Emmaüs Youth Camps

The Youth Camps were born from one man's desire

In 1949, Emmaüs was created by Abbé Pierre when he opened a youth hostel in Neuilly-Plaisance. It was named Emmaus. Largely secular, it welcomed the first 'companions' of Emmaus, young people included. For Abbé Pierre, they represented the future.  

In the '60s, Abbé Pierre created the first Youth Camps.

Like hundreds of young people, Paul and Jules (former members of the Emmaüs Youth Camp) took part in these camps, alongside other people from all over the world. The camps were installed in the Communities. Among them, certain people like Yves, Franco, Loïc and Germain (current manager of the Communauté Emmaüs Lescar-Pau) were caught up in the Emmaüs movement, and chose to invest their efforts into starting other communities.

With the opening of these Youth Camps, more and more acquaintances were made, giving way to the creation of numerous Committees of Friends in France. From that point on, France turned itself into a labyrinth of networks between Communities, in order to help homeless people and immigrants without residence permits. 'Unconditional welcome' has become a leading principle in the Communities.