By Dan McCarty • Posted August 29, 2024

Approximately 30 young adults from throughout the Archdiocese of Philadelphia gathered Aug. 15 for a Koinonia young adult event led by Heather Makowicz, founder of Peak Encounter Ministries.

Hosted by Malvern Retreat House, the gathering “Expect the Unexpected: Peak Encounters” combined prayer, reflection, and fellowship.

“The main purpose of the night is to cultivate faith and fellowship among young adults on a deeper level,” said Peter Land, a hospitality coordinator at Malvern Retreat House covering weekend retreats and coordinating young adult programs and retreats.

Koinonia, based on the Greek word for fellowship, seeks to create a space of encounter and intimacy with God and one another through worship, prayer reflection, and group discussion.

The evening started with Mass celebrated by Father Karl Schmidt. Gus DeSimone, local singer and songwriter from the band Saints Alive, led the participants in song.

Following Mass,  all enjoyed fellowship and dinner. The young adults, mostly in their 20s and 30s, got to know each other through icebreakers. They introduced themselves, gave the name of their parish, their connection to various young adult organizations throughout the Archdiocese, and any special trip or event they took part in this summer.

They were also invited to share a time they may have experienced an unexpected “peak encounter” otherwise known as an encounter with God. Participant Marie Graney of Wilmington, Delaware shared that as a chaperone for the World Youth Day event in Poland in 2016, her task was to pick up bags of food to bring back to the youth groups. At one point, they were so heavy that she used a beam on her shoulders to carry them. Graney wondered if this was how Jesus felt carrying his cross to Calvary.

“It was amazing,” said Graney. “I truly felt close to Christ. I felt close to what Jesus must have felt, literally, carrying his cross.”

Following social time, Makowicz shared her experience of encountering God through various people, places, and experiences on her recent pilgrimage with her family in Spain called the Camino de Santiago, also known as the Way of St. James.

Makowicz explained she was inspired to embark on the journey with her family after watching a video of two best friends, one of whom has a neuromuscular disease and uses a wheelchair, complete the 500-mile hike.

Makowicz signed up for the Camino two years ago. She was put on a waiting list. She signed up once again and this time was told that she and her family would be able to go. When asked why she wanted to do this, she said it would be an opportunity to “heal” as her son, Nate, faces a disability.

“To have this to look forward to was awesome,” she said.

The Makowicz family’s pilgrimage began on a Wednesday. Makowicz explained that Nate was fatigued at times but despite hiking 15 miles  over the first two days he was laughing as were others. Seven out of 38 people making the trek  also experienced disabilities. They represented many countries such as Tanzania, Australia, France, Brazil and the United States.

“To see everyone coming together and helping each other was a sight to see,” said Makowicz. The group went a total of 74 miles in a six-day period.

To conclude the evening, Makowicz reminded the crowd that God had created everyone “fundamentally good.”

“God is able to do immeasurably more than we can ever imagine,” she said.