We Have Your Back: Seniors Encourage Freshmen at Retreat

<img class="size-medium wp-image-24616 alignleft lazyload" src="https://www.bishopodowd.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Frosh-Retreat-7-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" srcset="https://www.bishopodowd.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Frosh-Retreat-7-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.bishopodowd.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Frosh-Retreat-7-768x512.jpg 768w, https://www.bishopodowd.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Frosh-Retreat-7-1024x683.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Nearly 90 seniors gave up a day off school on October 10 to lead the freshman retreat, sharing their personal experiences of freshman year, facilitating large and small group activities and discussions, and offering to support our newest students on their high school journey.

Themed “Welcome to the Family: We Have Your Back,” the retreat was part of O’Dowd’s effort to create a Culture of Care in which every child is seen as an individual.

Religious Studies teacher and Retreat Coordinator Michael Downs pointed to a passage from Corinthians – God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together – that illustrates how all O’Dowd students are one body, one family, that suffers and rejoices together.

Campus Ministry Team member Kheshawn Wynn ’19 said he felt a calling to help with the freshman retreat. “On CMT we promote spirituality and faith-based relationships, which is what the freshman retreat invites the students to do,” he said. “I felt it was important for me to encourage the Class of 2022 to take some time to reflect on their relationships with God, themselves and each other – just as I did on my Kairos retreat.”

Kheshawn said he enjoyed seeing how engaged the freshmen were during the retreat. “I walked around from group to group, and I got to hear some of the freshmen share their experiences with the various emotions from the film Inside Out,” he said. “My favorite part of the day was leading icebreakers with the rest of CMT because I got to know some of the freshmen.”