Regional Camporee in Denmark Draws Pathfinders from 26 Countries

Let them eat cake—over 164 feet (50 meters) of it! Some 3000 Pathfinders attending the Seventh-day Adventist Trans-European regional Pathfinder Camporee in Stevninghus, Denmark consumed enough cake to apply for the world cake-eating record and make local headlines.

While Pathfinders have yet to hear back from the Guinness Book of World Records, the camporee itself was an uncontested success, drawing Pathfinders and their leaders from 26 countries. While participants primarily hailed from northern and eastern Europe, some traveled from as far away as Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Kuwait.

During a moving baptismal service, 18 young people gave their lives to Christ and 30,000 Danish Kroner (£2,750.00 or $5,145) were collected to help launch Pathfinder clubs in Egypt and cover the cost of translating materials into Arabic.

Also garnering record status was the 80,000 Danish Kroner (£7,330.00 or $13,715) Pathfinders raised to spearhead community youth initiatives in Greenland during the Camporee Market Day.

Pathfinder director for Denmark Peter Bo Jensen, who handled local camporee planning, remarked that the event featured “a lot of activities and a rather exciting program that help[ed] to bond people from all the different cultures at the Camporee.”

In addition to the typical Pathfinder program geared for 10 - 15-year-olds, camporee planners also offered age-appropriate options for Rovers (16 - 19-year-olds). Those activities, including a night hike and an Internet café, were well attended and received.

According to Paul Tompkins, Youth Director for the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s Trans-European region, beyond generating fond memories and serving as a meeting place for Pathfinders worldwide, the camporee was most importantly “a significant spiritual opportunity for all those present to come closer to God.”