After spending a majority of their middle school years at home and attending school through a computer screen, Bellarmine’s class of 2025 has struggled to connect and feel at home in a new school environment. Fortunately, the Freshmen Retreat offered a beacon of hope, allowing the freshmen to come together through a day of bonding activities.

Link Crew leaders, consisting of upper class students and faculty advisors, welcomed the freshmen to Black Diamond camp on Wednesday, March 16, for a fun-filled day beginning with small group activities that facilitated discussion within groups so that the freshmen could get to know each other on a deeper level.

The fan favorite activity of the day was the House Olympics, coordinated by the Link Crew core team to facilitate teamwork and comradery within houses: Kolbe, Liseux, Guadalupe, Xavier, Rodriguez, and Tekawitha. Between basketball tournaments, obstacle courses, rock climbing, and a multitude of other competitions that students could pick from, the Olympics were a well-received addition to the Freshmen Retreat. Students could win points for their house when they won a game, and after a fierce competition, the Tekawitha house came out victorious.

When asked about what he thought of the retreat, freshman Ryden Perez said, “I love it! It’s really fun and awesome, and I did not expect this at all honestly.” The retreat exceeded the expectations of many students like Perez who says, “I thought we would be doing a lot of hiking and walking in the mountains. I didn’t expect this much fun and games.”

The day certainly focused on fun, including a karaoke session where freshmen performed with their friends in front of their peers. Freshman Estella Scoccolo said, “The karaoke segment was really fun because the whole crowd was singing the songs and my friends sang.” Besides karaoke, Scoccolo also said, “My favorite thing about the retreat was playing Gaga Ball during the Olympics.”

For students who didn’t prefer the other activities offered, the Olympics also included a Knowledge Bowl. Senior Link Crew Core Team member Nelly Ramos-Laguna said, “The knowledge bowl was pretty successful because we had a lot of people show up that didn’t want to play sports. We even had seniors participate, so it was a good bonding experience for the freshman, but also with the freshmen and seniors.” A major goal of the retreat was offering a setting in which upperclassmen could set an example for the freshmen to model. Leading by example proved successful, and faculty hope to maintain the positive culture Bellarmine built before the pandemic.

The freshmen were not the only ones who felt impacted by the retreat. Senior Rachel Daniel, a Link Crew leader, said “It’s super cool because I was able to be a freshman on Freshman retreat, and it was really fun to be able to meet a lot of new people. To be able to come back and offer the same opportunity to so many other freshmen is super rewarding.”

The Freshmen Retreat was well received by students and leaders alike, and the Bellarmine community is thrilled to resume retreats, as they are a critical component of students’ education and growth into the best version of themselves.