Participate in Activities and Programs
Hellenic Dance Festival
Metropolis of Atlanta Sponsored Event
Contact: The Metropolis Youth Coordinator at 404-634-9345 ext. 5.
Participation open to: Dance groups 9 years to adult.
Fee: Check out the Metropolis Website or the Hellenic Dance Festival Website for more information about fees and hotel.
Purpose: To develop an awareness and appreciation for Hellenic and Orthodox Culture and tradition. To inspire youth to understand the concept that a healthy body leads to a healthy mind. To establish the principles of this Diakonia utilizing the same spirit of Hellenism used for the original Olympics.
ADVENT RETREAT
METROPOLIS OF ATLANTA SPONSORED EVENT
Contact: The Metropolis Youth Coordinator at 404-634-9345 ext. 5 for Metropolis-wide concerns. Fr. Christos at 404-633-5870 for Local Parish concerns.
Participation open to: Children 6th thru 12th Grade GOYA.
Fee: Check out the Metropolis Website for more information about fees.
Purpose: To promote the Orthodox Christian way of life in an informal camp-like setting.
Activities: The Retreat takes place at the Diakonia Retreat Center in Salem, SC. Activities include learning sessions, free time for athletics and diakonia. Chapel services are also an everyday part of the Retreat.
LENTEN RETREAT
METROPOLIS OF ATLANTA SPONSORED EVENT
Contact: The Metropolis Youth Coordinator at 404-634-9345 ext. 5 for Metropolis-wide concerns. Fr. Christos at 404-633-5870 for Local Parish concerns.
Participation open to: Children 6th thru 12th Grade GOYA.
Fee: Check the Metropolis Website for more information about fees.
Purpose: To promote the Orthodox Christian way of life in an informal camp-like setting.
Activities: The Retreat takes place at the Diakonia Retreat Center in Salem, SC. Activities include learning sessions, free time for athletics and diakonia. Chapel services are also an everyday part of the Retreat.
WYR--WINTER YOUTH RALLY
METROPOLIS OF ATLANTA SPONSORED EVENT
Contact:The Metropolis Youth Coordinator at 404-634-9345 ext. 5 for Metropolis-wide concerns. Fr. Christos at 404-633-5870 for Local Parish concerns.
Participation open to: 7th thru 12th graders who participate in and meet the requirements of GOYA
Fee: Check out the Metropolis website for more information about fees and hotel.
Purpose: The WYR encourages athletic competition and fellowship on a Metropolis-wide scale. The program has the participation of over 20 Parishes on average with about 500 participants each year and consists of three days of sporting, social, and spiritual events.
ST. STEPHEN'S SUMMER CAMP
METROPOLIS OF ATLANTA SPONSORED EVENT
Contact:The Metropolis Youth Coordinator at 404-634-9345 ext. 5 for Metropolis-wide concerns. Fr. Christos at 404-633-5870 for Local Parish concerns
Participation open to: Boys and girls, 6th - 12th grade.
Fee: Check out the Metropolis website for more information about fees
Purpose: St. Stephen’s Camp brings together children in fellowship, as well as social and athletic fun. The Christian experience through the many programs is “deeply rewarding and a source of spiritual enrichment…St. Stephen’s is a camp of people reaching out, feeling, caring for everyone who takes part...”
Activities: St. Stephen's Summer Camp takes place at the Diakonia Retreat Center in Salem, SC. Activities include boating and athletics, Orthodox Life, Wrap sessions and diakonia. Chapel services and meditation are also a part of everyday life at the camp.
Important Information
Metropolis webpage about St. Stephen's Summer Camp Click HERE
Cross Road
What is CrossRoad?
Attention high school juniors and seniors, before you decide what to do with the rest of your life, decide what to do with your summer! CrossRoad is an engaging 10-day summer institute for Orthodox Christian high school juniors and seniors of all jurisdictions that takes place every summer on the campus of Hellenic College/Holy Cross in Brookline, Massachusetts. Students from the United States and Canada are invited to take part in an exciting summer vocations exploration program designed to help them discern their life callings and match their God-given gifts with the needs of the world.
Now in its ninth year, CrossRoad combines the greatest gifts of Hellenic College and Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology through faculty instruction and participation, an enthusiastic staff of graduate students, the beautiful campus overlooking Boston and of course the exciting city of Boston itself. Students will participate in daily classes with Orthodox faculty and attend Vespers each evening at parishes in the Boston area.
