By Cl. Christopher Rajan for BISMumbai

 Lok Seva Kendra, the social services wing of the community of Don Bosco, Chhotaudepur, organized the first roung of their annual summer camp under the leadership of Fr Kiran Ruptakke from 24 April 2023.

 The camp included crash courses of a variety of training programs like Music, Football, Spoken English, Computer Training, and so on. Students from Don Bosco Alirajpur, from the town of Chhotaudepur, and those from the nearby villages came to the campus every day to learn and master their particular interests. There were a total of 82 children who participated actively in this summer camp.

 All through the days the Salesian community members, the lay collaborators and the trainers were involved in training and helping the children to learn something new and interesting every morning and evening. Many children picked up guitar, drums and piano and some learnt typing, computer skills and other skill training that was made available. From the Salesian community, Fr George Carlos, Clerics Jeswin Mastan and Christopher Rajan trained the children in Music, Spoken English and Computer.

 On 5 May, there was a live programme organized by the children, and all their parents were invited to come and enjoy watching their talented children perform with creativity. All the participants of the summer camp were awarded a certificate of appreciation for having successfully completed the various crash courses.

 The second round of the summer camp has started on the 8 May. Many more children have enrolled to join the summer camp for this round after hearing about its success stories in and around the town of Chhotaudepur. The summer club gives a quality opportunity for the children interested in seeking their talents and growing in it. In the long run, the Salesian community is planning to assist the children who are part of their school throughout the year with multiple opportunities to express their talents and qualities so that they may be blessed with holistic growth as Don Bosco always wished.

 One of the students, Krishna, said, "This is indeed a lovely opportunity for me to learn the keyboard, and play in the school when I get opportunities." One of the trainers, Mr Shahid said, "I enjoy teaching hockey to our children. I find it a fulfilling experience for me to be associated with Don Bosco to train these kids." Similarly, many children came forward to express their gratitude in various forms to the organizers.