June Camp 98

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The first ever True Hearts Connection Camp was held from the 4th to the 6th of June at Victoria Junior College (VJC). Sponsored by the National Youth Council and BP Singapore, this camp provided the opportunity for the new batch of mentors from Victoria Junior College and mentees from Temasek Secondary School to get to know each other as a kick-start to their mentoring relationship.

With eager anticipation and assorted barang (which included a banner and yes, a horse), some 50 youths flooded the concourse of VJC to mark the opening of two days and one night of unadulterated fun and excitement.

The year was 1227 AD and the campers found themselves transformed into warriors divided into four tribes, Ogedei, Chagatai, Jochi and Tolui, named after the four sons of Genghis Khan. In this exotic Mongolian setting, the events of the camp unfolded.

The program for Day 1 of the camp was geared towards building a strong rapport between the campers through team games and activities. The morning was dedicated to Tribe Initiation. In their tribes, the campers got to know each other through ice-breakers, tribal flag-painting and even a balloon stampede. Just when they thought they could take a well-deserved break during lunch, they found themselves confronted with the Genghis Challenge. As an after-lunch dessert, each tribe was given a bag of assorted fruits which they had to finish. Sounds easy? Not when half of the tribe had their hands tied behind their backs and the other half blindfolded. Suddenly, peeling and eating an orange was never the same again.

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After lunch, the warriors were launched on The Quest, a series of station games focusing on group dynamics, followed by Battle of The Gobi I (a telematch). The campers found themselves in situations where they had to rely on teamwork and both literally and figuratively hold on to one another. It was an action-packed afternoon of three-legged Captain’s Ball matches, obstacle courses, leopard-crawls and the like, at the end of which a camaraderie had been established among the exhausted campers. But that wasn’t the end of Day 1.

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When night fell, it marked the onset of Battle of The Gobi II – Candlelight Warfare. The tribes found themselves having to defend their home bases against oncoming attackers armed with candles while trying to keep their own candles burning. At 8.30 PM, the tired campers were dismissed to return home to recharge for Day 2 of the camp.

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One of the main focus of Day 2 of the camp was a community service project. Instead of restricting the campers to just fun and games on the VJC campus, a new and meaningful dimension was injected into the camp by having the campers, after forging new friendships with each other, to come together and serve the less fortunate in society. Early in the morning on Day 2, the campers gathered punctually (applause) at Ang Mo Kio MRT Station to make their way to Grace Haven Children’s Home.

Bringing with them 30 children from the home, the campers headed for East Coast Park where the morning was spent playing games and interacting with the children. The campers would agree that it was quite an experience taking care of the children. There was a whole spectrum of personalities from the shy and withdrawn to the extremely hyperactive. Nonetheless, the campers played their roles as big brothers and sisters with admirable patience and enthusiasm.

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After sending the children off, the campers headed for Changi Airport on the Great Airport Adventure. For the next hour, the tribes had to search for information as obscure as how many grey potted plants there are at the Viewing Gallery and items as weird as a lipstick stain and the cost of the book “Western Europe on a Shoestring”.

The highlight of the camp was the Night Festival that evening. We had our very own Mr “Benjamin” Bean, Miss True Hearts, Julia “Gabriel” Roberts, and a few great body-shakin’, groovy dances from the mentors, mentees and the camp committee…. And of course who could forget the wonderfully hilarious emcee (has anyone figured out his name yet?) who got us all laughing non-stop.

The camp officially ended on the 6th of June. After two days of tiring activities and a virtually sleepless night before, the campers were still craving for more. But the camp had to come to an end. As the campers left VJC that morning, they brought home with them not only all their barang but also lots of fond memories of the camp, newly formed friendships as well as anticipation for the mentoring year ahead. Over those few days, amidst all the fun, laughter and cheering, beautiful friendships and an unspoken understanding had been formed between people who used to be strangers. This will pave the way for the year ahead when they have much to learn from each other.

" Blessed are they who have the gift of making friends, for it is one of God’s best gifts. It involves many things, but above all, the power transcending oneself, and appreciating whatever is noble and loving in another."
Thomas Hughes

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