BROOKLINE, Mass. – Every five years for the past 55 years, the Eastern Orthodox Committee on Scouting has held its annual Northeast Region Retreat on the campus of Hellenic College Holy Cross School of Theology in Brookline.

The retreat is offered to all Orthodox Scouts within the Northeast region.

This year, the retreat proved to be a great success because of the outstanding turnout of not only scouts, but adult leaders. The theme of the retreat was “Prepare ye the way of the Lord.”

The scouts were delighted to be present at Holy Cross at the personal invitation of the school’s new president, Fr. Christopher T. Metropulos, who was the host.

Some of the highlights from the weekend included sleeping in tents on the grounds of the Seminary, touring the various facilities, including the beautiful Archbishop Iakovos Library, and having the “traditional” campfire, using an improvised “campfire” because of the fire restrictions on the grounds.

They all had fun with the various skits and songs that ended the evening’s festivities.

The religious programs were conducted by the “Ambassadors Group” of the school.

These “Ambassadors” are students at the school and worked in teams. They divided the Scouts into age groups and conducted various programs.

One highlight was a small religious program that was like a “rap” sessions.

The weekend ended with Sunday services at the chapel. Most of the Scouts received Holy Communion.

At the end of the religious services, various awards and recognitions were presented to the scouts by retreat Chairman Dr. Peter Hilaris, from Closter, N.J.

The Eastern Orthodox Committee on Scouting is an agency of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in America. EOCS was created by SCOBA (Standing Conference of Orthodox Bishop in America) to promote scouting as a viable part of their

Orthodox Youth ministry and is now an Agency of the Assembly.