The collaboration among the Albanian and Kosovar youth that came to Albania during 1999 has continued with a special tradition over these years. Through these camps, which have an educative and entertaining nature for the children, a close collaboration with an exchange of experiences and a deepening of friendships is attained, which started during the period of war and continues to grow every year.

About 1,750 Kosovar children participated this year in the camps organized by the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania in the community of Malisheva. Twenty-five young adult volunteers from the Church organized four camps in two different periods. The goal of these camps was the strengthening of the friendship among the Albanian youth from Kosovo and Albania as well as the entertainment of the children. This activity was held with the permission of the local Ministry of Education in the community of Malisheva, in “Ibrahim Mazreku” elementary school, “Naim Frashëri” in Banja and in another school in Begaj which is a branch of “Naim Frashëri” school and holds the same name as well as in the school of “Mustafa Bakija” in the village of Caralluka.

The first three camps were organized at the end of June and the beginning of July while the “Joy” camp was organized at the end of August.  Prof. Dr. Ramiz Hoti, professor at the University of Prishtina said that this camp was a good opportunity for the beginning of the new academic year in Kosovo. The program was composed with different games, arts and crafts, songs and discussion sessions. Each camp was crowned with a festival organized by the children themselves. For these festivals leaders of local government, teachers of the schools where the camps were held and parents of the children were invited.

The camp in “Ibrahim Mazreku” school was named “Friendship”, while in the school of Begaj it was named “Hope”, in “Naim Frashëri’ school it was named “Kindness” and in Caralluka it was named “Joy”. The children were separated in two different age groups and each age group was named after the virtues like “Peace, Forgiveness, Love, Respect, etc.” We didn’t see all these qualities from the moral point of view, but in its actual one. These names weren’t only some random qualities, but values of life, which make up the foundation of a healthy society that makes up a person with values. For this reason this activity should be seen as a privilege and a gift given by God because all the games, dances, songs and every entertaining thing that we shared with the Kosovar children had as its base a mutual love between us and the children, a love that ensured us that our activity had been a successful one.

The directors of the schools have shown their interest for this activity and have expressed their gratitude and have made the request for a continuation of these camps in the coming years. “This children’s camp is welcomed now that the academic year has ended” – said Mr. Rexhep Mazreku, the director of the elementary school “Ibrahim Mazreku” in Malisheva.

While the director of the school “Mustafa Bakija” in Caralluka, Mr. Mifail Krasniqi, in his greeting thanked the Orthodox youth group from Albania for organizing this camp. “In this camp many of our children were exited.  Especially, I want to greet and thank Mr. Nathan Hoppe who for 5 years has given his contribution in this school and in some other schools in Malisheva as well, who for personal reasons couldn’t be present in this camp, and I ask the staff of this camp in the name of all the teachers of the school to send him our condolences for the loss of his wife. These activities are always welcomed in our school,” underlined Mr. Krasniqi.

For five years, the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania organizes camps in different schools in this community. These camps have been done in collaboration with the teachers of the schools. The children, parents and teachers have showed interest for their continuation during these years. This brought the possibility for the children to be entertained and the friendship to become stronger. This year, the media showed interest as well. The journals “Lajm”, “Zëri” “Kosovaonline”, “Koha Jone”, and radio station “Dukagjini” wrote and spoke about the camps in their papers and in their transmissions.

In the last evening of each camp our staff organized a dinner with the teachers of each school in order to express their gratitude for the collaboration and care that they showed during the camps.

 “Everything started during the war time when the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania has offered aid to 33.000 refugees. They offered to them     $12 million aid. The Orthodox Church continued to offer its help even when many refugees returned to Kosovo helping them with their immediate needs. So a friendship started and we continued it through the camps” – said Gabriela Bezhani, coordinator in the Children’s Office of the Orthodox Church in Albania.

We HOPE that our FRIENDSHIP will grow even more and that the JOY and KINDNESS will multiply in our modern society.