Forty-seven senior girls from Saint John Paul the Great Catholic
High School in Dumfries embarked
on a spiritual retreat hosted at Camp Wabanna in Edgewater, Md., March 16-17.
Coordinated by Emma
Boyle, the director of mission and the new evangelization at John Paul the
Great, the trip featured catered meals, a series of talks from women who shared
their own faith journeys, and, most significantly, opportunities for spiritual
reflection and worship.
A cross overlooks the water behind the main house at Camp Wabanna in Edgewater, Md. MAEVE RANDALL | COURTESY
Recounting an
experience she shared with the girls one morning, Boyle noted the trip
strengthened relationships between the young women who attended the retreat.
“There was a really beautiful sunrise when we were there and a couple of the
girls got up early, went running, took pictures, came to breakfast, and told us
stories about the sunrise,” she said.
The girls also had
a lot of fun on the bus rides to and from Camp Wabanna. “There was a lot of
singing on the bus and it was definitely entertaining with boom boxes,” said
senior Maeve Randall.
Students and adults
said that the spiritual community provided by the retreat strengthened not only
their relationships with one another, but also their faith.
Reflecting on her
experience, Mae Salitsky, a religion and English teacher who chaperoned,
expressed the powerful impact students had on her own faith. “My faith was
really edified by the witness of the girls. As a religion teacher, I can find
myself getting into the position of thinking, ‘Oh, I’m the one who’s passing on
the faith and they’re receiving it.’ And then, in moments like that I realize, ‘Oh
no, I’m actually receiving so much just from witnessing the students take it so
much to heart.’ It encouraged me to know that the faith that is entrusted to
students at this school — they take it very seriously. They’re concerned about
being able to live it in college and grow in it while they’re away, with much
more passion than I had at their age.”
Going on retreats
can be a great way to grow in your faith, and if you go with companions, grow
closer together. “Going on a retreat is amazing because it lets you step away
from the distractions of your daily life so that you can focus on the things
that really matter and have the time and mental space to pray, and to spend
time with friends, and to rest,” said Boyle.