By the Numbers
3,300 tickets sold
37 honors, many of them offered at Andrews University. They included dinosaur, poetry, crisis intervention, journalism, nutrition, nursing, Sabbath appreciation, and many, many more.
16 different activities, from boat rides to fishing to basketball to swimming
7 Master Guides invested
71 TLT (Teen Leaders in Training) braided
2 guest speakers: North American Division Associate Youth Director Armando Miranda and General Conference Associate Youth Director Alfred Asiem
6 baptisms: all from the Illinois Conference
5-member Indiana-based Chitans singing group provided special music
Scan here for more photos [Robert, QR code in folder. You can integrate this organically]
Beyond the usual drills and honors, activities, exhibits and pin-trading, stories of faith abound. These are just a few of them.
Faces from the Camporee
“On Dec. 24, 2025, my parents and sister were in the car. My mom [Talia Bryant, Conant Gardens Cougars Pathfinder Club director and Lake Region Pathfinder assistant executive coordinator] had a heart attack. She didn’t recover from it.
It was sad, life-altering. It was confusing because you would ask God, ‘Why’?
What I’ve learned over the last few months is that God is always with you. Even in the moments you don’t see Him, He’s walking with you or He’ll put people in your life to walk beside you.
Some examples of how He walks with me are through ‘framily.’ That word is friends and family mashed together. The church, my church family — they’ve been very supportive. People in my Pathfinders club have been helping us out. People were cooking food. They were helping drive us to school.
For this camporee, my mom was planning it for the Lake Region. The theme for this camporee is ‘Unbreakable,’ and it reminds me that to be unbreakable means having faith, staying strong and continuing to move forward no matter what life brings my way. It’s knowing that God is with me and He gives me strength through every situation.
Coming here and being part of the ‘Unbreakable’ camporee also reminds me that I’m stronger than I sometimes realize and that I can still smile, make memories, meet new people and enjoy the blessings that are in front of me. It’s continuing to live out my mom’s legacy and be at events like these that she wanted us to be at. She put her time into something special for us to get a closer relationship with God.
What I want people to remember is that my mom loved Pathfinders. She wanted kids to have a genuine relationship with God so they can go to heaven. She wanted them not just to know who He is but know that He’s your friend and He loves you dearly.”
Nadiyah Brayant, Conant Gardens Cougars Pathfinder Club
“I made a decision to be rebaptized at this camporee because I never, never, never doubted God’s love and loyalty and mercy. It doesn’t matter — the things that we do in our life — it’s something that I’m never going to doubt.
One of the things that motivates me in the Adventist Church is Adventist clubs: Pathfinders, Adventurers and Master Guides.
In the church I’m attending, the last time I went with them [to a camporee] as a volunteer it was like a reconnection with friends and with something that I’m really passionate about. I was seeing myself back in the time when I was working in my old club, seeing my kids who were Pathfinders when I was club director. [It led me to] say, ‘Well, you know what? Soon I will do it [be rebaptized].’
About a month ago, they said, ‘We are going to the Lake Union Camporee.’ I said, ‘Oh, I want to go, at least as a volunteer like the last time.’ And after talking with some people, they said, ‘Oh, you can also get baptized there.’
I said, ‘You know what? Probably yes. I would do it.’ I felt it was going to be a good opportunity to be rebaptized and have a new start.
Personally, and spiritually, I can say that I was on good terms with God. But I know getting rebaptized was very important as a testimony, also as reconciliation to the church and to the people. Also, to repair, especially in front of my kids.
[The organizers] were telling me, ‘Put your uniform on to get baptized.’ I said, ‘That’s the Master Guide uniform, and I want to wear it after I get baptized, right away.’ I was just waiting for that moment, racing from the water and running to my Master Guide uniform.
It’s been almost 20 years since I’ve [been] baptized for the first time. Well, now I’m rebaptized, getting my identity in Christ back and coming back to what I really like to do.”
Yeison (Jason) Mora, Lighthouse Spanish Sailors Club
“Some of our Pathfinders said, ‘I want to go to the camporee, because what if I never come back?’ It was sad to hear that because these kids are actually scared.
When the war started in Ukraine, we had a lot of people join us. About five people in our Pathfinder club are there because of the war. There’s a big change right now with all the [Temporary Protected Status] documents. There’s a chance that everybody can be sent back, and it’s really sad.
