UKRAINE: Salesians plan camp for children affected by war
Salesians hope to provide summer camp for 65 children and youth
(MissionNewswire) The Salesian Family Home in Lviv, Ukraine*, is planning a summer camp in Pula, Croatia, in August for children. Salesians need help to bring 65 children aged 6 to 19, as well as 10 leaders who will accompany them, to Croatia for this camp. Fifteen of the children are from areas most affected by the war.
The Salesian Family Home takes in children who do not have parents, who lack parental care or who are from low-income families. Some of the children have been orphaned by the war and have fled from the conflict in Odessa, Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia.
The children go to elementary and secondary school with their peers, while the older youth vocational training courses at the local Salesian Center. Youth also participate in a wide range of extracurricular activities including learning English, singing and taking courses at the Salesian soccer school.
During the summer without normal school activities, these children do not have the same opportunities for recreation as many of their peers. The goal of Salesians in Lviv is to allow these children to return to school next school year with enjoyable memories, far from the stress of everyday life marked by war.
The Salesian Mission Office in Turin, Italy, noted, “The Salesians in Ukraine asked us to support this opportunity for Ukrainian youth to have a vacation away from the scenes of war. We hope they will be able to experience a brief period in which they forget the nightmare of sirens and shelters, the anguish of war, and the fear of bombing.”
The Salesian Family Home launched in 2006 to provide social development programs for vulnerable youth. Before the war, Salesians often organized short summer stays at the sea to help children detach from everyday life and regenerate physically and psychologically. Today, due to the war, Salesians can no longer cope with the numerous expenses related to travel, food and accommodation, small excursions, educational materials, and games. It is their goal to find a donor to help support these trips to help the youth in their care.
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Sources:
ANS Photo (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS)
ANS – Ukraine – A summer camp for children who have fled the war
*Any goods, services, or funds provided by Salesian Missions to programs located in this country were administered in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including sanctions administered by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control.
