Lancer Night of Formation
In his first year as a campus minister, Mr. Jacob Vowels has been mostly using the template left for him by Mr. Christopher DeVera, who left for another school this year.
Vowels had the chance to adapt to making the Campus Ministry job his own. He spoke to his Faith In Action class to see what they would think about having an after-school retreat called the Lancer Night of Formation.
The purpose of this retreat would help the attendees grow in their faith and grow closer to God by taking advantage of every possible opportunity to make this year special, Mr. Vowels said.
This retreat did have many limits to it as well. This would include only inviting the juniors and seniors to attend. On Thursday, November 18, the event took place from 3:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. More than 130 kids signed up for this event.
Vowels explained how excited he was for the event to take place. Many students also were very excited and loved the experience of staying at school for this afternoon retreat.
Senior Julia Romero explained that she felt very connected to God and her friends that she participated in the activities. After being able to talk in small groups, she felt that she learned a lot about herself in which the discussion questions made her think more deeply.
“I loved this retreat because I was able to be with many of my friends and feel comfortable enough to open myself up to God,” said Romero.
Isaiah Bustamante loved this retreat, especially when we lit the lanterns at the end of the night. He said that it was relieving to speak his mind onto the lantern and watch it as it flew up into the darkness of the sky.
“Seeing everyone’s lanterns fly up all at the same time made me appreciate the God-given gift of being together with us tonight,” said Bustamante.
Sunshine Schwartz knew that the vibes of the whole retreat were going to be fun, and everyone was going to enjoy their time. She mentioned that the overall experience made her realize how important God is to her life and friends’ lives. Schwartz looks forward to future retreats and helping other students grow deeper in God’s love while being an FIA student.
“I loved the withdrawal that we all took from this retreat, as well as how it was organized,” Schwartz said. “The songs that were sung gave me a chance to feel God’s presence. Everyone was coming together to pray, which was awesome.”
Mr. Vowels spoke about how excited he was to become the new campus minister. On top of this, he also explained the success he had from this night alone. He loved seeing the Bishop Amat Community come together and grow in their relationship with God, which is his biggest goal as a campus minister.
“I loved how perfectly the retreat went. I will say that I was nervous that this wouldn’t go well because I had never done something big like this before,” Vowels said. “I put my prayers and trust in God, and it worked out better than expected,” Vowels was excited to say.”
Vowles hopes to do something like this in the future, once again.
