(ANS – El Campello) – From April 27 – 29 at El Campello ed Elche, The Friends of Dominic Savio Camps (ADS) were held, involving over 500 children from Salesian associations and Centres,  from Valencia, Saragozza, Albacete and Murcia. The aim of the initiatives is to bring children to know the young Saints of the Salesian family.

The ADS<Camp is one of the meetings  proposed by the Salesian formative curriculum; its main aim is to introduce the participants to the Salesian style and to those young Salesian Saints of the Salesian family who can be models of life and joy for them. All this in the course on one weekend,  in which every child  gets to know many other boys and girls from Salesian centres.

This year the Camps took for their motto “ADS, discover your origin”. The Provincial Delegate for Youth Pastoral, Fr. Fernando Miranda explained: “By this theme we want to recall the bicentenary of the birth of St. John Bosco, to bring the figure of the Saint close to the youngsters. He is the origin of the Salesian style for youth centres”.

ADS is short for “Friends of Dominic Savio” and is an umbrella term for all the younger boys and girls in the Salesian associations and centres of the Salesian Province “San Giuseppe” of Valencia. The ADS camps  cater for children from about  8 to 12.

In the course of the camps there is also a solidarity activity in support of the “Street Children’s Project” of Guayaquil, Ecuador, (coordinated by the  Salesian NGO , “Youth and development”)to which the initiatives for the next three years will be devoted.

This educative Salesian project for the benefit of street children at risk tries to offer: a preventive presence in the streets, family welcome and integration, family and community, education, technical training and job procurement, association and faith education.

Published 09/05/2012