Confirmation Retreats, Massachusetts Conference, United Church of Christ

Retreat Facilitator: Heather Ramsey, Youth Minister at the The First Church of Christ in Marblehead, MA

1. To help youth see that faith as a process; a journey. To help youth figure out where they are on this road.

2. To help youth see where Jesus is found/met on the path. In what ways can we meet God, Christ, and the Spirit on this journey? What does a relationship with Jesus look like? How does this relationship manifest itself in our everyday lives?

3. To help youth to see our journeys wholistically- in a way that connects them to the UCC, to the entire Christian tradition, and to Jesus, the foundation of our faith.

4. To help youth understand faith and spiritually not only from an intellectual/head level, but also from the level of heart and experience.

"This whole weekend rocked. I loved the whole thing. " YYouth participant confirmation group

CONFIRMATION DATES

2008-2009 TENTATIVE

October 17-18-Craigville

November 7-8-Grotonwood

January 30-31-Grotonwood

March 6-7 MACUCC-Framingham

April 3-4-Craigville

group

"What a valuable experience, so skillfully led, so deeply faithful - -and it connected in profound ways with our confirmands." Rev. Patricia Hayes, Brockton, UCC

"Overall this trip was great. At first I wasn't looking forward to it. Now that I came, it was fun!" YYouth participant

kids

"I loved my group, great discussions and the activities really made me think about my spiritual life." YYouth participant youth group

"I learned that we should accept everyone. I learned that God is with us everywhere." YYouth participant

young kids

Early, early, early, this is the key word for registration. Every year, we have a waiting list for these retreats, which are increasing in popularity. Also, to help with early registration, we are requiring a deposit of only one third of your expected total due. A postcard confirmation will be mailed to you upon receipt of your registration and deposit. No spaces will be held without a deposit and a tentative list of participants. A final invoice along with the retreat schedule, medical release form and directions will be mailed to you about 4-6 weeks before the retreat date. Final payments will be required two weeks prior to the retreat date. Please try to realistically estimate who will actually attend. If you overbook, it prevents others from attending. The Conference reserves the right to cancel a retreat if a minimum number of participants is not met. Each facility has different capacities and we will advise churches of a cancellation as soon as it is possible.

Click on the "Register Now" to download pdf. (Registration flyer will be available June 1)

Confirmation retreats can accommodate groups with 20 or fewer students with at least two adult advisors.

Retreats begin PROMPTLY at 7:00 pm on Friday and conclude at 4:00 pm on Saturday. The cost is $115.00 per person which includes program expenses, lodging, breakfast, lunch and snacks. Leaders should be sure their groups arrive on time and are ready to go!!!

All groups must have at least two adult leaders who will provide supervision and participate along with the confirmands throughout the event. Adult leaders will be expected to help facilitate some of the activities as instructed by the Confirmation Leadership Team. Groups with 11-15 young people need a third leader. Leaders must reflect the gender balance of the group, i.e. an all male group should have two male leaders and groups with both male and female confirmands should have one male and one female leader. To insure safety and a quality program, groups of young people without two leaders will not be able to participate in the event. Please do not ask to amend this rule, this is for your protection as well as the safety of the youth!

Conference guidelines stipulate that we are required to obtain a Criminal Offense Record Investigation (CORI) report for all adults who will be spending the night with youth. Please click here to find out more about the CORI procedure. This is just one of the ways that we are working to insure that groups will be safe at Conference events.

Sleeping bag or sheets and blankets
Casual clothes
Sleepwear
Toiletries
Towels
Flashlight
Snacks
Medical Release Form, signed

For additional information contact: Cindy Bolton, Administrative Assistant, Leadership Development and Educational Ministries (boltonc@macucc.org)