THE FRIENDS OF ISRAEL GOSPEL MINISTRY
Global Report
Eastern Europe | Spring 2026
Dan Price
Director of International Ministries
A LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS:
Sharing Stories of How God’s Light Shines Into Darkness
Through Our Eastern European Camp Ministries
For more than 30 years, The Friends of Israel’s (FOI’s) teams in Eastern Europe have been serving Jewish families and witnessing the light of Yeshua shine into people’s darkness through our camping ministries. Each year, children from Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, and other countries experience a unique getaway focused on building relationships through shared meals, Bible study, worship, and field trips together. God uses our camp ministries to build strong, lasting bonds of friendship between Christians and Jewish communities.
FOI camps provide much more than activities, a needed respite, and kind relationships. Every year, God uses camps to work spiritual miracles in people’s lives. At camp, Jewish children and families encounter God through His Word, provision, and renewal, experiencing His love and coming to know the Messiah in deeply personal ways. These moments become spiritual milestones that impact generations.
Your prayer and financial support for FOI’s camp ministries in Eastern Europe provide a place for life-changing stories to happen.
If giving from the UK or NZ, please designate your gift as "Eastern European Summer Camps."
Young David
A small-framed Jewish boy from Ukraine was called up to the front of his group during a Bible lesson at camp to help illustrate a story. Fittingly, the boy’s name was David, as the Bible story came from 1 Samuel 16, the account of David the shepherd boy being anointed to become Israel’s next king.
David had been having a difficult week with other kids from his village, who had been excluding him from games and friendships. The teacher, unaware of David’s situation, emphasized the words that God spoke to Samuel, “The Lord does not look at things people look at. . . . The Lord looks at the heart.” And so, she taught how, despite King David’s rejection by others as a boy, God loved him.
Young David, standing next to his teacher, began to cry. The group of children fell completely still and silent. God was at work in their hearts. Following the lesson, the children went into David’s room to ask for forgiveness and invite him to play for the first time. As the teacher later explained,
Suddenly, David was no longer alone. He wasn’t seen crying again. Instead, his smile remained for the rest of the week. There was also a noticeable change within the group, as the kids learned to ask for and receive forgiveness, understanding that God looks at the heart. God’s Word is alive and active.
Bible lesson time quickly became the highlight of the week for that group of campers.
Reunions Upon Reunions
As a girl, Karolina traveled from her home in Ukraine to attend FOI camps in Poland. Last summer, she came as a mother, bringing her two children to family camp. At the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Karolina’s husband had fled as a refugee to avoid being drafted to fight the Russians. So, the family planned to meet with him at the camp in Poland.
When they reunited, the children embraced their father for the first time in two years. Their reunion was deeply moving, a beautiful scene that our teams have helped facilitate time and again at camp.
Last year at camp, our teams received a surprise visit from a former camper, a Jewish young man named Samuel. As a result of his time at camp, Samuel had come to faith in the Messiah. In the years since our team had last seen him, Samuel had voluntarily served in the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) as a lone soldier and Polish citizen, spending much of the war deployed in Gaza.
Returning to visit our camp, Samuel shared his plan to serve the Lord as a Christian missionary pilot in Africa. We look forward to continuing to support him spiritually and pray for God to use him.
A Ripple Effect
Prior to the war in Ukraine, most children came to FOI camps by themselves. Since the war began, our teams have invited mothers to attend with their kids. Now, Ukrainian mothers’ lives are being transformed, not only because of the safety and respite of camp, but also by listening to Scripture, fellowshiping with other parents, and engaging in camp worship and Bible lessons.
These families are returning home with Bibles that they read and with hearts that are infectious about what they have learned. As the ministry spreads from kids to mothers and from mothers to communities, we see a lasting ripple effect of what God can do through camp ministries.
These incredible stories from Eastern Europe could not happen without your support and partnership. God continues to open doors for camp ministries among more Jewish communities in many Eastern European countries. Would you prayerfully consider giving to our Eastern European camp ministry so more kids and families can experience the love of the Messiah?
Help us shine the light.
If giving from the UK or NZ, please designate your gift as "Eastern European Summer Camps."
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Photo credits: Adobe Stock, Dawid Zawiła via Unsplash, Friends of Israel Archives
