HRH Prince Mihailo special guest at Children's summer camp 2010

As the Christmas and New Year Holidays draw near, it is time for all Serbian children living in Australia and New Zealand to think about attending Summer Camp at our St. Sava Monastery in Hall, New South Wales. Here, at our beautiful Summer Camp, the campers will have a chance to spend a week worshipping, praying, studying our Orthodox Christian Faith, learning to sing both church and folk songs, to dance Serbian dances, arts and crafts, sports, visitations to local sites and week filled with rich and rewarding experiences!

The children are always cared for by our Serbian clergy under the capable supervision of the Very Reverend Fr. Sasa Radoicic, Camp Director, by Camp Counsellors and parent volunteers and the devoted hard-working members of the Federation of the Circles of Serbian Sisters! And, the food offers a daily feast for the Campers and Staff! Every year, His Grace our Bishop Irinej has joined our children, teaches them, celebrates the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy for them, so that they can all receive Holy Communion, and this year will be no exception! Also, His Grace looks forward every year to joining the children for their Serbian New Year's Talent Show.

Our very special guest for this forthcoming Camp Season, 10-16 January 2010, will be His Royal Highness Prince Mihailo Karadjordjevic. Prince Mihailo is the grandson of the late King Alexander I and son of the late Prince Tomislav and Princess Linda, who accompanied Bishop Irinej to Australia for his enthronement. This will be a rare and unique chance for our Serbian Children in Australia and New Zealand to spend a week with a Serbian Prince!

Also, in addition to His Royal Highness, the campers will be joined by our own Mother Angelina of New Kalenich and two visiting nuns from Chelije Monastery in Serbia, Mothers Fevronija and Zlata who will teach the campers spiritual songs; listen and answer many questions on life in Chelije Monastery and show the children how to make prayer bracelets - brojanice!

Many children have already registered for Camp and we especially rejoice for the children who are coming for the first time from New Zealand and as far away as from Perth! His Grace Bishop Irinej has already announced a decision of the Diocesan Council of the Diocese of Australia and New Zealand to expand the Summer Camping Programme by offering in 2011 an additional Summer Camp at the St. Sava Monastery in Elaine, Victoria. A special committee has already been selected and plans are underway.

Over the past three years, under the guidance of our Bishop, many improvements have been made to our Camp in specific and to the Monastery in general: we have refurbished many aspects of the Kolo Federation's Camp Administration Building and the Boys' and Girls' Dormitories - new washroom and shower facilities, new flooring, air conditioning units and so much more! The Monastery Church was painted; a new gazebo was erected over a beautiful new waterfall and small pond that is surrounded by newly-planted bushes in the middle of a rose garden! The New Gracanica Diocese in addition to paying all of the utilities invests heavily in caring for all of the buildings and the grounds at our St. Sava Monastery and Children's Camp.

Come, see and enjoy!