3 days, 20 campers, 15 leaders. Immeasurable fun!
In the first week of January, 20 young people and 15 team members set off on our annual summer youth camp. There are so many things worth sharing and celebrating from this camp. But what we really want to highlight is how much fun was had.
The teams were purple and green; and anything could win (or lose) you team points.
The small-group activity rotations had us running around the campsite; debating trivia answers, posing for photos, designing trick shots and more.
We loved watching as young people organically gathered to do crafts and play games together during free time.
In our team games we dodged water balloons, ran with wet sponges, threw stress balls, and raced between inflatable pools.
We ended these games with an unplanned (but not unexpected) water fight.
We had a glorious afternoon at the beach, and then ended the second night with some highly anticipated Lasertag around the campsite.
We went bouldering on the way home, and ended camp in Kid’s Paradise with icy poles and the long-awaited announcement of the winning camp team: Purple!
One of my favourite stories of organic fun is that of a group of four young people, who spent over an hour at the beach digging out what would become a ‘sand pool’ big enough for all of them to sit in.
They had no shovels and no buckets; only their hands, feet and a tub which had been used to carry some sports equipment.
But they were inspired and excited by an offhand comment made by one of our leaders about her favourite way of spending time at the beach growing up.
It was a moment of inter-generational joy, born of story-telling and shared experience.
Fun is a truly powerful force.
It keeps us young at heart, and gets us excited about life.
Shared experiences of fun help us find that sense of belonging we all long for.
Fun allows us to step outside of ourselves, to be playful, and get lost in the moment.
Having fun is part of the Jude’s DNA – we believe life should be fun at all ages.
It is why we structure our events the way we do – Slime pits, balloon drops, paint and sips, flower workshops, gingerbread house making, and our upcoming golf fundraiser.
Thank you for sowing the seeds of fun.
More Stories from Jude's Village
Jude's Village January 2026 Newsletter: Youth Camp Recap
Jude's Village November 2025 Newsletter: Avery's Story: Hope, heartbreak, and an AFL Draft Pick.
