The theme for our Junior Retreat was “This is the way. Walk ye in it”, which was reinforced with each activity throughout the weekend. We kicked off the retreat on Friday evening with a delicious dinner, during which our juniors started the process of getting to know the individuals in their group. Each group had an adult, a senior facilitator and six juniors. After dinner, we mixed all the Cadets into four groups where they played a game called “The Lost Dutchman’s Gold Mine”. This game required them to really work together and figure out the best path to choose to win the game.
The “trivia/baby picture” activity was next. The senior facilitator held up each baby picture and read trivia about that individual. Each team member had to guess who the individual was. This activity is designed to help the groups get to know each other on a more personal level. A lot of laughter came out of this activity! We then settled down to complete “match affirmation”: each young man had to light a match and say as many positive attributes about himself until the match burned down. I was amazed at how seriously the Cadets took this activity as it seemed to remind them of the good qualities they possess.
Next, the juniors wrote on a piece of ribbon what paths they have taken or need to take in order to reach their goals. Once completed, we blindfolded them and took them on a trust walk to a bonfire, where Col. Brown had a talk with them about choosing paths. After tying their ribbon to a large cross, the juniors ate s’mores and enjoyed some fellowship around the fire.
