The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) in Austria is offering a total of 150 children the opportunity to enjoy nature and leisure for two weeks at a summer camp and leave the stresses of conflict behind. In five camps at beautiful locations in the provinces of Salzburg, Carinthia, Upper Austria, and Vorarlberg, the children will be looked after by qualified helpers in July and August.

According to ADRA managing director Marcel Wagner, the summer camps will take place at Lake Klopeiner (Carinthia), Lake Wolfgang (Salzburg), Selker (Upper Austria), and Schwarzenberg (Vorarlberg). Activities in nature, such as swimming, climbing, building rope bridges, and caving, as well as community-building through games, stories around the campfire, joint handicrafts, and singing are planned. The focus is on psychological support.

Children ages 7–12 from areas particularly affected by the conflict in Ukraine can participate. The children are selected by ADRA Ukraine, taking social and psychological criteria into account. The summer camp is a joint project of ADRA Austria and ADRA Ukraine.

ADRA Austria

ADRA Austria is a registered aid organization independent of the state and has been in existence since 1992. It is part of ADRA International, a worldwide humanitarian organization supported by the Seventh-day Adventist Church. ADRA International consists of a worldwide network with over 120 independent national offices and about 7,500 full-time employees.

After its foundation, ADRA Austria initially carried out aid projects mainly in Southeastern Europe and Africa. After the tsunami disaster in 2004, activities in Asia (Sri Lanka and India) were intensified. Since then, the program of ADRA Austria has constantly expanded, and the projects support people on most continents.

For more information on ADRA Austria, please go here.

The original version of this story was posted on the Inter-European Division