Campus Ministries Connections Retreat for First-year Students

The Class of 2024 was invited to take part in the Connections Retreat – an experience designed to help first-year students get to know each other as well as to get acquainted with Campus Ministries. It’s also a time and space set aside as an opportunity to deepen one’s awareness of God’s presence and to cultivate a healthy relationship with that presence.

One of the first-year participants, Katianna Figueroa ’24, said, "The Connections retreat gave us an opportunity to interact and learn from each other during a time where connecting with someone has been super stressful due to the Covid-19. The advice from the upperclassmen Connections team has helped me a lot. I am glad to have signed up for the retreat."

Two retreats took place and were led by Scranton students for the newest students.

“I have been in awe of the strength and perseverance of the freshmen throughout this whole semester,” said peer retreat leader Emma Dougherty ’22. “They truly formed beautiful connections with one another.”

The campus ministers who coordinated this retreat, Amy Hoegen and Fred T. Mercadante, made sure to incorporate all the safety protocols as outlined in the Royals Safe Together plan.

“This was the first retreat that we have been able to do this year, and I was amazed that even with all the restrictions in place, these first-year students seemed to be able to squeeze every ounce of communal and spiritual nourishment out of the experience,” said Mercadante.

This one-day experience took place on campus on the AMH lawn under a large tent, with breakout sessions in small groups in various locations on campus.