- 1520 GREEN ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123
- 415-567-WEST(9378)
- webmaster@dowoca.org
For many children, St. Eugene’s Orthodox Youth Summer Camp is the highlight of their summer; their week is filled with joy, prayer, laughter, and togetherness. This year, we gathered at Camp Arroyo in Livermore, California, where the days were hot and the mornings and nights were cool. Every day, the sky was painted with brilliant colors that reminded us of the beauty of God’s creation. We were truly blessed with this opportunity to unite safely, following established Covid-19 guidelines, granting our community a brief respite from the pandemic to pray together.
From July 11th to July 17th, sixty-seven campers, five clergy members, and thirty volunteers came together from across the diocese to celebrate God’s love and delve into our week’s theme of forgiveness. In our Christian Education classes, we learned how to repent, how to forgive our brothers and sisters in Christ, and studied the parable of the Prodigal Son. We sang together at meals, in our morning prayers, during Vespers, Divine Liturgy, and at our campfire. We played together: elbow tag, relay races, and our camp-wide Olympics, a fan-favorite among our campers. We laughed together, and performed skits. We beat the heat by swimming in the pool and having fun with water balloons. We answered bible questions, played bingo, recognized each other for random acts of kindness, and vyed to win the cabin cup. From churches all across the state, we became a family who cannot wait to reunite again next year.
Every moment of our week together was filled with love. Thank you to all who prayed for us, raised money to support our campers and volunteers, and gave your time and effort to make this year such a success. We were extremely blessed to receive donations to our camp fund so costs could lower for our campers from several parishes from the Pacific Central Deanery (and beyond) like Holy Trinity Cathedral in San Francisco, St. Seraphim of Sarov Cathedral in Santa Rosa, St. Christina of Tyre in Fremont, St. Nicholas in San Anselmo, Nativity of the Holy Virgin in Menlo Park, St. Mary Magdalene in Atwater, St. John of Damascus in Poway, St. Nicholas in Saratoga, St. Michael the Archangel in Concord, and Holy Assumption Monastery in Calistoga. We value your contributions that ensure that St. Eugene’s can continue being an affordable option for our campers. We hope to see you all again next year!
The Diocese of the West is the geographical district of the Orthodox Church in America consisting of the Western United States. The diocese has active parishes in Montana, Colorado, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Oregon, California and Hawaii. San Francisco is home to the diocese’s cathedral, Holy Trinity, as well as the Chancery offices. The diocese is led by His Grace Vasily, Bishop of San Francisco and the West.
