ACN summer camps supported by the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need benefit over 30 thousand children and young people worldwide every year by assisting local churches in their organization. This year, the international charity is funding 407 summer camps through 46 projects across 11 different countries, successfully reaching a total of 33,631 participants. The structural impact of this outreach is particularly significant in countries heavily marked by war, forced displacement, and geopolitical instability.
Global impact of ACN summer camps
Statistical data shows that just three nations —Syria, Lebanon, and Ukraine— account for more than 85 percent of all participants enrolled in the summer camps supported by the foundation. The detailed breakdown includes:
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Syria: Accounts for 17,855 participants across 230 camps, representing more than half of the global total.
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Lebanon: Reaches 7,465 participants distributed across 61 camps.
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Ukraine: Registers 3,518 participants gathered across 74 camps.
Many of these specialized initiatives are aimed specifically at refugees and children living with disabilities. These programs are much more than simple recreational activities; they offer essential protection, dedicated pastoral care, emotional healing, and a sense of long-term hope for young people who have grown up in environments of conflict, poverty, or forced exile.
Furthermore, the charity’s support extends beyond traditional camp setups. Other pastoral activities designed for children in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Togo, and Venezuela have benefited an additional 5,230 participants across nine targeted initiatives. Consequently, overall institutional support has reached 38,861 children and young people through 416 camps and combined pastoral activities worldwide.
Oasis of peace and testimonies from Syria
Behind these figures are concrete examples of how the Church remains close to the younger generations precisely where they most need to feel accompanied, listened to, and supported. Claude Semaan, coordinator of the international movement Faith and Light in Syria —which fosters spiritual growth among people with disabilities— explained the reality of these experiences in a nation facing over a decade of civil war and episodic persecution:
“The camp gives us tremendous energy for the year ahead. It is a space of hope, a space of real life. It is the kind of life that we are no longer able to live in our homes. We are losing what a normal life should be, but at the camp we are able to live it with complete freedom, with joy, and even through our pain, which we share together”.
The local clergy remains deeply grateful to the international benefactors who systematically fund these pastoral initiatives. Father Fadi Azar, serving on the ground in Syria, emphasized the vital nature of this financial assistance:
“I would like to thank ACN for helping us with our summer camps. Were it not for your help – which is so vital for our Christians – they would not be able to take part in these gatherings of prayer, meditation and joy. Thanks to you, they are able to eat well and travel to the mountain location where we hold our camp. The families look forward to this; they look forward to it every year with great joy. Without your financial support, it simply wouldn’t be possible. I cannot find the words to thank you enough at this moment. We are praying for you, truly; our camps would not have taken place without your generosity. Thank you, ACN”.
