This summer, the You Are Not Alone – Mini camp brought together children from socially unprivileged families for an unforgettable week in the breathtaking Carpathian Mountains. For many of them, it was the very first time they had ever seen the mountains — the mist-covered peaks, the endless forests, and the pure mountain air became […]
A Beacon of Hope: Ukrainian Children Find Joy and Growth at YMCA Georgia Camp Europe Project Summer Camp
Amidst the ongoing challenges faced by their homeland, 32 Ukrainian children found a week of pure joy, friendship and personal growth at the YMCA Georgia “Camp Orange” summer camp “A Friend in Need is a Friend Indeed” organized within “Camp Europe” project. From August 8th to 14th, 2025, the picturesque camp grounds transformed into a […]
Camp Europe 2025: Family Camp at Brevik
A total of four days at camp with parents, friends, children of all ages and great weather! At Family Camp we met families from Ukraine that has fled a war but now try to find some sort of regular life in Sweden. Together with leaders from NGO Sensus they meet regularly in the city but […]
YMCA Camp Europe: Bringing Joy and Learning to Children
This summer, the YMCA Starý Plzenec has hosted two remarkable camps, “Adventure Under Sail” and “Harry Potter Camp,” bringing together children from both the Czech Republic and Ukraine. These camps were designed not only to foster joy and connection through play and creativity but also to support English learning in a natural and immersive way, […]
Relight the Fire: The Friendship Torch Story
If you had told me a few months ago that I would be relighting a 99-year-old torch, I might have smiled politely and nodded. However, here I am — holding a symbol that had once lit the night sky in 1926, passed from hand to hand at the first post-war YMCA World Conference in Helsinki. […]
Open Call to Host: YMCA Campacity 2026
Be the next destination for Europe’s most inspiring YMCA camp gathering! DEADLINE: May 18th 2025 We’re inviting applications to host the 3rd edition of YMCA Campacity, an international camping conference that connects YMCA leaders and camp professionals from across Europe and the USA. After energizing editions in Spain (2024) and Germany (2025), we’re looking ahead […]
YMCA Campacity Conference 2025 in Germany
Campacity 2025 took place from March 27 – 30 in Brandenburg am Havel, Germany. The third annual camp capacity building conference was held in PerspektivFabrik Camp, involving 65 participants from 16 countries. Made possible through the joint efforts of YMCA Europe and YMCA of the USA, Campacity 2025 brought together passionate camp leaders to share […]
Campacity Conference 2025: Meeting Online Before the Journey Begins
On March 4, 2025, the planning team of “Campacity” Conference organised a pre-event hangout to introduce the program, logistics, and most importantly, the people. The meeting brought together over 40 participants from different countries, providing an opportunity to get to know each other, reflect on the mission of the conference, and draw inspiration from the […]
CAMP EUROPE CALL FOR APPLICATIONS 2025
YMCA Europe is announcing a third round of funding opportunities within the framework of “Camp Europe” project initiative for 2025. INTRODUCTION The overall aim of “Camp Europe” is to build resilience amongst children and young people affected by the violent conflicts ongoing in and around Europe (Ukraine especially considered), to this end offering a safe […]
Camp Europe 2024 Post-Season Evaluation
It has been a very busy year for Camp Europe project team with 28 applications submitted to us for the review and 17 making the final cut in 2024. Eventually, hundreds of kids in different parts of Europe received the opportunity to be engaged in summer camp activities that had a very diversified profile (according […]