Washington, DC – Bro. Martin Zewe served as the presenter for St. John’s faculty retreat, January 10 and 11. Having taught at St. John’s for over twenty years, Bro. Martin has a good understanding of the need for a mid-year recharge. His presentations focused on De La Salle’s Meditations for the Time of Retreat, emphasizing the understanding that “the students we have in class have been entrusted to our care. Not assigned to us, but entrusted.” Bro. Martin encouraged the retreatants to pray for the needs of individual students and “ask God for help in working with the young people entrusted to me.” Bro. Martin also reminded the teachers to look for the little miracles that occur each day. “Saying hello to a student in the hallway, or commenting on a student’s recent concert or game can really make a difference in his or her day.”
The January faculty retreat started at St. John’s five years ago, after a few teachers felt it would be a good time to step back and reflect on the semester completed and the semester ahead. The retreat is held for one night at the Claggett Retreat Center in Adamstown, MD (just down the road from where the Christian Brothers’ Retreat House and Baltimore Provincial were located). This year’s retreat was attended by twenty members of the faculty and administration.
Kate Fernandez comments that “it was a delight to have Bro. Martin lead our staff retreat this weekend. The settling felt relaxed and familiar even though it was my first time in attendance. My biggest take-away was the notion that students are ENTRUSTED to us rather than simply assigned. I think adopting that idea creates a profound change in perspective and embodies Lasallian belief.”