“This is to My Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be My disciples.” John 15:8 Thanks be to God, the spring 2023 semester was a fruitful one for Orthodox Christian Fellowship! Today, we hope you’ll take a moment to see the impact your support has had in the lives of college students the past few months. Real Break Puerto Rico, March 2023 Your commitment to the ministry of OCF ensures we can offer students a campus community deeply rooted in Christ and His Church. Thank you for being a part of our OCF family! Very respectfully yours, PS – As you read this email, a group of 26 college students and 5 trip leaders are beginning their Real Break Egypt pilgrimage. Please keep them in your prayers! Real Break Two teams of eight were sent to Puerto Rico this March, one for students from Hellenic College Holy Cross and one open OCF trip. The trip to Puerto Rico included volunteering at a ROCOR mission in San German and volunteering at Techos Pa Mi Gente, a non-profit that rebuilds roofs in San Juan. Regional Retreats In spring 2023, five Regional Retreats were held, hosting 191 college students. Mid-Atlantic Regional Retreat: Camp Nazareth, “What Makes a Person Saintly is Love: The Life and Teachings of St. Porphyrios” with Fr. Theodosios Palis Southeast Regional Retreat: Diakonia Retreat Center, “A Gentle Surrender: Finding Your Freedom in Christ” with Fr. Michael Tishel South Regional Retreat: Hidden Acres Retreat Center, “Compelling Conversations” with Fr. Adam Roberts Midwest Regional Retreat: St. Iakovos Retreat Center, “Love and Life, Not for the Weak Hearted” with Fr. Nick Lionas Great Lakes Regional Retreat: Columbiere Conference Center, “The Beginning and the End” with Fr. Gabriel Bilas Small Groups OCF’s virtual Small Groups continued through 2023. Twenty-seven students participated this Spring. These groups met weekly and were led by OCF-trained SAB/SLB alumni. “I really enjoyed our talk about being in the world but not a part of it. It has been a huge help in navigating my college experiences.” – Spring 2023 small group participant Day of Prayer Twenty-four chapters and numerous other individual students participated in OCF’s annual Day of Prayer, starting out Lent on Clean Monday with 24 hours of prayer. Make Straight Your Path This spring, OCF’s inaugural session of Make Straight Your Path provided opportunities for college juniors, seniors, and graduate students to explore topics related to life after graduation. Forty-three students participated, and sessions included the following topics: Module 1: Career & Vocation Session 1: “Sanctifying the Job You Choose” with Dr. Kathryn Bocanegra Session 2:  “Resume & Interview Prep for Orthodox Christians” with Shawn Cartwright Session 3:  “Challenges in the Workplace, A Panel” with Elizabeth Reese, Thomas Retzios, and Vasiliki Fotinis Module 2: Family, Friends, & Romantic Relationships Session 1: “Adjusting to a New Location” with Katya Soot Session 2:  “Romantic Relationships” with Fr. Vasili & Presbytera Maria Hillhouse Session 3:  “Adult Relationships with Parents” with Fr. Andreas Houpos Module 3: Resource & Money Management Session 1: “The Theology of Money” with Fr. Barnabas Powell Session 2:  “A Guide to Giving” with Dn. Gabe Otte Session 3:  “Financial Planning, Debt, Credit, & Investing” with Fr. Nicholas Hubbard “The speakers on marriage and adult relationships were fantastic, I really felt like God was speaking through them. Both talks changed the disposition of my heart for the better.” -Make Straight Your Path student participant Spiritual Wake-Up The Spiritual Wake-Up program had 243 participants sign up to receive the daily text messages during the forty days of Lent. Text messages included journaling prompts, quotes, activities, lives of Saints, prayers, mini service projects, and goal setting methods. Discord The OCF Discord server continues to provide students with a space for engagement, conversation, and inquiry. The Q&A Forum on the Discord server launched with a team of three volunteer clergy and two OCF staff members answering student questions throughout the week. There are currently over 600 members on OCF Discord. Monthly Chapter Content Each month, chapter leaders continue to receive via email an assortment of curated and guided discussions, book recommendations, service ideas, virtual programs, videos, podcasts, and other content that can be used to structure their meetings. The full library of resources is also available on our website at a Chapter Content hub and various portions are also posted on social media, YouTube, or Ancient Faith Radio. Each month, content is dedicated to a particular theme complimentary to OCF’s 2022-2023 theme, “Not of this World”. Spring semester’s themes were: January: Back in the World February: Redeeming the Time March: Challenging Hurry April: Living Like We Actually Believe in the Resurrection May: Endure to the End Spring 2023 Chapter Highlights Loyola OCF cracked eggs on Pascha. Liberty University OCF hosted Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick for an event with more than 100 guests in attendance! Grove City College OCF attended service together. University of Oklahoma OCF had a fellowship bonfire for their last meeting of the school year. Baylor OCF gathered for their year-end meeting. Virginia Tech OCF had fun hiking the Cascades before finals.