American Heritage Girls in the pioneer and patriot levels, ages 12-18, spent the night at the Museum of the Bible in Washington last month.
Through a ministry alliance between both organizations announced last year, AHG troops from Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia participated in the sleepover that focused on the impact of the Bible.
The museum’s education department led the programming that included a mosaic workshop, lantern tour of the world of Jesus of Nazareth and a Gutenberg Press demonstration.
After dinner, the group of 94 women — 75 girls and 19 adults —almost evenly distributed between Catholic and Protestant members joined in songs of praise, heard a devotional talk on the Bible’s life lessons for women, and had time for worship and small group discussions. They had a backstage opportunity to meet performers of “Prince Caspian,” a show in residence at the museum through April 24. In the morning, the group ate breakfast before leaving.
Participating diocesan parishes included All Saints Catholic Church in Manassas; Holy Trinity in Gainesville; Nativity Catholic Church in Burke; Our Lady of Angels in Woodbridge; Sacred Heart in Manassas; St. Bernadette in Springfield; St. James in Falls Church; St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Fredericksburg; St. Michael in Annandale; St. Rita in Alexandria and St. Timothy in Chantilly.
“It was exciting to see the fruits of the alliance,” said Carrie Kilareski, AHG coordinator for the Washington area.
“Everything was wonderful,” said Molly Gardner, an AHG member and St. Mary parishioner. “What a great way to enter into Holy Week!”
“My favorite was the walk through of the Old Testament, which was a concise version presented in a fascinating way,” said Jenny Baughman of All Saints. Her sister, Rachel, also attended and appreciated the camaraderie and hands-on activities, such as creating her own mosaic.
Jane Judge, a parishioner of Holy Trinity, said she enjoyed learning about courageous and faith-filled women of integrity “who have gone before us and paved a path of virtue for us to follow.”
Her mother, Anne Judge, parish troop coordinator, mentioned in particular Mother Cabrini, who tenaciously fought to improve outcomes for orphans and the poor.
Other women featured include Elisabeth Elliott, a Protestant missionary who continued to live with a tribe in Ecuador and teach about Jesus even after its members murdered her husband, and Patti Garibay, who founded AHG to challenge girls in outdoor experiences, community service and love of family while keeping Christ at the center.
Judge called seeing the U.S. Capitol dome seconds after waking up in the morning a “pinch me” moment. She added that one of the girls told her how fun it was to walk down the streets of Washington carrying a sleeping bag.
