Around 10,000 Pathfinders, leaders and companions from 51 countries and 24 unions gathered from April 4 to 8, 2023 at the Trelawny Multipurpose Stadium, in Trelawny, Jamaica, at the 5th Camporee of the Inter-American Division (IAD). According to the division, the gathering brought together delegations from 51 countries and 24 unions and territories.
Under the theme "Pathfinders in Mission", the camporee had more than 120 baptisms over the five days, community service actions across the Trelawny region and a closing ceremony with fireworks. The event also received a visit from Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt on the second day.
A camporee of 51 countries at the Trelawny stadium
Held at the Trelawny Multipurpose Stadium complex, on the north coast of Jamaica, the gathering was the fifth major camporee of the Inter-American Division — an Adventist territory that spans countries of Central America, the Caribbean, northern South America and southern Mexico.
According to interamerica.org, the division's official website, the roughly 10,000 participants came from 51 countries and from 24 unions and territories. For readers elsewhere, the comparison is useful: the Inter-American Division is a neighbor of the South American Division (SAD), to which the clubs of Brazil belong. They are distinct administrative structures of the Adventist Church, with their own programs, but the Pathfinder Club follows the same essence all over the world — age-based classes, honors, outdoor life and a missionary emphasis.
A camporee is the largest camp on the Pathfinder calendar: it brings together many clubs at the same time in one place, over several days, with spiritual programming, competitions, drill and field activities. In the case of the IAD, the 2023 gathering concentrated delegations from dozens of nationalities in a single stadium.
'Pathfinders in Mission': the theme and the story of Gideon
The camporee's theme, "Pathfinders in Mission", guided all the spiritual programming. The daily reflections were based on the story of Gideon, from the biblical book of Judges, chosen to motivate Pathfinders and their leaders in faith and service, the division reported.
Leading the organization was Pastor Al Powell, director of Youth Ministries of the Inter-American Division. At the closing, he summed up the purpose of the gathering with a direct call to the participants: "Go back home make things happen for Christ", in the words attributed to him by the division.
The idea of "mission" did not stay only in the speeches. According to interamerica.org, hundreds of Pathfinders took part in community service actions throughout the week in Trelawny: beach cleanups, painting of health centers, delivery of food baskets and help building houses. It is the kind of activity that, in Pathfinder vocabulary, ties the camp to the idea of leaving a place better than it was found.
Read alsoCamporee in Ghana Draws 8,000 Pathfinders and Records More Than 100 BaptismsMore than 120 baptisms over five days
The spiritual outcome most cited by the division was the number of baptisms: more than 120 Pathfinders were baptized during the camporee. According to interamerica.org, more than 60 of those baptisms took place on the closing day's ceremony alone.
For those outside the movement, some context helps: among Adventists, baptism is a personal and voluntary decision to follow the faith, usually made in adolescence or later. At a camporee, the decision is often prepared over the preceding months in the clubs and confirmed during the event, which explains the concentration of baptisms at the closing.
The final ceremony, of about three hours, also featured the release of 24 white doves — one for each union, symbolizing the commitment to share the gospel —, a reenactment of Gideon's victory and more than 200 investitures of Pathfinders and Master Guides, according to the division. Fireworks closed the five days.
Usain Bolt on the second day: 'work hard and never give up'
The moment of greatest impact outside the Adventist community came on April 5, the second day. Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt, eight-time Olympic champion and world record holder in the 100 and 200 meters, appeared at the stadium and was welcomed with an ovation by the thousands of Pathfinders, as reported by interamerica.org and the newspaper Jamaica Observer.
Bolt's connection to the place is not incidental: his parents are members of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Sherwood Content, a community in the very region of Trelawny. According to the division, the athlete grew up in the faith, even though he stopped attending Saturday services because of his dedication to athletics.
On stage, Bolt addressed the participants with a message of perseverance. "Always work hard and never give up. Believe in yourself and believe in your dreams", he said, according to the division's account. After the speech, he ran the 100 meters with two Pathfinders who challenged him, posed for photos with the delegations and received the Presidential Gold Award of the Inter-American Division, presented by Pastor Al Powell.
Authorities and the message to the Pathfinders
The camporee also welcomed local authorities. Jamaica's then governor-general, Sir Patrick Allen — himself an Adventist pastor —, addressed the participants with a message aligned to the gathering's theme. "Never lose sight of your mission. Remember you are part of a large community of believers", he stated, according to the division.
On Bolt's presence, Pastor Balvin Braham, vice president of the Inter-American Division, commented on the reach of the visit: "Usain Bolt is a role model for both young people and adults globally", in the words attributed to him by interamerica.org.
For Pathfinders elsewhere, who live the same routine of club, honors and camps within their own divisions, the Trelawny camporee serves as a reminder of the movement's global dimension: in 2023, dozens of different languages and nationalities shared, for five days, the same scarf, the same march and the same declared goal — "pathfinders in mission".