So, we decided we needed something to connect these kids and give them some core memories. I think that’s something that really pushed us to come to the camporee.
We’re mainly Russian-speaking, but we have Ukrainian, Romanian and people from Moldovia, just like a whole Slavic church. We just made our Pathfinder group. Our church community, when they got here, was very inspired to create a space for the children to be able to make friends, so that their church community didn’t feel the pressure of moving countries because of a war. That’s a lot of pressure.
My dad [Russ Drumi] is the pastor of the church and director of the Pathfinder group. He thought, ‘Let’s make a Pathfinder group now.’
This is our first camporee with the church. I’ve been a Pathfinder for years now, but almost everybody else is a brand-new Pathfinder, not even invested yet.
I believe the main reason was that we felt like the church needed something to connect all of us together, and kids are always the reason why parents are going to get together, support, fund raise — all those things really pull the church together. The kids that we have here — they’re a good family.
The parents that are here are so on fire about wanting their kids to upgrade their skills and get these Adventist experiences, because only a couple go to Adventist schools. The parents just want to give them a beautiful environment, something fun, and also give them some training. Without these parents putting their love and effort into it, we would not have made this trip happen.”
Evelina Drumi, Hope Lights Club
One afternoon, I stopped by Professor Dustin Young’s office for what was supposed to be a quick conversation. Cough … cough … Or, more or less, me yapping her ear off and overstaying my welcome. As I was leaving, she mentioned needing social work student volunteers for a Crisis Intervention workshop on Sept. 25, 2026, at the Lake Union Pathfinder Camporee Pathfinders would earn a Crisis Intervention Honor at Andrews University. I said yes on the spot.
The opportunity felt both timely and forward-thinking. Here was a longstanding youth ministry program intentionally equipping the next generation of believers not only with spiritual knowledge and practical skills, but also with tools to grow in emotional intelligence, recognize when someone may be in distress, listen with compassion, and respond in ways that connect people to appropriate support.
After finishing my shift with Adventist Connect, where I serve in digital spiritual care, I headed to the workshop, led by Young and BSW Program Director/Assistant Professor Yazmik Cantillano. Social work students sat at tables with Pathfinder youth, parents and chaperones as we practiced something that sounds simple but is hard when someone is hurting: how to LISTEN. The heart of it fits in three words: Listen. Don’t Fix.
Every participant went home with a small Crisis Intervention Kit holding a LISTEN card, practical response tools, 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline information, and a heart-shaped stone with the reminder, “You’re Never Alone.” I remember thinking, “This is such a thoughtful little kit.” It was small enough to tuck into a jacket pocket, purse or backpack.
The very next day, while serving online with Adventist Connect, I found myself in conversation with someone carrying a heavy load. As we talked, I asked about their safety.
And then something clicked. Let them finish. Identify the emotion. Summarize what you heard. Take their perspective. Explore with a question. Notice the urge to give advice. Then I remembered the kit.
I rummaged through my bag, found that little LISTEN card, and used it to help me slow down, listen more intentionally, and think carefully about how to connect this person with the right support. For me, that was one of those moments when education left the classroom.
As an MDiv/social work student, I am learning that ministry is not only about having a Scripture, a prayer, or the right words ready. Sometimes caring well means knowing how to listen when the words are hard to hear. It means asking the safety question. It means recognizing the limits of what we can provide and knowing when and how to connect someone to additional help.
Foluke Arthurton, MDiv/MSW student, Andrews University
Fun fact: Did you know the Lake Union was the first to host a union-wide Pathfinder camporee? In the June 3, 1958, issue of the Lake Union Herald, correspondent Morton Juberg wrote: “The Camporee marked a first for the denomination in work for Adventist youth. Never before had a union wide Pathfinder outing been held and the success of this venture showed the results of long hours of planning” by the Lake Union.
In 1958, Pioneer Memorial Church Evergreens Club is pictured here marching from the fairgrounds to campus and back.
Fast forward to 2026, the Evergreens club, one of the largest in North America, marched from the Andrews University campus to the fairgrounds — one of the shortest commutes of any club in the union.
Photos by Nate Reid, Dave Sherwin and Katie Fellows