W dniach 22-25 stycznia 2026 roku zorganizowaliśmy nasz pierwszy, tegoroczny zimowy obóz razem z naszym wieloletnim partnerem misyjnym Belfast Royal Academy - szkołą średnią z Irlandii Północnej.

[English version below]

Z kolei Scripture Union to chrześcijańska organizacja działająca w Belfast Royal Academy, która od 2016 roku współpracuje z Chrześcijańską Fundacją Radość wysyłając kolejne grupy wolontariuszy i w ten sposób wspierając nasze projekty misyjne.

 

I tak każdej zimy (z wyjątkiem 3 lat covidowych) Scripture Union z Belfast Royal Academy przysyła nam grupy uczniów tej szkoły z wychowawcami, którzy wspaniale realizują program naszych wspólnych obozów dla dzieci. Jak co roku, również i tym razem, przygotowali cały program obozu, wszystkie zajęcia warsztatowe i spotkania.

 

My z kolei zaprosiliśmy setkę ukraińskich dzieci mieszkających w Polsce wraz z opiekunami. Cały program odbywał się w języku angielskim i wszystko było tłumaczone na język ukraiński. Wszystkim czas spędzony na obozie, a w szczególności chrześcijański program obozu, bardzo się podobał. Powstały nowe relacje i przyjaźnie, które mam nadzieję będą kontynuowane przez lata. Jesteśmy już umówieni na kolejne wspólne obozy.

Do zobaczenia wkrótce.

Relacja w języku angielskim poniżej:

Ukrainian Children’s Camp – hosted by the Christian Joy Foundation and a team from Belfast Royal Academy.

Over the course of the week, a team of 16 volunteers took part in a children’s camp supporting Ukrainian refugee children, hosted at the Baptist Seminary. The camp provided a safe, joyful and faith-filled environment, allowing children to build friendships, learn through fun activities, and engage with the Christian message.

Camp Activities and Programme

Each day followed a structured and engaging programme. Mornings began with music, movement and group meetings, including songs with actions, short talks, testimonies and quizzes, all supported by translators. These sessions helped the children feel welcomed, energised and involved from the start of the day.

Throughout the day, children rotated through a range of activity stations, organised by age and gender. These included crafts, dance, sport, baking, English, singing, games and a ‘Young Einstein’ science station. Each station was led by team members and supported by translators, enabling meaningful interaction and relationship-building with the children. Activities varied daily, ensuring the programme remained fresh and exciting.

Evening meetings brought the children together again for worship, teaching and reflection, often followed by a short recap video highlighting the day’s events. The talks explored key Biblical themes and stories, presented in creative and interactive ways to keep the children engaged.

Community Outreach

As part of the week, the team prepared and distributed food parcels to underprivileged families in the local community. Food was carefully divided to ensure each family received a fair and practical supply. This outreach provided vital support and demonstrated care and compassion beyond the camp itself.

 

Cultural Exchange and Team Building

 

The camp also included opportunities for cultural exchange. The team shared a presentation on Northern Ireland, including landmarks, traditions and humour, and introduced the children to traditional music and dance. A talent show allowed the children to showcase their abilities, creating a joyful and encouraging atmosphere.

 

Alongside the camp programme, team members spent time reflecting together through daily devotions and Bible study, strengthening team relationships and providing space for spiritual growth.

 

Final Reflections

The camp concluded with a final session focused on the need to follow Jesus, followed by games, songs and a time of farewell. Although saying goodbye was difficult, the relationships formed throughout the week were deeply meaningful. The children’s enthusiasm, resilience and openness left a lasting impact on all involved.

The camp was a powerful reminder of the importance of God's love, faith and hope. While the team went to serve and support the children, they were equally encouraged and inspired.

 

Ukrainian Christian Joy Winter Camp - report

 

Thursday

On our first full day, we woke up early and headed to a Ukrainian camp for a service. They sang beautiful songs in Ukrainian and had a very inspiring speaker, with a translator to help us understand. My team and I went up to sing some of our worship songs in English, and a few of us shared our testimonies and favourite verses. Everyone there was very welcoming, and they prayed aloud at the same time with so much passion. Even though we couldn’t understand the words, you could feel the love and enthusiasm they all had.

After that, we went back to the Baptist Seminary and got prepared for the kids arriving. There were many stations and, as there were 16 of us, we paired up and had our own activities ready.

My partner, Elsa, and I were on crafts, so we had notebooks prepared for the kids to decorate and chat, with worship music playing. There were stations such as dancing, English, baking, sports, Young Einsteins, singing and games.

Each group of kids was organised by age and gender, so each group rotated through every station. Each group had a leader with them, and each station had a translator to help us communicate and build relationships with both the kids and each other.

There were ten groups of kids, and halfway through the session the team was given a break to wind down, explore other stations, and chat with the kids and leaders.

