Ukrainian children from across Southern Norway attended a summer camp in Bø. The goal: new friendships, great nature experiences, and a sense of belonging
By Vilde Heldal
“The best thing is that there are so many people here who speak my language. People talk much more here than at school. We are together all the time, doing many different activities, and going on mountain hikes every day.”
This is shared enthusiastically by 13-year-old Kataryna. She lives in Valdres, but in July she attended a summer camp at Jønnbu Mountain Church (Jønnbu Fjellkyrkje), where the days were filled with mountain hikes, activities, and making new friends.
The camp, which was arranged for the first time this year, was organized by the Orthodox Mission of Saint King Olav — an organization founded in Bø last year by priest Andrii Pinchuk.
“The main goal is to help children get to know one another and feel safer in a new environment. We want them to find new friends and feel more at home in Norway,” says Pinchuk about the summer camp.
A Common Goal
For Pinchuk, dedication to children comes naturally. In Ukraine, he and his wife ran a relief organization caring for foster children.
“I love working with children. We have three biological children and 16 adopted ones, so there was always a lot of life at home. Our house was like a summer camp every summer when we lived in Ukraine,” he says.
Joining his team at Lifjell was an international group of volunteers from Norway, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, Great Britain, and the Netherlands. Most of them have worked with children for a large part of their lives, and some have spent their entire professional careers doing so.
“They have extensive experience and great enthusiasm. We gathered around one common goal: to create a safe, warm, and memorable summer camp for the children,” Pinchuk notes.
Carrying Trauma
Pinchuk explains that many of the children carry heavy stories from the war.
“One girl shared that her family owned a business in Ukraine, but when the Russian soldiers arrived, they took everything. Another child shared that his father is in the war. Another has a brother fighting. They carry traumatic stories.”
The priest hopes the camp school will give the children a space where they can stop thinking about the war and simply be children.
“For many children, it is difficult to integrate because they have experienced so much. Here they get a new network and new friends. We also want to show them the beautiful Norwegian nature and spark an interest in outdoor life,” says the Orthodox priest.
Aiming to Expand
For next year, he hopes to include even more children from across Norway in the camp.
“This year, unfortunately, we had no Norwegian children among the participants, but we want to change this in the future. If both Ukrainian and Norwegian children participate, it will contribute to better integration, more Norwegian language practice, and new friendships,” says Pinchuk.
In the future, they also hope to reach even more Ukrainian children and arrange summer camps across the country.
Great Help from the Local Community
The summer camp did not happen by itself. It required months of planning, applying for funding, and connecting with local businesses, farms, and organizations.
Contact with local contributors was handled by his daughter, Mariia Pinchuk.
“We received fantastic support from the local community,” she says, listing the contributors: “KIWI Bø and Bø Asiamat contributed food. We got sweet cherries from Tufte farm, eggs from Skoe, strawberries from Øygarden, tomatoes from Akkerhaugen Gartneri, and potatoes from Kåsin farm.”
She notes that feeding 40 hungry teenagers who were highly active from morning until night required a massive amount of food. They also received many other contributions from both businesses and private individuals.
“Without this help, running the camp would not have been possible,” says Mariia Pinchuk.
13-year-old Kataryna hopes the camp school becomes a tradition.
“I hope to come back next year. Then I will be in the oldest group, which I am really looking forward to. You get more responsibility there, and I like that,” she concludes.
