Attendee Stats

The Haitian Youth Federation Youth Retreat 2025 on Easter weekend was a moment of overflowing with faith, fun, and fellowship. Held once again at Pine Forge campgrounds and on the AEC campus, this year’s retreat brought together 502 retreaters representing 15 churches—a 36% increase in representation from last year’s 11, out of our 21 Haitian churches in the Allegheny East Conference.

One of the biggest highlights came from Shekina SDA Church in Philadelphia, which brought a stunning 102 participants, more than double last year’s 48!

For the first time, we implemented a new age cap of 17 for retreaters, to better ensure comfort and cabin compatibility for our youth. While this resulted in a slightly smaller number of overall retreaters compared to last year, it allowed us to serve our targeted age group with more intention, and young adults 18+ are now encouraged to attend our Young Adult Retreat.

🚀 Thursday Kickoff

We launched the weekend with our Kickoff & Connect event on Thursday evening, led by our vibrant Events & Recreation Team. They hosted interactive games—including a retreat edition of Jeopardy—and icebreakers that had everyone laughing and bonding right from the start. The excitement set the tone for what would become one of our most dynamic and spirit-filled retreats yet.

📊 Participation Breakdown

Total Retreaters: 502
Pathfinders / Adults, Chaparons & Youth Leaders: 301 (60%)
Adventurers (Children): 103 (22.5%)
Staff: 72 (14.3%)
Pastors & Spouses: 12 (2.4%)
Special Guests & Vendors: 4 (0.8%)
Gender Breakdown: 45% Male / 55% Female

This year, we successfully narrowed the gender gap—seeing a 3% increase in young male participation, one of our key strategic goals!

📚 Workshops & Sessions

Friday was packed with enriching content, kicking off with early morning workouts, breakfast, and devotion in CC1. Led by our chaplains and guest speaker Dr. Paula Olivier, the messages were powerful, practical, and personal.

Attendees participated in a variety of impactful workshops, including:

Why Waiting is Worth It (13+)
Dance Ministry
Why Are You Running? (For Youth & Pathfinder/Adventurer Leaders)
Miss Etiquette / Is Chivalry Dead?
Mechanical Workshop (14+)
The Bible Has More TEA Than You Think
Fresh & Fearless Hygiene Seminar

For our younger attendees:

Nature Explorer & Masterpiece Hunt
Paint & Snack

During free time, retreaters joined in a spirited 3x3 Basketball Tournament, adding healthy competition to the mix, and got a special tour of Pine Forge Academy led by Jessica Crichlow.

🙌 Friday & Sabbath Worship

Friday Night Vespers transformed into a spiritual showcase featuring heartfelt worship, musical and dance performances from various churches, and a stirring message that closed the evening with power and praise.

Sabbath Morning Worship welcomed a surge of attendees—over 400 additional guests joined us on campus to worship together in unity. From powerful singing to a soul-stirring word, the Spirit of God moved in a big way.

✨ Saturday Evening Celebrations

Saturday night was all about joyful celebration across age groups:

Children partied in CC1 with an intergalactic Galaxy Party—full of glow, games, and laughter.
Youth & Teens experienced a Starlight Garden Prom in the Pine Forge gym. Dressed to impress, they danced, laughed, and even enjoyed a surprise fashion show, where many of our pastors and their spouses joined the fun on the runway!

🙏🏽 Leadership & Final Word

The retreat was led with grace and excellence by President Ruth Ilera Antoine, backed by 71 dedicated staff members—28 elected federation leaders and 43 volunteers from churches across our 3 church regions.

Guiding the operations were our four exceptional Retreat Co-Directors:

Milanda Mardy
James Dejean
Patricia Louis
Katia Ilera

On Sunday morning, Dr. Ramone Griffith, AEC Youth Director, delivered an inspiring charge to the youth and commended the Haitian Youth Federation for its commitment and vision. Dr. Paula Olivier followed with one final word to leave hearts full and focused as we all prepared to return home.

🙌🏾 Ministry at Work

We extend heartfelt thanks to the many ministries and leaders who made this retreat a success:

Spiritual Team – for devotions, prayer, and preaching
Men’s & Women’s Ministry Leaders – for their mentorship and guidance
Children’s Ministry – for creating joy-filled, Christ-centered experiences
Food Services Team – for keeping us fed and fueled, with special thanks to Chef Ramon for his help
Medical Team – for being on-call and always ready
Security Team – for keeping us safe all weekend
Music Ministry – for creating the atmosphere through worship
Recreation & Events Team – for programming, games, and prom
Secretary Team – for managing rosters, info, and logistics
Maintenance Staff – for keeping every space clean and functional
Communications, Media & Technology Team – for capturing, streaming, tech support and keeping everyone on campus and online informed
We also give special thanks to:

Nadege Duvernay – Former President and Special Advisor to the President
Wadson Pericles – Executive Treasurer
Carole Gautier – Assistant to the Treasurer and former President

Your wisdom, leadership, and support are deeply appreciated.

We’d also like to thank Dr. Emile Duvivier, our Haitian Ministerial Leader, for his unwavering support of our youth—we love you, Doc! To all our Haitian pastors, thank you for your continued leadership and support at the local church level.

A special thank you as well to Dr. Ramone Griffith for his consistent guidance throughout the planning and execution of this event, and to Mrs. Orien Clairmont for her valuable assistance every step of the way.

Special thanks to AEC’s Media Services Team for their excellent AV support, especially Media Director Charles Williams and Evan Williams. We also appreciate the AEC Youth Department and Communications Department for reposting and collaborating with us on social media to amplify our reach.

Thank you to the AEC Facilities Team for their service and support, including Rayna Braxton and Brother Calvin, and Rochelle Blackwood who jumped in to help.

We’re also incredibly grateful to the Pine Forge Academy team, with thanks to Jimmy Charles for assisting with gym access, Chef Ramon Perez for his contributions with the Kitchen Staff, Jessica Crichlow for leading our campus tour, and Ashawn Crichlow for his support and for fellowshipping with our young men over basketball.

And to everyone else from AEC who worked behind the scenes to help make this retreat a success—thank you.

A Special Thanks from President Ruth Ilera Antoine

To every pastor, volunteer, parent, and youth who made this retreat possible, thank you from the depths of my heart. Your prayers, presence, and passion made all the difference.

Special thanks to the Allegheny East Conference and Pine Forge Academy for your continued support, partnership, and hospitality. Because of you, our vision became a reality.

And to the seven young people who made the decision to get baptized, we are so proud of you. Heaven is rejoicing, and so are we.

I’m so proud of what we accomplished together, and I know God is just getting started. Let’s keep building brick by brick. All glory to God.

Until next year—with love and gratitude,

Ruth Ilera Antoine
President, HYFAEC

Stay connected!
📱 Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube at @HYFAEC
🎥 All services were streamed and are available to rewatch on our YouTu

The full cinematic recap and photo album will be available soon on our website.

Visit www.hyfaec.org to stay connected and relive the moments!

HYFAEC Youth Retreat 2025: 502 retreaters. 15 churches. One unforgettable weekend.