The annual Fall Leadership Retreat was a time for resting, creating, connecting, celebrating, and envisioning. We practiced gratitude for our roots and hopefulness for our futures. We ate a lot of food, made a bunch of art, and learned a lot about each other.
We’re so grateful for the beautiful weekend we got to spend at Camp Beechpoint. We had absolutely perfect weather for team-building initiatives, painting outdoors, wandering the trails, and playing at the waterfront.
Students captured some really thoughtful images at the fall leadership retreat, during our Photography Scavenger Hunt with Jack Burk. They followed some prompts from the book: Use This if You Want to Take Great Photographs, by Henry Carroll. Erin Drews led us in some creative writing activities and a tear-jerking honey roast. On Saturday, we explored visual communication through symbols and gestures, inspired by the work of modern Aboriginal Australian artists who use dot painting to convey tribal knowledge and pass on wisdom. We tried to read and distill the gestures of natural objects around us, and visually depicted some of the goals and purposes of CultureWorks, and of art/culture, in general: grow, connect, reflect, belong, create, engage, laugh, explore, make, and express.
Our Student Advisors explored, took risks, challenged one another, created meaningful art, and practiced leadership skills through activities and exercises led by some of our favorite artist instructors, including the beloved Alysha Lach White. I am full of hope for what these young people will accomplish in our world, and full of wonder at what they have already achieved.
