This past Pentecost weekend over 165 children and 75 adults attended an annual children’s camp in Someren, Noord-Brabant, the Netherlands. The camp is designed for children between the ages of 7 and 12 years old and is a yearly event that many look forward to.

Ruth de Haan was the camp coordinator this year and has been involved with many of the camps in the past. “This will be my first year as overall coordinator, so it’s a bit exciting,” she said. As of her hopes for the camp, she added, “What I really hope for is that the children will meet God that weekend. That they will learn and experience that God loves them and that He will take care of them, no matter what the situation is!” 

The planning began in December but the groundwork was started long before. “The biggest part is getting the staff together,” said de Hann. “All of the different sections have its own staff members and they are responsible for organizing what needs to be done.”

With such a large group of children they have decided to split them up into small groups so they don’t feel lost or alone. In these groups they have devotion times, eat together, stay in the same dorm and do many of the activities together as well. The normal size of the group is 8 –to10 children and 2 or 3 adult leaders.

During the weekend there were four services adapted to reach the children on their level. Some of the things that are incorporated into the service are music, a drama team and a special speaker to give the devotions. According to de Hann, “The theme this year is ‘hero on socks’ … [which] in Dutch means someone who chickens out.”

Besides the services there are workshops, games, playing in the woods and an evening where the children get to perform and display their gifts in front of their peers.

The cost is 80€ per participant but, if there are two or more from one family they can apply for a discount. Sometimes it is hard for a family to come up with that kind of money so, in times of crisis, families can ask for help and apply for a scholarship. The scholarship funds are raised by churches on the region to sponsor children in need for the kids camp. Many children and families save for the entire year for this special weekend.

When all is said and done, de Haan’s biggest prayer is “That God is able to do whatever he wants to do and that we are all sensitive to His voice.”