Kampamentu APEM 2009

The preparation for the camp consisted of maintenance works throughout the past eight months, specific workdays to fasten the screens to the ventilation blocks of the cabins and a clean-up and final preparation day just before camp. The week before camp was also a spiritual preparation. Every day had an hour of prayer (together with the counsellors and group leaders) - from 18h00-19h00, Monday 29 June till Friday, 3 July. Each prayer session was started with group prayer, where after every individual went around the entire campsite and to the facilities to pray for each and every specific activity that will take place there. After an hour we all gathered again for group prayer to conclude the session.

Then the time arrived for camp. It commenced with a leaders' training weekend for the 15 cabin leaders and staff on Friday, 3 July and ended on Saturday at 16h00. Saturday morning we were blessed with a hard shower of rain and everyone had to gather in the kitchen to continue with the worship and devotion session.

Sunday afternoon at 14h00 all gathered for the final preparation and setup for the campers to arrive at 16h00. The children were registered, the medicine and valuables were taken in for safekeeping as well as the money for snack shop. After the registration three groups had to be compiled and a name badge prepared for each child and cabin leader.

Grupo Oraño (Orange)


Grupo Kòrá (Red)

Grupo Hel (Yellow)

The theme of the camp was "Put on the full amour of God to stand firm against Satan." All the Bible lesson sessions and memory verses were taught by volunteer staff and the cabin leaders did the rest of the follow-up in their cabin groups.

The mornings started out with the singing of the Bonaire anthem. This was followed with group prayer for the Governing body of Bonaire, for the leaders by name and their specific responsibilities. Then it was off for the early morning games filled with challenges, fun and excitement. Next on the program was to get everyone to shower and ready for breakfast.

An hour of Bible time followed, and application sessions that involved Memory verse repetition, a Practise session for the Thursday night show and an Adventure experience to stretch their faith and comfort zone and to encourage team work. This application session was an hour-and-a-half and every half hour the groups changed from one activity to another. At the end of the hour-and-a-half every group would have participated in all three activities.

This brought us to an hour of lunch time, a half hour of rest in the cabins and a half hour of mission time. Hereafter one group would go to the beach for an outing from 14h30 until 18h15.

The other two remaining groups would rotate between an hour Craft time and a hour Snack shop with time for a project. The last hour was spent on team sport - softball against each other - and then an hour of shower (17h00 - 18h00) before dinner time at 18h00. The group that went on the outing will return to shower during the dinner time and every one will then be ready for the evening program at 19h00. During this time they will sing, play a review game and watch a short movie on children prayer. This is followed by devotion and prayer time in the three different groups while the cabin leaders meet to discus the day and share testimonies. Then it is off to the cabins to prepare for bed and half-an-hour later at 22h00 it is lights off and eyes and mouths closed.

This same program is followed for three days and then on Thursday the program change slightly because everyone had an opportunity to go to the beach and that evening it is the Thursday evening show to which all the parents are invited. There is still two important events to mention here, the one happened on Tuesday evening with a surprise "late" birthday singing for one of the staff members, Tante Dionne, and the other was the campfire, singing and enjoyment of crackers squashed on to chocolate and melted marshmallows.

Thursday evening the crafts were inspected, a show presented by the children and a slide show about the camp was viewed followed by all the thank you's and words of appreciations. Hereafter they went to the cabins for devotions, prepared for bed and sleep. Friday is a time for all the last things to enjoy and finishing up the outstanding responsibilities to be ready with all the cleaning and packing-up by 15h00 for the closing program. Here the winning team was announced and a special act preformed - the youngest of the winning team and the oldest of the winning team each got an opportunity to put a cream pie in the camp director's face.

Hereafter all that was left is the memories, the saying good byes, and the last cleaning and tidying up.

26 boys attend this year's camp and 17 girls brought it to a total of 43 children. The boys came one short of the maximum we could accommodate and the girls 10 short. This gave us two groups of 14- and one group of 15 children. Of this whole group 14 children accepted Christ as their personal Saviour.

So we came to the end of a camp that was blessed by God from the first preparations through to the final administration and evaluation sessions still to follow. God worked in and through our lives to touch and change the lives of boys and girls for the better.

To God all our praises, thanksgiving and appreciation.

A few maintenance tasks completed at Camp

The past 8 months on Bonaire was highlighted by maintenance, maintenance, and maintenance to infrastructure, tools and the fast growing grass and shrubs.

The first picture is just after we arrived on Bonaire and in a few months we saw how this nice green carpet covering the soil turned into a knee-height jungle.

But God is good and faithful and there was this ride-on lawn mower in one of the sheds. I cleaned it, filled it with gasoline and connected a battery and there it started very soon. I don't know when it was last used? But it was a big blessing to keep the grass under control so that the groups could use the facilities effectively.

A nice soft carpet of grass.

The carpet very soon grew into this jungle.


But with this it was tamed, regularly.

Then the grass started to turn brown and the bushes grew big. Many bushes were eradicated, with a few left to be trained into small shade trees - a much needed commodity on this "island in the sun".

Thorn bushes that were eradicated.

Then there was the much needed repair works to the buildings.

At first the holes seemed small ...


But, at the end we had to replace that whole section of roof.

A family of Oregon, America, were an enormous blessing to us as family, the camp facilities and the ministry. A BIG thank you for your willingness to serve us and the children of Bonaire.

Then there was also the wooden doors that swelled during the wet rainy season and none would open. The only solution was to take it down and plane it until it opened smoothly.

With this I also saw the destructive work of termites at work.

Nelmari's sixth birthday - 4 June 2009

1. Each of the 24 children in Nelmari's class, 1e, received a bag full of goodies.
   

Henk do the decorations after Pietjie did the baking.

The final product of the team efort.

The eating group of the team.

Candles burning under the sound of birthday voices.

Alea and Nelmari testing out the new 'hand-mobile'

But nothing beat the Skype with Grandma Maxi in Windhoek, Namibia.