Retreats on tour for Benildus Pastoral Centre
The full return to school on Monday April 12th, has left us as a team excited and encouraged. The schools' enthusiasm and prompt action to avail of our service for the benefit of their students has been wonderful. The enquiries are coming in fast, not just for the Autumn term but for the here and now as in April/May. We have spoken with chaplains and teachers in the past week, and there is a real and significant concern for their pupils, their disconnect, their mental health and overall wellbeing.
In recent weeks, we shadowed the wonderful work of the Castletown Team in their online Confirmation retreat and we are working towards formulating our own, albeit between going out to schools and receiving them here at Hazelwood House.
We were in Loreto on the Green for two full days last week. It was two very successful days with great engagement from the students. It went seamlessly and the treasured use of technology meant we were able to keep it as paperless as possible but without compromise to productivity or creativity. We returned to the school for two further days to complete the 2nd Year programme. Loreto on the Green have also expressed a wish that we take over their 6th Year Retreat programme and we look forward to welcoming them to Hazelwood House in May - 92 students in all.
Our faithful friend Colaiste Iosagain is coming back out to Hazelwood for three days in May and we are also due out to Holy Child Killiney for two days in May. Added to that, we are delighted to be invited out to Bray to complete the 2nd Year retreat programme there. Also, we will cross county lines in giving a Confirmation retreat out in Baconsfield, Co. Kildare.
It is undoubtedly heart-warming to witness and respond to this need for our work but more importantly it is truly affirming that schools are prioritising the emotional, spiritual and physical well-being of their students.
The age of our students range between 12 and 18 and all come to the (retreat) table full of enthusiasm and engagement
Out of the testimonies we hear and which are shared, it has without doubt been a tumultuous year for them all but one in which family has emerged as champion. Emerging too is an authentic and real search for meaning and purpose. There is a great maturity to the groups we meet with a true hunger for the reflection, prayer, meditation and dialogue that retreat days bring.
As a team, we feel very privileged to be working with young people, bearing witness to their experiences of unprecedented times. It has reinvented our work and as Lasallians, we feel honoured to be tasked with the work we do.