To start the year with a bang, MCA hosted the annual upper school retreat to the Riverbend Retreat Center in Glen Rose, Texas with the purpose of welcoming incoming freshmen and bringing upper school students closer together. The theme this year is “The Legacy Continues” and this relates to us as Christians and as McKinney Christian Academy students in the way that we should lay down the foundation for God, and the foundation for MCA built on Jesus Christ. The Bible verse that correlates with this theme is 1 Corinthians 3:10-12 which says,

“By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

We focused on our theme in praise and worship which was conducted by the MCA Praise and Worship Band. During worship we were introduced to our new campus pastor, Pastor Trey. Pastor Trey is a new edition to the MCA staff and he was instantly welcomed by the student body. Being a senior came in handy at the retreat since the seniors were allowed to come a day early to get a day to get closer with their graduating class.

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It was a great way to get to know and hang with my senior class and get some time with just them.

— Jack Leps, senior

Students were also allowed free time to play basketball, soccer, ping-pong, rock climb, and many other games and sports. The cabins were divided into grades and it gave everyone in each grade lots of time to bond, meet new friends, and get to know their fellow classmates. The retreat was a great idea to help start off the new year, welcome everyone, and familiarize new faces with each other.