St. Theodora of Sihla Summer Camp - 2021

With Christ in hearts and the sunshine on our faces!

Sunny days, fun time, prayers, and a lot of enthusiasm! This is how we can describe in few words the experience of the young people and children participating in the 5th edition of the St. Theodora of Sihla Summer Camp 2021.

If last year, the 4th edition, was in the form of a day camp and with many limitations for participants, this year we were able to enjoy together with young people and children from Alberta, Quebec and Ontario, a week in which childhood and the youth transformed all those present.

It was the joy of praying together in the morning and in the evening, the sunshine that swept away all the sorrows accumulated after so many months of social distancing and friendships were reconnected and a lot of Romanian language was practise.

Organized by the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Canada with the blessing and direct involvement of His Grace Bishop Ioan Casian, the camp was hosted by the “Valley of The Mother of God” Center of the Coptic Church in Mono, On. and this year had 64 participants, students, and young people from the parishes of the Diocese guided by priests and 12 monitors and volunteer supervisors.

Sunny days, forest trips, numerous projects for different age groups and most of all the joy of being together gave the little and big moments and unique memories and unraveled stories at night in the light of the campfire.

Following the model of previous years, the participants were divided into groups, named after some Romanian villages with significance for Romanian history, culture and spirituality. Glad to find out as much as possible about Putna, Humulești, Hobita, Țebea or Săpânța, the young people and children who competed on the sports fields in the basketball or football and volleyball championships. They discovered the color, the drawing and the relationship with the saint they painted in the workshops of painting icons on glass.

They learned the ancient and authentic technique of decorating eggs with wax, weaving and sewing and discovered either the solar oven or magnetic machines but also the joy of stories. And even more they were beautiful and good children, enjoying childhood and youth listening to the advices from priests in catechesis. They confessed and shared in the Divine Liturgy, discovered and learned about the saint who protects our camp, St. Theodora of Sihla.

Eager to learn from the secrets of Romanian cuisine, the girls from the Hobita Village team pampered those present with the delicacies of their grandparents' kitchen, and the teams of hardworking and thrifty boys from Humulești Village took care of and cleaned the camp perimeter. Our youngest men from Săpânța Village were held by the naughty ones, overflowing with energy on the sports field, but they were always wise and the first to pray.

From sunrise to sunset were heard, laughter of beautiful and faithful children, proud of  their traditions and roots, living harmoniously and fully the childhood in Orthodoxy.

Organizing camps and educational activities dedicated to young people and children, a constant and sustained investment in the formation and education of the young generation of Canadian Romanians is a priority in the life of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Canada. Defined by His Grace Bishop Ioan Casian as a key element of the social trinity composed of the Church, School and Family, education in all its forms, is a major coordinate of the life of the Diocese and is intended to be materialized in longevity and strengthening the Orthodox faith of the generations now forming in Canada.

Every beginning has an end, it is said, but our children and young people want to carry on... And because the whistles of the monitors are getting tired, we ask St. Theodora of Sihla to guard and protect our children until the next edition when we will find them taller, wiser, more educated, and the coordinators, volunteers and monitors probably will be more relaxed.

Final whistle for the 2021 edition!

Thank you, Lord, for everything!

(notes by Carmen Ognean)

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See more images in the Photos Gallery.