onward! ECHO in 2022
There has been a lot happening in ECHO since retreats were suspended in March 2020 in response to the global pandemic. The ECHO of Cape Cod Board of Directors felt called to action and the answer to the call on their hearts was to reach out to the ECHO community. Many questions were asked, conversations were had, and prayers were said. The Board felt in their hearts after hearing the resounding “Yes, ECHO must continue,” that this was an opportunity to take a breath, extend some grace, and refocus. With that, four committees were discerned to take a look at the future of the program: Identity, Community, Establishment, and Retreat. Over the last 18 months, this community of love has pulled together as Christians in Action to tackle the goal of revitalizing the ECHO program.
The Identity Committee met throughout the summer of 2021, asking tough questions and delving into “What is ECHO?” and “Where is ECHO going?” They gathered community feedback and spent hours in prayerful consideration. From their work came new statements of ECHO’s mission, vision, and core beliefs. They also recommended that ECHO expand our community offerings and add a “four points of the cross” structure to the program, where young people could become involved in ECHO through retreat, worship, fellowship and service opportunities.
Armed with the recommendations of the Identity Committee and the new ECHO mission, the Community Committee began working on some new initiatives. With a focus on resuming in-person fellowship opportunities, we developed Encounter groups at three parish locations across the Cape. While similar in structure to ECHO’s traditional “reunions,” the Encounter groups were so-named in the interest of emphasizing that the groups are open to all, regardless of prior retreat experience. The committee also established a new program called Sunday Shuffle, a sort of traveling coffee and donuts! Once a month we were hosted at a different parish. The goals were to offer a communal worship experience; encourage those in the ECHO community who may have stayed away from mass at their parish during the pandemic; and to get some “face time” with parish priests and communities to let them know what ECHO is all about (and thus encourage involvement from the young people in their parishes). Community also encompasses communications, and we have strived to communicate daily, whether it be a thought for the day, prayer request, reminder of an event, or the quarterly newsletter. We also created a new ECHO logo and launched our new ECHO of Cape Cod website!
The Establishment Committee has been working behind the scenes on all the business aspects of running the program. The Retreat Committee is focusing on not only bringing back 3-day weekend retreats, but also establishing a 1-day retreat as an option. To be sure, retreats will remain the central focus of the ECHO program. We are planning on offering a pilot 1-day retreat in August, and then 3 or 4 1-days in the fall, followed by 2 weekend retreats beginning in January or February.
Our vision is that ECHO will be a home for all who want to meet Jesus through a community of love. Please join us as we embark on this new chapter of ECHO!