KURTUMGARH: On 16-17 May 2017 was a red letter day for the Children of St. Sebastian Parish Church Kurtumgarh. The theme chosen for the summer camp was: “Walking with Jesus.” There were 38 Participants from classes III to X.  It was for the first time that the summer camp has been organized in the history of Kurtumghar Parish Church.

The Sisters took great interest in organizing, though responses from the part of the children were very poor.  Keeping in mind the words of Don Bosco ‘even when there is only one child I will drag my feet to save that soul.’   Bro. Manish our neighbour, who is studying for the priesthood in the Society of Sacred Heart of Jesus, came for his home visit gave his full time and was quite interested in helping us to conduct the camp.

Many children were unaware of the camp, but after attending they realized the importance and the richness of the camp. The camp began with the prayer service asking God’s blessings and help on all the participants and the animators. Sr. Annie T. in her inaugural talk quoted Don Bosco’s words “Run, Jump, Shout, but do not sin.” She also exhorted the  children  to learn as much as they can from the camp.

Children were divided into groups. In the morning hours Sr. Shanti Tirkey,  Sr. Prisca Bara and Bro. Manish taught them catechism and in the afternoon they had various  games and competitions.

On the second day of the camp Rev. Fr. Jugal  Digal, the parish priest of the Kurtumgarh  spoke to the children about Jesus and the need to become a person of prayer.

The two days of camp came to an end with the cultural programme by the children. They manifested their talents through dance, skit and song. Winners of the competitions were awarded with the prizes. Children expressed their thanks for organizing the camp. We thank the Almighty God for his presence and guidance.

The Summer Camp named “Auxi Camp 2017 – 4 G” was held at the school campus of Auxilium Convent School from 14^th – 16^th May 2017. The camp was inaugurated on 14^th May with a short prayer service and bursting of the balloons by the campers. Soon after this Fr. Anthony declared the summer Camp open by cutting the ribbon. The  camp was animated by Fr. Roshan Kullu. Later he introduced the 112 campers to 4G – Glow, Grow, Glorify, God through a power point presentation. Sr. Principal, Sr. Rejina Joseph, Sr. Vice Principal, Sr. Ruben and Sr. Pramila graced the occasion. Ms. Phuriana Kandulna and Ms. Shampa Paul were the general animators and Ms. Lipika Mukherjee, Ms. Mousumi Adhikary, Ms. Dolly Mallick, Ms. Lily Ekka, Ms. Aditi Biswas, Ms. Piyali Mitra, Ms. Suparna Adhya and Ms.Soumita Pramanick were animators of different groups. Harsha Bihani and Babita Mariya Ray were the general leaders of the campers.

 The first event called ‘Autograph Plz’ made the students go around collecting autographs of various people who fulfilled the given criteria; which helped them to know each other. Next came the ice breaking session in which the girls were divided into four groups that they named as ‘Flyers, Jurevo, Diamond and Vibrant. Then a balloon game was conducted, followed by a group discussion which taught the girls important values of life. Later the campers relished the delicious lunch which was actually a surprise gift from Sr. Principal, Sr.Rejina Joseph. This was followed by an Action Song competition and HOUSIE. Their inventiveness and creativity were examined and explored through a chart which each group had to prepare. The last event of the day was money betting competition in which girls had to play various games against the opponent group members and win money for their group (viz basketball, throw ball, badminton, carrom, Ludu etc.). After the announcement of the marks obtained by the groups, Green House was given the winners flag and the camp was declared closed for the day. Campers went back home exhausted but with joy in their hearts and a smile on their lips; waiting for the next day to come. Students learnt important valued of leadership, teamwork and cooperation on the first day of the camp.

On 15^th May 2017, campers came back with renewed vigour to attend the second day of the camp. After the attendance, the day began with a prayer and a hymn in orders to invoke the blessings of God. The first event of the day includes innovative outdoor games like Leg Cricket, Hitting the tail, Dog and the bone and Rama-Ravana. A short Tiffin break followed, after which the girls assembled in the school AV room for the Advertisement competition. Next came a PowerPoint presentation by Fr. Roshan Kullu on the qualities required in order to be a good Leader. Campers had to collect various articles and display them group wise, which brought out their leadership qualities and coordination among the group members. This was followed by lunch which provided various delicacies to satiate their appetites. The interesting and enjoyable of all events was the Fashion Show in which all the campers including Sr. Rejina Joseph, Fr. Roshan Kullu and all the animators had to walk the ramp. Up next came the skit competitions which display the hidden talents of script writing and acting in the campers. This was followed by group dance which had to be prepared on the spot.  Then a fashion designing and hair styling event was conducted which all the more exposed their inner possibilities. The title ‘Ms. Camp’ was won by a camper of Red House. Lastly, the campers including Father and Sr. Principal danced to the tune of traditional songs which united them all at the close of the day. At the end of the second day, the winners’ flag was handed over to the captain of the Red House. Girls left for their home eagerly awaiting for the next day.

The last day of the camp was an eventful day of all. It began with the group wise outdoor games viz Tannel ball, chain race and human chain which were instrumental in harvesting the qualities of teamwork, unity and coordination among the group members. It also was an exploration of their creativity and inventiveness. After this the girls gathered in the A.V. room where they were given some question for group discussion. Next a few audio visual chips were shown which stressed the importance of living and working in a group. The animator also focused on the uses and abuses of media, without which the camp would have remained incomplete. After lunch came various indoor games like passing the polo, Musical rope, Human chair, group drawing longest newspapers and passing the water which brought forth the campers’ collaboration and intricate craftsmanship. Lastly two members of each group were required to drape a saree on their team leader, who were asked to share their experiences of the camp. The camp comes to an end with the prize distribution ceremony, a vote of thanks by our dearest Sr. Principal, Sr. Rejina Joseph and bidding goodbye to Fr. Roshan Kullu.