Make sure to check out this Sunday’s edition of OC Catholic, where current Prior General John Carlson ‘24 shares his experience at Freshman Formation Weekend in July 2023. 

“These freshmen won’t just learn about Servite. They’ll learn about each other. They’ll learn about themselves. And, most importantly, they will learn what it truly means to be a Servite Friar,”-Carlson wrote. 

Freshman Formation Weekend kicks off the four-year Servite Formation Program for all students of Servite. All freshmen must participate in the two-day event scheduled annually for the last weekend in July.

During the weekend, each Servite freshman begins his journey to become a Servite man by learning about Servite spirituality, traditions, and community. Because Servite is about community and brotherhood, the freshman class is divided into teams of 15 to participate and compete in a variety of academic, artistic, and athletic events. Each event teaches and tests the young men as individuals and teams, challenging them to take the first steps to become men and brothers.

Servite Formation aligns all aspects of a student’s life—classroom, sports, activities, arts, faith, family life, and friends—to form each student into a good young man ready for success in college and life. The goal is to develop Servite men who have the knowledge, character, and wisdom to lead a good life, to lead a good family, to lead in their profession, and to lead others to Christ by their example.

Read more from John Carlson ‘24 here: https://www.occatholic.com/freshman-formation-weekend-discovering-greatness/