! Thats not a bad thing to add onto my packing list!” or I hope that it was just an interesting read all around. Before I close out this article I definitely would like to add that if you feel just a * little* lost when it comes to packing don’t forget to check out the spirit guide but most importantly ask around! It’s definitely a lifesaver :). 

‍

With that, 

Submitting this article with an undying love for all BBYO staff and NTO #74

Micah Pierandri (See y’all in Dallas!)