The sun came out Memorial Day weekend for the fourth Annual Arlington Camino, an event for teens who walk 33.7 miles while praying for vocations, seminarians and those preparing for the diaconate.
The two-day affair began at St. John Church in Leesburg the morning of May 28 and concluded with Sunday Mass at the Cathedral of St. Thomas More in Arlington the evening of May 29.
“It’s pretty hard and I’m really tired. But I did it last year and enjoyed being with my CYO friends, so (I) wanted to do both days this year,” said John Duthie, 15, during a lunch break in Vienna on day two.
Wearing their new bright blue shirts, with a few red ones from the 2021 walk sprinkled in, more than 20 teens and a handful of adults walked along the Washington and Old Dominion Trail, each assigned a specific seminarian or prospective deacon to pray for at the mile markers.
“I like the community it builds and I want to pray for the seminarians,” said Alison Tett, an adult volunteer who walked on Saturday but took over advance work for the stops on Sunday because of blisters.
The pilgrims had multiple stops along the way for water breaks and food, where volunteers met them with snacks, chairs and band-aids. Adults also carried first aid supplies along the walk. The group took an unscheduled break when they encountered an older couple injured in a bike accident. Some of the adults tended to them with their supplies, while Peyton Voorheis, 18, led everyone else in a rosary.
Collectively, they walked more than 1.2 million steps during the two-day adventure. And while the teens prayed along the way, that was not all they were doing. Conversations varied from restarting a summer book club and a debate over what sports are the best to play.
‘Every year it gets better’
The pilgrimage is the brainchild of Sarah Ginther, director of youth ministry at St. John’s. Ginther was a high school student in Alabama when the Boston clerical sex abuse scandal broke. She recalled being taunted by some of the non-Catholics in her school at the time.
Ginther has been at St. John’s for 11 years, during which time she gained a greater appreciation for the demands of clergy life and came up with the idea for a walk. “Priests need our prayers, too,” she said. The walk itself took several years of planning to make it a reality. Now it is a well-oiled machine.
First-timer Brendan Sweeney had heard good things about the Camino from siblings who had gone in the past. He said it lived up to the hype.
“It’s really fun to be out here with a nice group of people,” Sweeney, 15, said. “I like praying with them because it’s for a really good cause.”
Ginther strives to teach the kids in the youth group about “redemptive suffering” as a way to sacrifice and offer things up for the greater good.
Teens often get a bad reputation but the fact these kids will give up a prime holiday weekend to walk a great distance, in the heat, and publicly pray demonstrates there is hope, she said.
“Teens will rise to the expectations that are set for them,” she said. “When the bar is set high, I have found they often not only meet it but exceed it.”
Shelby Aquilina, 16, has done the walk for several years. She did not want to do it the first time but now can’t imagine not doing it. So much so, that despite twisting her ankle in a pothole along the trail during the second leg of Sunday’s walk, she continued onward with the aid of her friends and a brace.
“These are just great people to be around and talk to. Every year it gets better,” she said.
The biggest cost for the walk is the shirts. The first year they wore cotton t-shirts that were drenched by the end. So, they have ordered dry-fit shirts since, which cost more but last longer. When the kids wear the shirts again, they prompt questions about what Arlington Camino is all about, raising awareness.
‘Discernment is not a solo activity’
The walk is a family affair for the Voorheis family. Mark is in formation to be a permanent deacon and has worked with Ginther on the walk since it began. He told fellow members of his diaconate class about the walk the last time they gathered.
“This walk reminds us that discernment is not a solo activity.”
That said, both Voorheis and Ginther said they would love to see the walk grow to include more parishes and youth groups.
“Anyone who wants to join us, we’d love to have them,” Ginther said.
Shaffrey is a freelancer in Alexandria.
Find out more
To get involved in the 2023 Arlington Camino, contact Sarah Ginther, director of youth ministry at St. John the Apostle Church in Leesburg at [email protected] or 703/777-1317 ext. 112.
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