After our second round with the kids, we were given dinner, where we all sat at long tables to talk and interact with the Ukrainians. After dinner, we had our meeting in the basement, where the kids’ groups introduced themselves. Our team then introduced ourselves and spoke about why we were there and what we were planning to do.

Four members of my team gave talks: their favourite verse, their testimony, a talk on Joseph, and a quiz afterwards. In between each person, the team went up on stage to lead songs with actions, getting all the kids involved. We sat amongst the kids while the talks were being given.

After this, the team said goodbye to the kids, and we left them to have their daily Bible studies and go to sleep.

Friday

On Friday morning, the kids were woken up by some of the team playing music to get them excited and ready for the day. We had breakfast and then our morning meeting. We sang songs with actions and again had three speakers: a favourite verse, a testimony, a talk on Moses, and a quiz.

The kids were very enthusiastic about learning and hearing our talks, and they loved the quizzes and prizes available. We played dancing games with the kids, where everyone teamed up with partners, no matter their age or which team they were on. We did this a lot throughout the week and got to know everyone very well.

As time passed, we built friendships with the kids, the leaders and each other.

That day, we went on a scavenger hunt with the kids. Each group was paired with two members of my team, and we had to complete challenges together.

Later, my team and I prepared food parcels. We laid out crates and filled them with as much food as we could supply through all our fundraising prior to the trip. Each crate received a fair share of everything, including vegetables, fruit, meat, bread and more. We loaded them into vans and split the 18 of us into two groups of nine. One group went out to deliver the food parcels while the others stayed behind. We visited underprivileged families who didn’t have much and gave out as much as we could.

After returning, we had lunch and then started our stations again. These were the same stations - crafts, dance, Young Einsteins, singing, English, baking, games and sports - but each day included new activities. In crafts, we did face painting, which the kids were very excited about, and we interacted a lot with them.

Once the stations finished, we prepared for our evening meeting, which included a favourite verse, a testimony, and a talk and quiz on Ruth. Our speaker, Bea, included fun actions for the kids to do whenever they heard a recurring name or word, which kept their attention and interest - and they loved it. Each talk was different and covered different lessons about being a Christian, sharing many aspects of God’s word.

We sang songs again to keep the energy up, and at the end of each day a recap video was shown, highlighting moments where the kids were happiest and learning about Jesus.

After the meeting, we went on a team outing to Domino’s with all 16 team members, our two teacher team members, and Henrik. We then returned to the Baptist Seminary to do our devotions, including Bible study, before going to bed.

Saturday

On Saturday, we followed the same routine: waking the kids up with upbeat music to get them ready for breakfast, followed by a morning dance workout to help them wake up.

We had our usual morning meeting in the basement, with a favourite verse, a testimony, a talk and a quiz. This time, our team member Maria had some of the team act out her talk. While the kids listened to the translation, they could also watch the story of David and Goliath being acted out. The kids really enjoyed it and interacted a lot.

We then gave a presentation about Northern Ireland, including famous landmarks, traditions and funny slang. We brought some food for the kids to try, such as Dairy Milk chocolate, which they don’t get in Poland, and they loved it. We also did our Waves of Troy dance in the basement, which the kids enjoyed very much.

That morning, we had a talent show where many kids shared something they had prepared. They sang, danced, read poetry and played instruments, giving it their all. My team even went up to perform a song ourselves, and we all had an amazing time.

We returned to the Baptist Seminary, where Henrik shared an inspiring testimony about his life and the Joy Foundation. The team was extremely moved by his story and asked questions, gaining insight into his journey of becoming a devoted Christian.

That day, we also went on a team walk without the kids. We spent time in the snow, having fun and chatting, as we had formed close bonds over the past few days.

We then returned to prepare for our stations again - the same stations, but with different activities. In crafts, we made bracelets, giving the kids a small souvenir from the camp.

Later in the evening, we did dances and games with the kids, followed by our meeting with a favourite verse, a testimony, and a talk and quiz on Daniel. One of the leaders, Sveta, gave a talk on becoming a Christian and what it means to be one. She shared examples and showed videos, which everyone enjoyed.

After the meeting, we had our devotions, sharing our favourite parts of the day and having a Bible study, as always.

Sunday

Sunday morning was the hardest part. We followed the usual routine - a wake-up song, a workout dance, and our meeting with a favourite verse, testimony, and a talk and quiz on Jesus to round off the week. We played games with the kids and sang songs with them, sitting amongst them just like always. Before long, though, it was time to leave.

Saying goodbye to everyone who was part of the camp was difficult, but the bonds we formed through Christ were truly inspiring. Seeing the kids learn more each day and incorporate Jesus into so many aspects of their lives was incredible. Even though we were there to help them learn about God, they taught us what it truly means to love and live like Jesus, even in difficult times.