Overview of Retreat Experiences
Campus Ministry provides each student the opportunity to experience a yearly class retreat. Retreat experiences are facilitated by the Campus Ministry Team, various Faculty/Staff Members and Peer Ministers. Campus Ministry strives to meet the spiritual and developmental need of the students.
Padua has the most comprehensive retreat program in the area. Students will participate in a retreat every year that focuses on developing relationships with each other and God. Since 1998, we have been offering the Kairos Retreat to our Juniors. Senior year, students can choose from eight different retreat options, from backpacking and biking to canoeing and hiking.
Summary of Annual Retreats
Each year Padua students go on retreat to dive more deeply into the Four Pillars of Franciscan Spirituality, We Bring Peace, We Serve, We Pray, and We Care.
Freshman Retreat
The Freshman Retreat, “We Bring Peace,” focuses on each student’s relationship with family, friends, self, and God.
Sophomore Retreat
The Sophomore Retreat, “We Serve,” has a theme of discipleship and service. Students participate in service projects at various agencies in the Greater Cleveland area and then share about their experiences.
Junior Retreat
The Junior Retreat, “We Pray,” explores the various ways to pray and the need for prayer in our lives.
Kairos Retreat (for juniors)
Kairos is an intensive witness-based retreat for juniors. The retreat is led by a Senior Kairos team with witnesses given by students and faculty. The three or four day retreat is held at the Jesuit Retreat Center in Parma.
Senior Retreats
The Senior Retreat, “We Care,” invites students to spend time outdoors enjoying activities such as hiking, fishing, or kayaking, as they reflect on thor high school journey and explore their relationship with God.
Art and Nature
Students are given the opportunity to reflect on God’s presence as we spend the day in the beautiful MetroParks. Through community building activities, hiking and art experiences, this becomes a powerful retreat experience. Students are able to spend time deciding what parts of their life they wish to carry with them into the future, as well as the things currently in the lives they wish to change. A peaceful time to hear their Creator guiding.
Camp-Hike
What do you carry throughout your life journey? The Camp-Hike Retreat helps students reflect on what they carry in their heart as they journey through high school and embark on their journey into the future. The retreat challenges the students to hike about 8 miles.
Girls of Grace
The Girls of Grace Retreat helps young women to reflect on what it means to be a Woman of God. Seniors are invited to reflect on what they have learned at Padua Franciscan High School. They consider the people that have influenced their lives and who have helped to form them into the women that they are today. The seniors are given a chance to consider what they wish to carry with them into the future as well as reflect on the things in their lives they wish to leave behind. The young women are asked to pause and prayerfully consider the type of person they wish to be in the future and how they are working towards that goal today.
Hiking
The Hiking Retreat takes students to the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Seniors reflect on their journey through high school and their life so far. Faculty and students hike together, share together and pray together as they reflect on God’s love. Students are invited to experience a healing service that focuses on the ministry of St. Clare.
Leap of Faith – Zip Line
Seniors are invited to reflect on their life through team building experiences at Camp Cheerful and a zip lining opportunity at Go Ape, in Strongsville. Students are invited to look back on their life thus far and gain courage to ‘let go’ and rely on the ‘belay systems’ of their lives as they begin their future after high school.
Men of Faith
The Male Spirituality Retreat, held at Camp Cheerful in Strongsville, helps young men to reflect on what it means to be a Man of God. Seniors are invited to reflect on what they have learned at Padua Franciscan High School. They consider the people that have influenced their lives and who helped form them into the men that they are today. The seniors are given a chance to reflect on what they wish to carry with them into the future, as well as the things in their lives they wish to leave behind. The senior men are asked to prayerfully discern the type of person they wish to be in the future and how they are working towards that goal today.