Day 44-45- Immaculate Conception

We would lead our first two out-of-Minnesota retreats at Immaculate Conception Church in Cranston, Rhode Island. The first one would be for the 8th grade class at the school, then Saturday would be a Confirmation retreat for 9-10th graders. It was extremely chaotic. They told us to arrive at 8:00am. When we arrived and collected everyone at 8:10, they told us the retreat starts in 5 minutes, and we had nothing ready. No schedule, no gathering spaces, nothing. It was extreme mess, but with the immense patience and calmness of Nels, we got most of our thoughts together by the time opening session began. Once we started the retreat, and had people sent off into small groups, I was able to make copies of the schedule and give them out to everyone since I was off for the day. Once that happened, the rest was smooth sailing. The skits were on point, the dramas captivated the crowd (especially Ellie), and prayer ministry was excellent. The sanctuary was beautiful too!! It had this spiral chandelier thing that hung over the altar, leaving me in awe. After the retreat we had team prayer, then skit practice, which was a good laugh session. Then, he chaplain of the parish/school, Father Wilson, treated us out to dinner at Panera Bread, which was fantabulous. When we arrived back at the Vacca household, their son and grandkids were there to greet us. Vincent was their son, Vanessa was the daughter-in-law, and their grandchildren were Linus, Lavinia, Leo, and Lola. Linus had begun playing guitar a couple weeks ago, do Jakob jammed out with him as well as giving him a few tips and tricks. Lavinia gave all of us a bracelet, which was absolutely adorable!! Overall, the family was fantastic, and I wish the night didnt end. . . The next day we packed up our bags and put it in the trailer, as we were leaving immediately after the retreat for Virginia, specifically a midpoint in Pennsylvania. The retreat was a split Men’s/Women’s session, and I’d say overall it was a good retreat. The boys were pretty rowdy, but they were respectful when necessary, and they definitely enjoyed the games being played. After the retreat, we turned around in about 15-20 minutes and were on our way. . . The drive began at 3:39, with dinner given from our host families. The Vacca’s gave us chicken cutlet sandwiches, which were ginormous and delicious! Meanwhile, our route took us through Connecticut, New York (specifically the NYC Burroughs), New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. I apparently slept through a nasty storm in Philly, but when I awoke, it was almost 11 and we werent at our destination. We finally arrived at the house at 11:30, in Willow Street, PA at Sam Ellis’ family’s home!! If you dont recall, Sam was one of my best buds at Wapo, and he’s an incredible man of God. His family was so sweet, at least the ones who stayed up for us. The guys stayed in Sam’s room, which was full of the coolest Lego sets and legit weapons, such as swords. It was wild, and I wish we had more time to explore.