July 31, 2022
Five summer programs completed so far! Thank you all for staying faithful in continuous support of our team. We miss each one of you so much!
Our summer season launched in Italy with our two camps in a completely new setting. Our Ukrainian season, for obvious reasons, started later. As soon as we were cleared by the military administration to do camps on our camp site, we started.
We started with a Staff Camp – a training camp for 90+ volunteers to get the team ready for summer camps in the new context and with added risks. We now have over 400 volunteers from all over the country serving with us. Each one dedicating one or several weeks of their year to help grow the ministry of Camp Maximum. Our Maximum family is growing and adding every year! This year it is a special blessing to have our team comprise of 47% first timers. After a two-week period of working with the team, they all called Camp Maximum the best experience of their year and the best camp in their life!
Yesterday, we said our “goodbyes” to the second group of teen campers. In the last two weeks, we were able to serve 180 teens. Many came from temporarily displaced families and most are dealing with traumatic experiences. In the last several months some of these teens have lost their mothers, fathers, and other family members. It is beyond words to explain what kind of conversations we are having with our campers. What Russia is doing in Ukraine will be so difficult to forgive!
Today, we are starting our first kids’ camp. With less than 24 hours to change teams and get the site ready, we are set to host another group of 80+ kids. Please continue to keep us all in your prayers!
With love from Ukraine,
Vitaliy
