Written by Evelyn Liao (Class of 2025)
Photos by Celina Li (Class of 2025)

On September 1st, Developing Virtue’s Girls School’s Seniors hosted the annual ASB welcome back retreat. As per tradition, students sleep over in school classrooms on Friday night, after enjoying a night of activities together. Each class was assigned their own classroom to stay in and everyone was encouraged to bring sleeping bags, air mattresses, blankets, pillows, stuffed animals, etc.

Planning for the event started weeks in advance, but preparations for food began Friday afternoon. ASB and several other classes were tasked with preparing the student dinner. As classes came to a close late that afternoon, students began to move bedding into assigned classrooms. Soon after, students began meeting downstairs in preparation for dinner. The ASB team along with teachers and staff had prepared a dinner of pizza, pasta, and sushi, followed by a dessert of donuts, cake, and fruit. After dinner, students broke off into groups to engage in various activities. Some stayed to karaoking, others played Just Dance, or caught up with friends. Later into the night, many everyone began returning back to their classrooms with their respective classes. Students bonded with their classmates into the night as they exchanged stories.

In the morning, the Seniors woke everyone with a breakfast of waffles and drinks. As the sun rose and the day started, students began packing their bedding and belongings. As the retreat ended, pictures and polaroids that were taken throughout the were exchanged. One thing was for certain, the event would be long cherished by students for the rest of the semester.