Chalfont Camp

On the weekend of the 24th – 26th April twelve young people from the church youth groups, Fries and Seekers, went to the scout camp site at Chalfont. But this was a scout camp with a difference - not for us nights under canvas with only a burnt sausage on a stick to call supper; we got to stay in a luxurious “cabin”, with proper toilets, showers and a kitchen!! Alice and myself were there as leaders and we were ably assisted by Alice Hamwijk and Alistair Cotterell from the Shape group.

We had a great time taking part in a range of fun activities – go karting, wide games, shooting, archery, climbing and so on. This was also a good opportunity to get to know one another better with plenty of time in the outdoors. We took time to get to know God better too – with several sessions looking at the story of Joseph and thinking about lessons from his experiences that could be applied to our lives.

Although we woke up on the first morning to torrential rain, by the time breakfast things had been washed up the sun was out and that’s how it stayed for the rest of the camp. The Chalfont camp is on a lovely site with open fields for the young people to run around in and woods to explore. There was also a tuck shop which our group regularly visited!

Pictures from the camp Click on the images to view the gallery

On the Saturday afternoon the Vicar and his family came to see what we were up to, they joined us for tea but the excitement of the evening talent show – “HT Factor” was too much to bear so they left us to it. Britain may or may not have talent but there is no doubting the musical and entertainment skills of our young people. After many rounds of singing, dancing, juggling and joke telling the judges found it impossible to separate the contestants so an honourable draw was the conclusion. On Sunday morning the young people spent some time preparing for the service which we held in our luxurious cabin (complete with retractable screen for the powerpoint projection).

We continued our reflections on the life of Joseph – one group gave us a dramatic retelling of part of the story, whilst another led us in an active, in depth and very creative time of prayer. Many of the young people at our church have a deep and profound faith which is apparent at times like this. We sang some worshipful songs and even managed a rendition of “I closed my eyes” to remind us further of the story of Joseph.

Then sadly, it was time for our final activity and to pack up and head home to the reality of homework and exam preparation – but not before we had all sat outside our beloved cabin and enjoyed a final ice cream. A good weekend was had by all and certainly one that will last long in the memory. Many thanks need to go to Alice who did lots of the organisational work for the weekend and the young people who made it a joy for us to lead by their excellent attitude and behaviour.

Kevin Draper