Have you ever wanted to deepen your faith?  To become closer to your classmates?  Or to simply get away from Dubuque for a weekend?  If you answered ‘yes’ to any of those questions, Kairos might be something worth looking into.

Kairos retreats began at Wahlert in 2012, and since then, 13 have been held.  Normally, two take place every year; however, this year, three were planned. Originally, 90 juniors signed up to attend a Kairos retreat this year, so a third one was added in order to include more people.

“It will depend on the class size. We could plan to have three if it was a really large class and plan to only have two if the class was really small,” said Ms. Katie Koetz, campus minister.

In order for three retreats to happen, seven leaders were needed per retreat. Sophia Shubatt, Owen Borelli, Audra McMahon, Elizabeth Gehling, Luke Schaefer, Grace Herber, Jennifer Carpenter, Chris Ripley, Zach Kemp, Maeve Breslin, Anna Herrig, Abby Burns, Noah Kelleher and Emma Wachter, ‘18, were the 14 seniors chosen to lead the retreats.

The overall goal of Kairos is for juniors to become closer to God and their classmates while coming to a better understanding of themselves, according to Sophia Rupert, ’19.

“It was a more personalized experience than I expected,” said Rupert.  “I got a lot out of it and I got to understand people that I had never known before but had always gone to school with. I had never known what they were about or their life story.”

Kairos begins after school on a Thursday and continues through Sunday. Throughout the weekend, the juniors attending hear multiple talks, participate in small groups, and other various activities.

“I heard that it was a fun time, but it surpassed any expectation that I had,” said Luke O’Connell, ‘19.  “I’d totally recommend it.  It’s such a great time, and you get closer to your faith.  Even if you aren’t necessarily Catholic, it’s still a great time.”