By The Grace Of The Almighty, this year’s Caribbean Youth Camp was successfully held in the beautiful West Indian island of Trinidad. With the theme being `Youths for the truth in these last days,’ Christadelphian young people from Caribbean countries assembled at the Chatam Youth facility, South Erin, August 6 to 12, 2003.
The contingent of approximately 130 was comprised of young people from Barbados, Guyana, Tobago and Trinidad. There were also visitors from the United States and Canada.
Bre. Dev Ramcharan and Cohn Badger of Canada were the speakers. Bro. Dev offered very helpful studies from the book of Ruth. It was amazing to see how he evaluated and developed godly principles in each chapter. Everyone found his presentations to be filled with valuable lessons. Similarly, Bro. Badger brought us wonderful Bible instruction. He dealt with the parables found in Matthew 13. The parable of the sower had a strong impact on the young people, because after being taught its significance, they tried to discern what type of soil (in their hearts and minds) they were. To help reinforce his lessons, Bro. Badger provided worksheets and quizzed the youths on the material he presented.
In addition to the talks, there were other activities. Each morning, at the sound of a siren we were awakened and participated in a program of physical exercise at 5:30. This was followed by morning devotions. Following breakfast, we were divided into six groups, named after six Kings of Israel, for the purpose of sports and games. Each group competed with the others to achieve the highest points. Competitions included the traditional West Indian sport, cricket, Bible games, tug-of-war and basketball. We also had a treasure hunt which was lots of fun.
One evening, we enjoyed a four-mile nature walk in Chatam’s hilly countryside. There were two other outings, one to a beach and another to a shopping mall. Light entertainment sessions included singing and poetry competitions, a debate and a social night. The topic for the debate was `Materialism is the Cause of Immorality Today.’ It was very interesting, and the opposition won.
Special thanks to the brethren and sisters of Trinidad for their love and dedication in organizing and operating this camp. Thanks also to the members of the Caribbean Youth Committee and all the youth leaders for their support and work on this activity. Most of all, our heavenly Father is thanked for His blessings and protection on us His children during this wonderful week together.
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