On Friday, Sept 5th, the King’s College Campus Ministry came together and introduced its first on-campus retreat to first year and transfer students. The purpose of the retreat was to inspire all new students to connect with one another and reflect on how they can remain rooted physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually throughout their journey at King’s College.
The New Student Retreat theme was “Remain in me, as I remain in you,” which was inspired by the bible scripture of John 15:4. This experience was meant to give new and transfer students the opportunity to think about how they will be people of faith throughout their time at King’s College and to connect with returning students who have also made faith a significant part of their college experience.
The event was hosted in the new Campus Ministry building on 182 N Franklin St. Resident and commuter students from all different faith traditions and majors came together to talk about how they hope to remain rooted in what matters important to them during their time at King’s.
Attendees had a chance to connect through different team activities like Scattergories and “Deeper Dive” discussions that gave them the opportunity to brainstorm, visualize, and reflect on their future life by asking questions like “what do you hope will be the highlight of a regular day in your life 10 years from now?” They also had a chance to experience the Reflective Spaces located at Chapel of Christ the King, Grotto on North Street, and the Regina Court Waterfall.
Peter Sayre ’27 and Katelyn Moses ’29 shared their retreat experiences:
My overall impression was very positive. I was able to meet lots of new students who were eager to engage and form connections, which was encouraging. Sometimes you might feel strange practicing religion in public for fear of how you will be perceived, but there is a good chance other people feel the same way and are waiting for someone else to lead by example. So, take the first step, pray before you eat or before an important exam, and don’t worry about what other people might think. ~ Peter
When I first arrived at the New Student Retreat, I was a little nervous, and very excited! I really wanted to open a bit more to new experiences and people. I was excited to find people interested in campus ministry. I met wonderful people and started to feel right at home by the time I left! I can’t wait to start my journey at King’s with this amazing community! I want to make sure that through all my studies here, I remember to put faith first. It is the most important thing in life, even when so many other things are going on around us. It is important to stay rooted in what we believe. ~Katelyn
