The Beginning of Camp Vetca!

get ready for an extra long blog.....:-)

We have now finished our first week of camp. This week was definitely a week of learning as the interns and new volunteers were figuring out how the weeks are going to work. The kids we had this week were from Turnaveni, Sarmas, Campenita, and some other group homes. I didn’t really come to RO with expectations of what the kids would be like, but I guess I was surprised at how many of the kids have disabilities. So many of the children we had were Autistic or have Ausburgers and so many other mental and social disabilities. While the kids love camp and we love the kids, all of these special needs put together can make for a trying experience as we try to play games. Oh yeah, and the interns don’t speak their language…but the Lord was so good.
Camp surrounds the theme of the Olympics this summer, so each team is a specific country. The kids had such a great time with this theme and really got into cheering on their country. We even had a medal ceremony the last night of camp. Germania took the gold this week, with Romania close in 2nd.
I was assigned to be a station leader this week, so I did not lead a team, but was in charge of some games and crafts and helping out with the extra things that needed to be done. I really liked seeing how camp works as a whole, seeing what supplies we needed for each activity and supervising games will help in the next weeks as the number of our interns decrease and there will be more to take care of. However, it will be great to have an actual team with specific kids that I can focus on in other weeks of camp.
I’m starting to pick up some of the language by being around the kids. They are great teachers and love to laugh at the funny ways we pronounce their words. I can definitely understand more when I listen to people speak as opposed to speaking Romaneste. There are just several sounds in the language that I can’t quite grasp and it’s hard to remember words that aren’t repeated very much. But I am understanding phrases that we say over and over again to the kids, like “sit down” or “throw the ball” or “very good.”
So here is an overview of our days at Tabara (Camp) Vetca:
Monday: We visited the kids at their group homes and played with them at a field. They were organized in their teams and had their first competitions as a team.
Tuesday: The kids arrived in Vetca in the afternoon. We had been setting up before that, getting their beds ready and such. When the kids arrived, we checked them in and had some “athletic training exercises.” They played some games of Wiffleball and had dinner before one of the main Olympic events, the Battle for the Rings. After that, we had club time which they sing and listen to a lesson that Paul presents. Of course, it wouldn’t be camp without a camp fire, so the kids enjoyed s’mores after club time.
Wednesday: Our first full day at camp begins about 7am, mainly just because you can’t sleep any later than that. The leaders have a meeting at 8 to talk and pray before we set up breakfast. Some of the highlights for the kids on Wednesday were the slip and slide in the afternoon and the messy games in the evening. It was kind of good to have the slip and slide in the middle of the week to get them a little cleaner than they were, haha. Of course, the free time before and after most of the meals allows for a good chance to hang out with the kids, we throw the ball, paint nails and watch the boys play basketball. I got some great manicures from some of the boys actually. Some of them love to paint the girls’ nails and play with their hair, it’s so funny. I think these particular boys just needed some quality time to chill with some of the leaders. It was great fun.
Thursday: This day pretty much looks the same as Wednesday, except for the evening with the medal ceremony and party. We have this huge dance party (“discoteca”) with balloons that they pop within 2 minutes. The kids love to dance to the techno songs and then American songs like the Macarena and Cotton Eye Joe. It so much fun to be crazy with them (and you girls know how I love a good dance party ☺). As I mentioned earlier, we have a medal ceremony for the teams. It was great to see how them so excited for each team. Thursday night is also special because we get a chance to pray over the kids and give them gift bags with things they need. One of the really cool things about this was the opportunity I had to share with one of the volunteer girls. Since this blog is already so long, I will make this a short story, but she says that she does not believe God exists, yet she found herself loving the kids. When we prayed, she did as well and was moved to tears because of how she loved the kids. Afterwards, another intern and I talked with her as she opened up about her beliefs (or rather, lack of belief). Anyways, it was so cool to talk with her and pray over her. I told her that there was a reason she was helping at camp this summer and that the love she has for the kids was from God. I really pray that she see the truth from all of this and believe. Please be praying for her, that the Lord continue moving her heart and that she comes back to volunteer at camp.
Friday: This day is pretty quick at camp as we are getting cleaned up to leave for The Weekend. We have breakfast and get the kids packed up. We then take them to a water park called The Weekend. Some people played this place up to be really gross, but it really wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. It’s not super nice, but there is lots to do there and the kids really enjoy the pools and the water slides. We were in the water for maybe ten minutes when a huge storm came rolling in, so we had to quickly run and grab all of our stuff and get the kids warm. We were all soaking wet and had to sort through the piles of clothes to get the kids dressed. They were upset, but kept good attitudes. We said our goodbyes from the parking lot. Some of the kids cried and some were joking around, but it was evident that they really enjoyed their week at camp.

I’m so sorry for such a long post, but getting a good overview of camp will help you know how to pray. Please pray for the volunteers, the kids for next week, for the energy of the staff, and for the few interns that will be leaving next week. Also pray that we have good weather at camp next week. It was pretty hot this week, but we survived by getting in the shade or next to fans during our down times. Thank you so much for praying for me, the team, and the orphans here in Romania. Knowing that you are all going to the Lord on my behalf helps get me through the week. I could not do this without the Lord’s strength and grace. Have a blessed week!!

Ps. this is a major side note, but I feel like it has to be told. This weekend is a huge festival called Mures Days in TM. There are tons of concerts, street vendors and carnival rides in the town. Sarah and I were walking back from dinner last night and heard the very familiar tune of Sweet Home Alabama!! We were so shocked to hear Romanians singing this song and the crowd knowing all the words to it! This was such a surreal moment for me here in Romania that I will never forget. How funny is that?!