Maggie Lile, features editor

“The people,” That is the meaning behind the Dakota word “Oyaté,” which is the name given to a retreat organized by Multicultural Life and various student leaders. 

The Oyaté Retreat that took place Sept. 20-22 was a very special event for a lot of Augsburg students. Located just 60 miles or so northwest of campus, Camp Friendship is a safe space specifically designed to foster the feeling of kinship. “We did a lot of different things and it was all super fun!” said Auggie senior Abi Hilden in an interview with the Echo, one of the lucky students to escape to the campsite for the weekend. “Some of the activities included team building games like a blindfolded maze, art projects like building with clay, and we even got to write letters to our future selves that we’ll get back at the end of the year. There was a lot of free time as well where we just got to hang out and bond with our fellow students, as well as take in the beautiful scenery of Camp Friendship.” 

Located on the beautiful shoreline of Clearwater Lake, Camp Friendship provides an escape from school and city life while encouraging students to relax and connect with the people around them. “It was also really refreshing to be part of an Augsburg centric event that wasn’t in the cities or on-campus,” Hilden added. “I cannot talk enough about how beautiful Camp Friendship is and how much I needed the natural reset that it provided.” 

The idyllic, natural environment of Camp Friendship did not go ignored. “[…] my friends and I went stargazing on Saturday night,” Hilden recalled. “We had a blast just hanging out, talking, and taking in the night sky in a place without a ton of light pollution. Genuinely one of the highlights of the retreat and probably the semester for me.” With miles of outdoor trails, waterfront amenities and seemingly endless acres of forest to roam, it seems getting lost in the experience is all a part of the plan.

The retreat is an annual trip organized by the Multicultural Life staff and student leaders in hopes of bringing all of the BIPOC student organizations together and increase the feeling of belonging between all of the members. “I think the thing that makes the Oyaté retreat special is the fact that you attend with a specific MLife student org, so for the weekend you are surrounded by people within your own community and it’s really lovely,” said Hilden. Yet, with close to 100 students attending this retreat, new faces offered chances for new connections to thrive. Hilden commented that “there were people who attended with the same student org as me, QPA/QIPOC, that I didn’t know before this retreat and got to know better through the various activities that I’m really grateful that I got to meet. That’s what made this retreat really great, the fact that I got to meet a bunch of new people and get closer with them. I definitely made some new friendships that I will be keeping up with for the foreseeable future.”

If you’re beginning to wonder whether or not to attend the retreat next year, “Do it!” Hilden urged. “Like I said before, this retreat was an amazing experience that allowed me to reset from the stress of being a student surrounded by other people who are facing similar things. You will have such a blast and meet so many amazing people, it is so worth it.”