Campus Ministry
DeSales High School implemented its
Campus Ministry office in the 2005-2006 school year. Our mission is to
provide faith development that is both complimentary to and independent of
religious studies courses. Campus Ministry undertakes the task of
organizing and carrying out Masses, prayer services, special religious
ceremonies, student faith groups, and retreats.
The retreats are perhaps the most
powerful Campus Ministry offering. On retreats, students travel to a
retreat site and spend two or three days getting to know themselves, others,
and God better. Ultimately, we will have six retreats per
year:
SENIOR
PILGRIMAGE
The Pilgrimage is a 12-mile hike,
led by seniors for seniors, with stops for talks and skits along the way.
Ends with a Sunday-Monday overnight campout full of song.
Senior Pilgrimage September 27-28,
2009
St. Andrew's Mission
“Jeremiah 29:11- “For I know well
the plans I have for you. Plans for your welfare, not for woe.”
The annual Senior Pilgrimage retreat
was held September 27-28, 2009 near Pendleton, Oregon. Twenty-two seniors
gathered together to walk 12-miles from the Dead-Man’s Rest Area off of I-84
down a side road to St. Andrew’s Mission.
The journey took 5 ½ hours to
complete and included stops along the way for talks from the retreat team made
up of fellow members of the senior class.
All of the talks were centered on
the retreat theme trusting God and the journeys that the seniors have taken
together as a class, and will have to take as individuals once they graduate.
Once back at the mission the seniors
were able to relax their tired and sore muscles and enjoy a home cooked meal
prepared by Mrs. Patty Mata. The evening was capped off with a special Mass,
followed by a campfire sing-a-long, with ‘S’mores. I promise next year we’ll
have extra ‘S’mores so we don’t run out! J
Monday started off with sleeping in
late and a huge breakfast, once again prepared by Mrs. Mata and her kitchen
staff of Jessica Salvador and Michael Scheel.
The senior team then ended the
retreat with a prayer service where they presented the retreatants with a drama
entitled “100 Years” that gave them a chance to think about the idea of “What
if you could see your life before you lived it? All the choices you would make.
Would you change anything on your journey now?”
Then the seniors ended the retreat
by writing letters to their classmates that will be posted outside the Campus
Ministry office.
A special thank you goes out to Mrs.
Mata, Miss Salvador, Mr. Scheel, Dr. Pat Sharkey for driving the Port-A-Potty
during the walk, Jake Cmelik for providing music, and Fr. Kevin Oiland for
providing his pastoral guidance.
Click here to view pictures from this year's Senior
Pilgrimage (2009).
Click here to view pictures from last year's Senior
Pilgrimage (2008).
FRESHMAN
DAY RETREAT
This retreat is a required event. It
focuses on community building and the spiritual life found in the school.
The day is led by seniors and includes small group and large group
discussions and games.
Freshman Day Retreat October 27,
2009
Pioneer Park Garden Center
The Freshman Day Retreat was held at the Pioneer Park
Garden Center on a cold Tuesday in October. The theme of the retreat was “Come
Follow Me” and it focused on the true meaning of being the body of Christ at
DeSales High School.
Ten members of the senior class volunteered to help guide
the freshmen though their first retreat at DHS. Four seniors shared personal
stories of their freshmen memories, the importance of sharing your gifts with
others at DeSales, and building the community and body of Christ.
The freshmen also participated in small group discussions
where they had the chance to talk about their thoughts and ideas of what high
school was like so far, and what they hoped for the future.
The retreat concluded with Mass celebrated by Father
Kevin Oiland. A special thank you to Father Kevin and Mrs. Christy Richard for
chaperoning the retreat.
Click here to view pictures from this year's Freshman Day
Retreat (2009).
Click here to view pictures from last year's Freshman Day
Retreat (2008).
JUNIOR
ENCOUNTER
The Junior Encounter program is a
special retreat designed to help the student better know and love him/herself,
others, and God. It happens in the junior year and usually goes from a Friday
morning to early evening Sunday.
December 11-13, 2009
Camp Touchet - Dayton
From December 11 to December 13, 2009, twenty members of
the DHS Junior class continued the tradition started at DeSales three years
ago, and partook in the Junior Encounter.
This specialized three-day, two-night retreat focuses on
building and strengthening relationships with God, self, family, and friends by
realizing the importance of love and breaking down the walls that have kept
love out.
Activities and talks given by members of the senior class
related their stories of how important relationships are, especially as they
get closer to graduation. There was also a special session where the groups
spent time separately as men and women bonding with each other. According to one young lady on the retreat, that was her
favorite part of the retreat because she got to know the girls in her class on
a deeper level than she ever thought.
This retreat was held again at Camp Touchet just outside
of Dayton, near Bluewood Ski Resort. The weekend started out with no snow, but
on Saturday the skies opened up and we were gifted with about 2-3 inches of
snow.
I want to say a special thank you to Jake Cmelik, Jessica
Salvador, Father Kevin Oiland, Kathy Ruthven, Michael Scheel, Patty Mata, and
Dr and Mrs. Wujek for all of their assistance during the weekend.
From the food, chaperoning, being shoulders to lean on, without you the retreat
wouldn’t be the same.
Click here to view pictures from this year's Junior
Encounter (2009).
Click here to view pictures from last year's Junior
Encounter.
Click here to view pictures from the Junior Encounter Prom.
FRESHMAN
OVERNIGHT RETREAT
The Freshman Overnight, led by
sophomores, juniors, and seniors, is an optional Saturday-Sunday event. This
off-campus retreat focuses on community, sharing in small and large groups, and
a giant campfire sing-along.
April, Exact Date TBA
St. Parick's Church
SOPHOMORE
OVERNIGHT RETREAT
This junior-led overnight retreat
focuses on the relationships we have with each other and how God fits in with
the way we see the world.
Sophomore Overnight March 7-8,
2010
Meadowood Speech Camp, Tollgate OR
Click here to view pictures from last year's Sophomore
Overnight.
SENIOR
EVENING RETREAT
At the end of the year, when life is
zooming for most seniors, comes this break of quiet time. Students
reflect on spiritual issues, their lives thus far, life after DeSales, and
saying goodbye.
May 14, 2010
Asumption Parish
Click here to view pictures from last year's Senior Evening
Retreat.
