Peace Camp 2025 – Recap
One week. Five days really. That’s not a lot of time to teach the concept of how to bring more peace into our world — to learn how to recognize all the emotions we can experience; to learn how to meet the needs of people in our communities; to find common ground with people from all over the world; or to learn how to do our part to take better care of our planet. Nevertheless, that is how 21 campers and 9 camp counselors spent the first full week of July at UUS.
Over the course of the week of Peace Camp, children in 1st through 5th grade had the opportunity to meet and learn from people all over the world. We had visitors from Palestine, Guatemala, India, Sudan, and Romania. We got to hear about similarities and differences that helped us connect to our visitors and, hopefully, to better understand customs and traditions from a variety of the cultures that come together to create our beautiful world. Our visitors let us try on traditional clothing, ask questions about their weaving, invited us to dance with them, and talked with us about their experiences and what peace means to them.
Along with spending time with our guests and learning to name our emotions and finding ways to create peace within ourselves, we had the privilege to spend time throughout the week working on projects that supported Houses into Homes. We bundled up books and stuffies, checked that donated puzzles had all their pieces, and our 4th and 5th graders built two night stands over the course of the week. We also made treat bags and baked brownies for the Iowa City Free Lunch Program and made no-sew blankets for families who need the warmth and comfort. While we did all these projects, we repeatedly talked about how, when each individual’s needs are met, it is easier to have a community at peace. The campers were very quick to understand that more than just a person’s physiological needs are important – everyone deserves and needs to feel safety, security, love, and belonging.
There may have only been 30 campers and counselors present for the incredible week we got to experience, but positive change can’t necessarily occur for a whole city or state or country in one moment of time. It takes lots of moments and lots of work and lots of time. Mister Rogers told us about how his mother would tell him to look for the helpers when sad and scary things were happening. I’m confident that the 30 children, youth, and young adults who participated in Peace Camp at UUS are better prepared to be helpers; they’re ready to do the work to create moments of peace and connection and community that will help carry our world forward into a more peaceful and beautiful time.
