Saint-Adolphe-d’Howard, Quebec, Canada, September 4, 2025
antiochian.org
Camp Transfiguration, a program of the Diocese of Ottawa, Eastern Canada, and Upstate New York of the Antiochian Orthodox Church, welcomed 360 children aged 8-17 to Saint-Adolphe-d’Howard, Quebec for two weeks of Orthodox activities and worship this August, marking another successful season for the 23-year-old religious retreat.
The camp, which ran from August 10-23 in two separate sessions, drew support from 97 staff members and 55 volunteers from across Canada and the United States, the Archdiocese of North America reports.
New programming this year included patron saint assignments for each cabin group, with campers learning the troparia for their assigned saint. Children also received hands-on instruction in incense-making during morning sessions and bread-baking in the afternoons.
antiochian.org
The camp’s recreational activities featured a Super Mario-themed competition called Colour Wars, along with evening programs including Icon Quest, a water festival, a country rodeo carnival, and a finale event called CyberChrome Hafleh.
Church services remained central to the daily schedule. Each week opened with a Blessing of the Water service, during which older campers dove for a cross thrown into the lake by priests. The water was then used to bless cabins while participants chanted the Troparion of the Holy Cross.
antiochian.org
The Feast of the Dormition was marked with a candlelight procession, and campers participated in a learning Liturgy focused on baking prosphora. His Grace Bishop Alexander, who oversees the diocese, visited the camp during the session.
Founded in 2002, Camp Transfiguration offers traditional summer camp activities including basketball, arts and crafts, archery, fishing, swimming, and tubing on the lake, alongside its religious activities. The camp maintains daily Church services in its chapel, with prayers before and after meals and activities.
The camp’s stated mission is to provide young people with “a living experience of the Holy Orthodox Faith” in a natural setting, focusing on spiritual development through community life and worship.
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