Camps & Retreats
The St Mary's College camps and retreats are among the most significant experiences encountered by our students.
Retreats
The retreats offer students and staff an opportunity to reflect on their own life journey, to greatly strengthen their relationships with others and to develop their spirituality. These experiences are key to building the community of St Mary’s College and are enlightening encounters for all involved.
Year 5 - Once a Brother, Always a Brother
The focus of this retreat is on building relationships; the life of Edmund Rice, his charism and the spirituality of a St Mary’s College boy. This experience introduces the students to prayer, reflection, ritual and tradition.
Year 6 – How Can I Be a St Mary’s College Hero?
This retreat follows on from Year 5, but moves on to the life and work of both Jesus Christ and Edmund Rice, and how they might inspire our Year 6 students to act and advocate for peace and justice with each other and within our College community. Students reflect on their primary education and use those reflections and learn from others so they can make decisions that make a positive difference to their own lives and the lives of others particularly in their role as leaders of the St Mary’s College Primary School.
Year 7 – Who Am I Now?
Year 7 is a sacred time of new beginnings. It challenges the boys to welcome new people into their journey and to open their eyes to new and different possibilities as they start their high school journey.
Year 8 – “From Little Things, Big Things Grow”
The focus of this retreat is on making the step into responsibility. This retreat will aim to help students become aware of the sacred nature of their story and that of their friends. From this, they will consider what part faith plays in the story of their lives.
Year 9 – Step Up
This retreat will aim to help students grow in their self-awareness, the presence of God, their personal gifts and their ability to make sense of and create their own mark in the world. The retreat hopes to assist them to form positive and life giving relationships with significant role models in their lives. Boys will learn to discover the “face of Jesus” in different aspects of their lives.
Year 10 – Inspire Through Impact
Using Jesus as an example, we explore the lasting and powerful impact and influence we can have on those around us by doing some small everyday actions. Each boy re-examines themselves and their actions through the lens of some Gospel messages. Students will look at the concept of identity and especially so in the challenge of the Gospel to act justly, to love unconditionally and to serve others.
Year 11 – Leadership Retreat
This retreat aims to strengthen the relationships within the group in preparation for their final year of schooling. This retreat also aims to develop leadership skills within the students and to inspire them to lead the student community with courage and to lead by example, in the spirit of Jesus Christ and Edmund Rice.
Year 12 – Emmaus – When May I See Jesus?
This retreat is a key part of our Retreat Program. It is a voluntary retreat and takes place in the students’ Senior Year. The retreat is essentially experiential and based upon story telling. Participants on this retreat report it to be among the highlights of their lives.
Camps
The outdoor education program at St Mary's College aims to help boys build resilience, stamina, leadership skills and self-belief, as well as a wider understanding of their community. There are several camps available to boys across the year levels. They range from overnight camps in the younger years to a four-day survival camp in Year 11. Each camp is designed to focus on a different element of a student's formation.
