“Such a positive experience”: Parent on Pioneer Children Holiday Camp at Kenyan Parish

Credit: St. Austin’s Parish

Mrs. Were, whose five children participated in the program, went on to highlight the value of the children holiday camp to Christian families. 

She said, “The family as a whole is coming under attack from so many forces: the media, social media, TV. As parents, you get so confused when holidays are coming; there is a level of anxiety. You don't know what you're going to do with the children.”

Mrs. Were said she did not find TV “a safe space”, and that the holiday camp was “positive because you have given our children a place where they can spend their time doing fun activities; but there is also the Catholic formation, which is being inculcated in them.”

Credit: St. Austin’s Parish

“Please don't get tired, continue,” she said, addressing herself to the leadership of St. Austin’s Parish, adding, “Tell us where we can step in to support you because what you're doing is so positive.”

Also speaking to ACI Africa on the sidelines of the April 29 events that included Holy Mass to conclude the children holiday camp, another parent, Anthony Obel, lauded the organizers of the initiative for including Catholic values in the facilitators’ input.

Mr. Anthony Obel. Credit: ACI Africa

Making reference to the children who participated in the holiday camp, Mr. Obel said, “I think the period they spent here was very beneficial to them. They learned Catholic virtues so they kept telling me they learned prayers, they learned how to go to Church, how to genuflect; so I think it helped them to learn matters of faith.”

He continued, “I think it also helped them to be together with the other children, playing together, learning how to interact with other children.”

Credit: St. Austin’s Parish

“I think it was a very good experience and we are really grateful to St. Austin’s Parish for taking on this task,” Mr. Obel further said.

On his part, Geoffrey Ochieng, whose two girls participated in the program said the children are going home “transformed”.

Mr. Geoffrey Ochieng. Credit: ACI Africa

“It has been really awesome because our children were taken good care of. The children are going back very energized, and very happy,” Mr. Ochieng said.

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“Ourselves as parents, we are really grateful because the children have been formed, they have developed, and they have grown,” he added about the six-day holiday camp that brought together over 120 children aged between three and 11.

Credit: St. Austin’s Parish

Also speaking to ACI Africa, one of the facilitators, Mildred Adhola-Gowa, highlighted the motivation and importance of the children holiday camp that included input on creation stories, the Sacrament of Baptism, and show of talent.

Mrs. Mildred Adhola-Gowa. Credit: ACI Africa

“We realized that in Sunday school, we don't have enough time with the children. So, we sat down and thought that maybe we need to think about how we are going to teach them in a holistic kind of way, just to solidify the formation of the Catholic faith and also their Christian beliefs,” Mrs. Adhols-Gowa said.

She added that when pupils are on holiday, parents tend to focus on academic activities, and that Christian formation “is missed out and given a back seat.”

Credit: St. Austin’s Parish

“But as a Christian, as parents, and as church, the main responsibility we have is to teach our Christian faith so that is why we organized this program,” Mrs. Adhola-Gowa explained. 

She went on to outline some of the topics covered during the six-day initiative, saying, “We started with the story of creation. We also taught them about Adam and Eve, our first parents, what happened in the Garden of Eden.”

The training also included input on the need to be obedient, Mrs. Adhola-Gowa said, and explained, “We encouraged the children to be obedient, do what they are told by their parents or by the elders; if you don't understand something, ask for explanation.”

Credit: St. Austin’s Parish

“We had a talent day where they did amazing things,” she further said, adding, “There was a video; there was dancing, they played soccer and other activities.”

“We are looking forward to having a good program every holiday,” the facilitator at the initiative at the Catholic Parish that Spiritans started in August 1899.

Credit: St. Austin’s Parish

On his part, Fr. Henry Omwoyo who oversees Teens and the Sunday School Ministry at St. Austin’s Parish said the pioneer holiday children camp enabled the participants to better “understand the Catholic faith”.

Fr. Henry Omwoyo. Credit: ACI Africa

“The whole one-week program enabled the children to learn the faith, understanding the faith, questioning in a closer way with their teachers and their animators, and also having fun,” Fr. Omwoyo told ACI Africa.

Fr. Henry Omwoyo. Credit: ACI Africa

The input the children had, the Kenyan-born Spiritan Priest added, “makes them own the faith, accept the faith and also to live it as they grow.”

Credit: ACI Africa

“The children were taught values that “will make them choose something better (for their) future,” Fr. Omwoyo told ACI Africa on April 29, and added, “We are committed to supporting this program and there's nothing that is going to hinder us from investing in it and ensuring that many children are incorporated into it.”