What is Quest
Quest was born out of the youth desire to have a retreat that was for all the 6th-12th graders in the state. They wanted to come together to talk about how faith fits into the everyday realities of being a young person, they wanted themes that were deeper and a safe place where they could really ask questions and own their faith for themselves, they wanted a retreat to be planned and run by their peers, and most importantly, they wanted to be able to go as many times as they could between entering middle school and graduating high school. They truly wanted to “Quest” for their faith with their peers, knowing that a one-time retreat wasn’t going to cut it. Over the last decade, Quest grew to staggering numbers (in the 200s!), survived a pandemic and rehoming, and has now found its newest identity quite nicely as a smaller (capped at 100) retreat in the Black Forest at La Foret in Colorado Springs.
Youth arrive for Quest Friday evening, meeting at Cathedral Ridge after dinner, allowing students and chaperones to attend school/work. Over the weekend, youth will attend 4 sessions where they will worship with a great band and hear from youth on the design team as they dive into the retreat’s theme. After the sessions, youth have various opportunities to discuss and digest what they just learned. There is also time for crafts, outdoor games, free-time, and large group play as a whole camp. The retreat closes with Eucharist together Sunday morning. We have found that the combination of worship, play, lessons, and discussion really allows the youth the explore the themes deeply and allows them to build faith that is truly their own, not just a recreation of their priest, their youth leader, or their parents’ faith.
Why Attend Quest?
Quest is a wonderful way to help youth group bond after youth settle into regular meetings in the fall. It also serves as a great opportunity to meet and interact with youth from around the state, which is especially important if your church doesn’t have a regular youth group or if you meet less often. Large retreats and the chance to wrestle with faith with peers from all over Colorado is a vital part of young peoples’ faith journey and helps fill out the important work being done at the parish and individual level.
Who Plans Quest?
Quest is planned by students on the Youth Council for the Episcopal Church in Colorado (YOCO). These youth meet multiple times over the preceding two months to plan every aspect of the retreat. These same youth then run the retreat and are the speakers for the event. They have full ownership of the retreat making it truly youth planned and led. The youth on YOCO planning Quest are:
Savannah Barrera- St Timothy, Centennial
Anya Heckscher- St Timothy, Centennial
Jake Clark- St John’s Cathedral, Denver
Lydia Hagerman-St John’s Cathedral
Croix Lucas-Retherford- St John’s Cathedral
Aspen Lamb- Christ’s Church, Castle Rock
Jack McCall- St. John’s Cathedral, Denver
Alexandra Siroky- Christ’s Church, Castle Rock
Jackson St. John- Christ’s Church, Castle Rock
Eli Boeglin- Christ’s Church, Castle Rock
Eva Leininger- Christ the King, Arvada
What Is the Schedule
Coming soon!
I’m There! How Do I Register?
Just click here!
Already Registered?
Don’t forget to fill out the covenant and consent form
Youth Form
Adult Form
