Join us for a GodSearch
Retreat Weekend on the beautiful
St. Mary’s River near the Chesapeake Bay. St. Mary’s Parish in St. Mary’s
City, Maryland, is the setting for two days of fun, fellowship, exploration,
and spiritual growth. This is an ideal place to experience the power of
God in creation, the beauty and wonder of the Bay area, and the tranquility
and peace that encourage personal spiritual reflection. Come experience
Trinity Church, with its 360-year history, and St. Mary’s City, original
capital of colonial Maryland. Above all, experience God’s presence in this
place through fun, learning, and worship.
Friday
Night: Meet
youth from other areas, be energized by games and singing, and participate
in "Bibliodrama," a workshop which will give you deeper insight
into the stories and teachings of the Bible and how they relate to your
life. The day’s program draws to an end with a meditation in the church’s
historic cemetery overlooking the St. Mary’s River, followed by a candlelight
Eucharist in Trinity Church. After a pizza snack, you’ll retire to your
sleeping bag on the floor of the parish hall -- camping without mosquitoes!
(We provide foam sleeping pads for your comfort.)
Saturday Morning:
Rise for a quick breakfast (please bring your own) and
morning prayer, and then head out for a tour of the church grounds and
a scavenger hunt in the cemetery. Then it’s on to the dock to board the
skipjack for a very special river tour.
Optional Saturday Night:
You may wish to extend your stay and explore other sites
and activities in the area. Roast marshmallows over a bonfire at Church
Point. Your group may stay an additional night for an extra fee of $10
per person. The parish hall will be available to you on Saturday after
7 pm. Because of our Sunday morning schedule, the group would need to be
packed up and moved out by 8 am. (Weather permitting, bonfires may be arranged
by special request.)
Skipjack
Tour: Join
Captain Jack Russell for a three- hour sailing tour of the St. Mary’s and
Potomac Rivers. Trap crabs, dredge for oysters, haul the sails, and command
the wheel of The Dee of St. Mary’s. This
is one of the few privately owned skipjacks in Maryland certified by the
U.S. Coast Guard to carry passengers on tour. All the while, USCG Captain
Jack will be sharing the lore of the Chesapeake ~ stories he has gathered
during 40 years of commercial fishing, oystering, and crabbing.
"Son,
you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. But…this brother
of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found."
- Luke 15
Historic St. Mary’s City:
Located next to Trinity Church and near the campus of
St. Mary’s College of Maryland, Historic St. Mary’s City is a living history
museum and education center. The settlement, founded in 1634, was the first
capital of the Province of Maryland and the fourth permanent settlement
in British North America. Today, Historic St. Mary’s City is recognized
as one of America’s best-preserved archaeological and historical sites
and is registered as a National Historic Landmark.
On a Tidewater landscape lightly touched by the modern world, the colonial past is brought to life. Costumed interpreters and recreated buildings--the result of years of painstaking archaeological and historical investigation--lend an air of authenticity. St. Mary’s City, a town that disappeared from most maps and history books more than two centuries ago, is recapturing the imagination of visitors, students, and scholars.
Other Sites of Interest:
Point Lookout Lighthouse ~ Scotland (15 miles)
Patuxent River Naval Air Museum ~ Lexington Park (10 miles)
Calvert Marine Museum ~ Solomons Island (20 miles)
Dates:
Generally, GodSearch
is held in warm weather (April through June and
September through November). We will, however, consider other dates by
special request.
Time:Plan
to arrive on Friday between 6:30 and 7 pm for registration
Food:
We urge you to have supper before arriving at GodSearch
on Friday. There are reasonably-priced restaurants
in nearby towns. Please bring snacks and simple breakfast items with you.
We will provide coffee and tea. We have a refrigerator and a microwave
available for your use. Saturday lunch can be provided for a small fee.
What to Bring:
Comfortable clothes & shoes, modest sleepwear (you’re all together
on the Parish Hall floor), foul-weather gear (if rain is forecast), sleeping
bag & pillow, toiletries.
What
Not to Bring:
Valuables, electronic devices, drugs, alcohol. The weekend begins with
an advisor’s meeting at 7:30 pm on Friday and ends around noon on Saturday
after the skipjack tour. We encourage you to explore other Southern Maryland
sites that afternoon.
Weather:
Rain or shine, the search
is on!
Contact us:
GodSearch
St. Mary’s Parish
PO Box 207 - St. Mary’s City, MD 20686
Phone: 301-862-4597 Fax: 301-862-2507
e-mail:trinitysmcmd@olg.com
If interested, please contact us immediately. As soon as possible, please complete and send the application form with a deposit of half of the required fee. Reservations will be accepted only when we receive a completed application form and deposit. We will do our best to accommodate your preferred dates. If that is not possible, we will not accept your deposit until we have contacted you and agreed upon an alternate date. If another date cannot be agreed upon, your deposit will be returned to you. GodSearchis limited to a total of 35 persons (including adults). There must be one adult sponsor for every ten students. You may depart from your reserved number of spaces by two without notifying us. You may change the number in your reservation without penalty up to 30 days in advance.
Deposit Policy:
Once accepted, your deposit is nonrefundable. If you fail to show up or cancel less than 30 days in advance, your deposit is forfeited. This is necessary due to our need to fill spaces each weekend in order to meet our costs for hosting the program. We are also obligated to pay for any skipjack reservations which are made. Your deposit may be credited to another date if you cancel with at least 30 days notice or if we mutually agree to a cancellation due to very severe weather. The balance of the tuition fee is due one week before your arrival.
Enrollment:
If the combined enrollment from all churches for a particular weekend is less than 25, we reserve the right to cancel that GodSearchweekend. If cancellation is necessary under these circumstances, your deposit will be returned. We will consider hosting smaller groups who are willing to pay a higher fee per participant.
A $25 penalty will be charged for
checks returned due to insufficient funds.