CrossRoad, one of the many unique programs sponsored by the OVM, is funded by a grant from the Lilly Endowment Inc. and through the philanthropy of several donors. Applications may be downloaded from the CrossRoad website at crossroad.hchc.edu, or received by mail by calling the office at 617-850-1309. Furthermore, the OVM has produced a DVD featuring the CrossRoad experience which has been sent to each parish and is available on the CrossRoad website. Applicants must currently be in their junior or senior year of high school. Currently, scholarships are available for participants.
Identifying Youth for CrossRoad: You help pave the road.
Chances are your teens have questions about their future and how it relates to their faith. This is the first time a program has been offered to expressly help them find answers. While any Orthodox Christian seeking to develop his/her God-given talents would benefit from a program like CrossRoad, it is designed specifically for high school juniors and seniors. Why this age group? Research suggests that they are at a critical phase in their life, a time when they could most reap the benefits of Christ-focused vocational exploration. Who should you encourage to apply to CrossRoad?
High school juniors and seniors who:
show an active desire to pursue a life in Christ
ask questions of a theological nature
may or may not have a sense of their vocational path, but have an interest in exploring it
show an interest in full time ministry (either as a priest or layworker in the church) OR
show an interest in how they will live as a Christian in whatever path or career they might
choose for their life (teaching, business, social work, medicine, construction, law, nursing, engineering, architecture, graphic design, information technology, food service...the list goes on and on!)
The staff of CrossRoad feels very strongly that in just about any direction they choose for their life, it can be of service of God and of neighbor, which is Christ's call to us all.
As a parent, priest or youthworker, you know your teen well and it is difficult to overestimate the importance of your relationship with him/her. Your thoughtful initiative has the power to positively impact your teen for a lifetime. With this in mind, we hope you will let high school juniors and seniors who might be interested know about the program and support them in their efforts to apply. For any questions that you may have regarding the program please contact the OVM.
Please check back to this section just after the program, as we will be adding items that can help you support a student who has attended.
Additional Resources
See the CrossRoad Promo Video - Now Available Online
Listen to the CrossRoad Podcast on Ancient Faith Radio. Click HERE.
For Articles writing by CrossRoad Alumni, Staff, and Professors in the Annual CrossRoad Newsletter Click HERE.
Ionian Village
The Program
Ionian Village offers a very unique summer camp experience. In addition to participating in a typical summer camp program, campers will be exposed to the Orthodox faith and learn about Hellenic culture and the country of Greece through excursion
Participation open to: Boys and girls, 7th -12th Grade.
Check out the Ionian Village Website for more details about fees.
Purpose: Ionian Village is an Orthodox Christian ministry. The mission of Ionian Village is to teach the Gospel and instruct young people in Christian living. This is done by providing a safe, Christ-centered and fun environment in which campers and staff members can more fully discover the joys of our Christian tradition: interacting as a community of Orthodox Christians; gaining a greater appreciation for the Orthodox faith as well as Greek culture and building friendships based on Christian love.
Activities: In working towards this mission, the young people will live at the camp along the Ionian Sea. They will interact in daily camp activities that include: Aquatics, Arts & Crafts, Athletics, Music and Greek Culture, and Orthodox Life. They will participate in daily prayer services and travel to significant religious and cultural sites of Greece. They will walk in the footsteps of the Apostles as well as venerate the relics of saints, such as St. Dionysios, and St. Nektarios.
Camp Life: Ionian Village allows campers to experience life in a fully Orthodox environment as they travel to historic churches and religious sites across Greece. The Orthodox Faith is at the heart of the Ionian Village program. Each day begins and ends at the Chapel with morning and evening prayers.
Campers spend each day at camp or traveling. When not traveling, campers take part in activities on the campgrounds. Daily life at Ionian Village includes many traditional summer camp activities that emphasize fun, fellowship and learning. Campers engage in daily sessions of Aquatics, Arts & Crafts, Athletics, Music and Greek Culture, and Orthodox Life. Time is also spent at either the pool or private beach every day while at camp.
Every sunset brings a different Evening Activity. Whether our campers are performing in the talent festival, singing by the bonfire on the beach, Greek dancing to live music at the Glendi, or gathering in the amphitheater for a quiet "Night with God" in preparation for the next day's Divine Liturgy, they continue to build upon the camaraderie they have established within our Ionian Village community.
Travel Days: During their stay at Ionian Village, campers make excursions about every other day to religious and cultural sites of Greece. Destinations include:
Ancient Olympia
Patras
Zakynthos
Kefalonia
Kastro Klemoutsi
The Village of Kalavrita
Aegina
Athens
Syntagma
Monastirakis, Plaka, Mitropoli