This year about 30 girls met at the Monsignor O’Dwyer Retreat House at the end of the summer to pray, plan, and bond with one another. The retreat was planned by senior leaders: Emily Christ, Sammy Tamberino, and Abby Ewers with the help of the amazing other seniors that are apart of Campus Ministry. This year the theme is “Joy in the Journey.” As a group we discussed what joy and journey meant individually and then together. There were many different opinions about what joy meant. A lot of people agreed that we have to seek out joy every day, rather than thinking joy can just happen to us. For the most part, people also agreed that joy and happiness were different. People described a journey as an adventure where there are struggles, and ups and downs, but ultimately a lesson is learned or something positive is gained from the experience. Journeys can also be different lengths of time; for some, they described their high school journey, and others described week long journeys such as a camp. Together many people agreed that to find joy in the journey is to find positivity in your struggles. Sister Patricia also came and talked to the group about the theme and encouraged us to find joy in our faith journeys and know that Jesus is always with us. In addition to discussing the theme, we also played a variety of games to bond. We split up into three teams, J, O, and Y, and competed in different events. Each team won one game, and it was a three way tie! Overall everyone got to know one another, and new friendships were made. Hopefully, everyone enjoyed the retreat, and Campus Ministry is so excited for the year to come!