By Cristina De Fabritiis, Youth Ambassador for Ontario
A Youth Leader Program retreat organized by Development and Peace ― Caritas Canada (DPCC) at Jericho House in Port Colborne, Ont., was attended by 37 youngsters who chose to detach from their everyday lives as students in schools of the Niagara Catholic District School Board (NCDSB). The retreat, held from April 17 to 19, 2026, was part of a joint program that DPCC has been building over the past two years with NCDSB schools and its regional diocesan council to strengthen Catholic values in the student body.
For students committed to social justice, the program is an avenue for learning how to become effective leaders in their communities. Students who participated in last year’s retreat have now reached leader status, passing on their knowledge to the next group of students!
Youth Leader Program graduates as facilitators
In conjunction with Jericho House administrators Sr. Jacquie Keefe and Br. Bill Carothers, they helped facilitate sessions on communication; bonding; personal gifts and talents; and planning lively student engagement activities in schools. This retreat is the second-last portion of the Youth Leader Program, after which participating students will move onto applying their skills in their schools.
For the past two years, DPCC’s animator for southwestern Ontario, Daniela Salcedo, has worked with DPCC’s St. Catharine’s diocesan council to train students, who are keen on environmental or social issues and wish to make a positive impact. While it is not obligatory in the religion, Christians of good faith are encouraged to be active participants in the public sphere. The Youth Leader Program provides an outlet for these youths’ insatiable drive for change. It enriches a faith life that connects to important ministries like DPCC within the Catholic Church.
Encountering Christ in a cross
Jericho House has been intentionally built in the likeness of the San Damiano Cross before which St. Francis of Assisi famously received the divine inspiration for his mission. The vision behind this architectural choice is brought to life and poetically manifested each time a retreat is hosted.
Over the weekend of the retreat, students were literally and figuratively residing in the cross while they grew as young people. They rested east and west wings, along the arms of Christ and ate at His feet to the south. In a rather poetic metaphor, they had each session in the central space at the very heart. Their transformation into new leaders serving one another thus mirrored the transformation that occurs when we encounter Christ’s heart.
Learning to trust, discern and lead
The first night involved bonding where students shared what their goals were for the retreat and what past participants would advise new ones on going into the experience. To encourage bonding, facilitators led blindfolded participants in a trust walk around the house, helping them navigate the space, which gradually built trust. Participants reflected on how they could be stronger friends with one another as they had private journalling sessions afterwards.
The second day included focussing on personal gifts and talents and identifying leadership styles. This day was also a perfect opportunity for participants and student leaders to take a walk through the surrounding forest and nearby quarry. Throughout the walk, Sr. Jacquie reminded students about how nature serves as the Lord’s first cathedral. Along the way, students frequently led prayers that reflected on the abundance of God’s creation or asking to be granted the spirit of caring for nature.
On the last day, as DPCC’s youth ambassador for Toronto, I delivered a talk on how students could act with the organization by joining the D&P Schools program. I also offered ideas for personal engagement beyond the program, briefly shared DPCC’s mission and spoke of how global justice is pursued though its programs.
Because a handful of participants and leaders were in Grade 12, I provided DPCC’s Youth Leader Kit, a versatile resource that young leaders in post-secondary education can use to raise awareness and support the mission in unique ways. I also shared how, after my solidarity tour to Peru, I had hosted close friends for a Peruvian dinner party. By sharing Peruvian culture and cuisine to give back to my community, I had earned a Food for All badge.
Finally, I also encouraged students to keep the youth ambassador role in mind because it provides Grade 12 students a solid pathway for professional development as they consider their post-secondary plans.