Stella Matutina Girls Camp, Poland, Austria, and Italy
Meeting with the Youth in Poland
In early August, a group of sisters and pre-postulants traveled to Warsaw, Poland, to meet with girls aged 9 to 20.
Together they spent a joyful week of activities, conferences, and prayer, and made visits to the City of the Immaculata founded by St. Maximilian Kolbe, and to the churches of Warsaw, under the expert guidance of the prior of Warsaw, Fr. Piotr Świerczek.
Afterward, they were also able to spend a few days with the girls of Poznan and Gniezno, where they gathered for games, a procession in honor of Our Lady, and visits to the main churches of those cities.
We thank the Good Lord, as well as all the priests and helpers, for giving us the opportunity to make these new acquaintances and to share this time of joy and spiritual growth.
During the months of July and August, five of our sisters and a pre-postulant helped out at a camp of 50 girls in Austria at the Jaidhof Castle.
Each day began with Holy Mass. After breakfast, the sisters led catechism classes in which the girls discovered the beauty and sacredness of the priesthood. The day then unfolded with many different activities: games both inside and outside the castle, small art projects, barbecues, and rehearsals for a play that the girls performed at the end of the camp.
On several outings, we visited nearby places: an ostrich farm, a park, and the ruins of a castle. The girls also went boating on the lake.
The camp was dedicated to Mary, Queen of Heaven. In her honor, we held a procession on the last evening, walking through the groves and around the small ponds of “Jaidhof” Castle, praying the Rosary under the stars.
For all the girls and helpers, this camp was a wonderful opportunity to make new friends, grow in the Faith, and deepen their love for the Holy Catholic Church.
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From July 22 to August 1, the annual Stella Mattutina (Morning Star) summer camp, organized by the Consoling Sisters of the Sacred Heart, was held in Andrate, in the province of Turin, with thirty girls between the ages of 14 and 19 taking part. The young women were encouraged and accompanied in the many activities and outings by six sisters, two postulants, five helpers, and a priest, who made it possible for them to attend daily Holy Mass as well as numerous conferences and short spiritual talks.
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During the ten days, the girls had the chance to take part in various team competitions: sports, cooking, and catechism contests, a treasure hunt, and much more. A highlight not to be missed was the visit to the city of Turin and to the Sanctuary of Our Lady Help of Christians (“Mamma Margherita”), where the relics of Saints John Bosco, Dominic Savio, and Sister Mary Dominica Mazzarello are venerated. These saints, together with Mamma Margherita, inspired the camp’s theme and the names of the teams.
[ Note of interest: The Turin church is usually called the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians in English. “Mamma Margherita” is Don Bosco’s mother, Venerable Margherita Occhiena. ]
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After a beautiful mountain hike, the group reached the summit of Colma di Mombarone in Piedmont, over 2,300 meters (7,500 feet) high, where a majestic statue of Christ the Redeemer, erected by the National Alpine Troops Association, towers over the peak.
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On another occasion, under the banner of the Gioventù Femminile (Catholic Young Women), the girls marched in pilgrimage to the Sanctuary of Graglia (Biella), singing hymns and offering fervent prayers.
[ Note of interest: The sanctuary’s full name is the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Graglia (Santuario di Graglia.]
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On the last day, the girls enthusiastically said their goodbyes with skits dedicated to their teams’ patron saints, inspired by the theme the sisters chose for this camp: Don Bosco’s words, “If you want to be happy, become saints.” This is our wish for all the girls, with the hope that they will continue to grow in the true faith and doctrine.
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Lively Summer Update
October 5, 2026
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What is a Stella Matutina Camp?
“Stella Matutina” — the Morning Star — is one of the oldest and richest Marian titles, one we use in the Litany of Loreto.
This phrase, drawn from Ecclesiasticus, is applied to Our Lady as the one who appears just before the dawn: visible while it is still dark, heralding a light greater than herself, and giving hope and direction to those still traveling in the night.
The spiritual image
She precedes, she does not replace. The morning star is not the sun. Mary’s whole significance, in this title, is that she points beyond herself to Christ, the “Sun of Justice” (Malachi 4:2). A camp is Marian in method, but ordered entirely to Christ as the end.
She shines in darkness. The morning star is seen before the light comes, when things are still obscure. Mary announced Christ’s coming before it was fully manifest — and by her ongoing role guiding souls through life to heaven above.
She gives hope to those still journeying. Sailors and travelers used the morning star to know dawn was near even while surrounded by night. If things may be dark now, the light is coming, and Mary, steadfast with love and hope, leads us to the light.
Smallness and humility. Unlike the sun, the morning star is faint — a small, quiet sign rather than an overwhelming one. Through Mary, children and youth are naturally drawn to littleness, hiddenness, and quiet fidelity to virtue in a spirit of love, grace, joy, and fraternal charity.
The camp’s spirit
Formation ordered to Christ through Mary — devotions, recreations, and daily life at camp through Mary point to the Sun she precedes.
Our Hope and joy living in the world — through our faith, hope and joy, we carry our examples into the world the way the morning star gives courage to travelers still in night.
Rising early — morning and night prayers, early Mass, Angelus, rosary, a rhythm of life tuned to the natural day as a symbol of the spiritual one.
Quiet, humble witness — the star is small and precedes something greater, and so we teach humility and fidelity to virtue preparing the way through Our Lady to Our Lord.
Mary as model and guide — our model of virtue and formation of character cultivating purity; our guide to the light, to the Most Sacred Heart; to God Almighty, author of Heaven and Earth. Deo Gratias!
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Deo Gratias!
The Consoling Sister
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Sacred Heart of Jesus
