Fall Retreat!
Oct. 2-4, 2026

Join us at our annual Fall Retreat for a fun-filled weekend outside the city at a beautiful retreat center! Fall Retreat is a place where you can connect with God and others, where you can take a next step in your spiritual journey no matter where you're at right now.  It's a great weekend away from the city.  Come enjoy the outdoors of Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire with a bunch of us from MIT, as well as over 250 college students from all over Boston.  It will be a time to focus on God and make some great friendships.  Along with a great band leading us in worship, we’ll have a great Bible teacher/speaker (see below for more info on the speaker) for the weekend to help us dive into what it means to know God and follow Jesus.

You will also have time to relax and enjoy getting to know one another.  Fun stuff like kayaking, sailing, hiking, sports, and the CAMPUS OLYMPICS will be awaiting you.  And there is always an MIT PSET party as well, for anyone who needs to study. 

DETAILS

WHEN: Oct. 2-4 (We leave from MIT at 5:30pm on Friday and return Sunday around 4pm)

WHERE: Camp Brookwoods, in Alton, NH (Transportation provided - we will have a bus picking you up at MIT).

COST:

MIT FIRST-TIME ATTENDEES - $85 for First-timers

MIT RETURNING ATTENDEES - $170 for returnees

Price includes lodging, 5 meals, transportation, activities and and a whole lot of fun! Additional scholarship funds available as well. If you are seeing this page, but are from a different campus, contact Chris.Swanson@cru.org for scholarship options for your campus.

How to Register:

The online registration is now closed, but you can likely still go. We have a waitlist. Please fill out this form to request a spot on the Fall Retreat. We will get back to you to confirm that you can go. It is highly likely we will have space, so plan on coming. We will contact you later in the week with details on how to finalize your registration. We will still offer the same prices listed above.

Fall Retreat Wait List Sign up

If you have questions about the retreat, email our Cru Staff, Chris.Swanson@cru.org
More details and answers to common questions are below.

 

Scholarship Help:

We don't want money to be a barrier for anyone.  Apply for additional scholarship help here. 

    

WHY WE LOVE FALL RETREAT

Something special happens when you get away from campus. There are a hundred distractions here, pulling you in every direction. And those same hundred distractions hit you every single weekend. But by getting out, you step into a space where you can focus and engage in a way that you can't when you're on campus. By getting away, you get a different and unique experience — a marker or a pillar in the midst of a busy semester; an anchor or stabilizing point in the midst of the storm of MIT.

You are getting away to meet God. The God of the universe — who made planets and atoms and eyes and ears and fish and eagles and friendship and compassion and community — that God is going to speak to us. The God who sent Jesus to rescue us from our sin and shame  - that God is who we are going to sing about and learn about and worship and pray to. If MIT is starting to get to you — get you depressed, get you distracted, get you busy — what you need is time with God; lots of time with God. That's what retreat is all about.

You are getting away to meet God in community. The whole weekend is designed to go deeper. To take steps. Strangers become friends; friends become good friends. You're in this together — singing, learning, praying, laughing, eating, playing. If you reflect on your life and your friends, you'll see that many of your close friendships were deepened as you did a lot of stuff together. Fall Retreat is a great opportunity to do a lot of stuff together.

Something special happens when you step out in faith. Fall Retreat is an opportunity to trust God. To trust God to carry you through the busyness of assignments and exams, while taking a weekend away. To trust God to connect you with people, if you come in not really knowing anyone. To trust God to provide the funding. To trust God, who may seem far off, to meet you there. To trust God that it will be worth your time. We want to encourage you to step out in faith and prayer, count the cost, and come with us!

Our Speaker for the Weekend
Thang Pham

Born and raised in Hue, Vietnam, Thang’s family escaped the communist regime in February 1981 to seek freedom in the U.S. After two weeks at sea and 12 months in a refugee camp in Hong Kong, his family was sponsored to move to Seattle.

He spent most of his childhood in the Seattle area before attending Washington State University. During the fall of his freshman year, another student invited him to a Cru meeting. On December 7, 1996, he surrendered his life to Christ, and his life has been radically different ever since.

Thang has been married to Jennifer for 18 years and has 4 kids. He has had the great privilege of serving with Cru now for almost 24 years on staff in a variety of roles but 17 of those years in campus ministry. 

Today, one of his favorite things to do for fun is play old people sports with his kids like golf and pickleball!

 

TRANSPORTATION DETAILS: 

There will be a bus leaving from Kresge (near McCormick area) around 5:15 on Friday.  We will return around 4pm on Sunday.  If needed, please arrange for someone else to bring your stuff to the bus if you won’t have time to go back to your room after classes.    

OTHER DETAILS:

  • HOUSING: You will be housed in a cabin with other MIT students. You will have a mattress to sleep on, but you will need to bring bedding (pillow and sheets/blanket or sleeping bag). The cabins have bunkbeds. Be sure to pack a warm blanket because it can get cold at night. You will have hot showers and bathroom facilities in your cabin.

  • FOOD: 5 meals served on Saturday and Sunday - options will be available for all dietary needs and allergies. Separate line for those who need to avoid cross contact with things like Gluten.

  • There are four main sessions - Friday night, Saturday morning, Saturday night, and Sunday morning when we will gather to for worship and hearing our our main speaker for the weekend. There will be time for meeting with God and processing in small groups.

  • Saturday afternoon is free time - you can study, take a sailboat out on the lake, canoe, kayak, waterski, hike, enjoy some outdoor fun, or just take a nap.

LIABILITY FORMS:

Liability forms now come automatically from the event registration. If you completed a registration and didn’t get an email about your liability form, email sarah.mulloy@cru.org.


PACKING LIST:

  • Sleeping bag or sheets and a blanket. (if you don’t have something like this to bring, please reach out)

  • Pillow

  • Toiletries

  • Towel

  • Bible

  • Pen and notebook to take notes

  • Flashlight or phone for walking around the camp at night - it gets really dark at night

  • Clothing (it can get cool at night, so plan accordingly) You will want a fleece or sweatshirt.

  • Light jacket or sweatshirt (check weather in case it might rain) - location - Alton, NH

  • Clothing and shoes for sporting/outdoor activities

  • Swimsuit if you want to go in the lake (water activities include canoeing, kayaks, sailboats, possibly tubing and waterskiing)

 

Sample Schedule for the Weekend

Friday Evening
Main Session 1 - Worship and Speaker
Campus Times
Bonfire and S’mores

Saturday Morning
BREAKFAST
 Main Session 2 - Worship and Speaker
Small Groups

LUNCH

Saturday Afternoon
Free Time - rest, hike through the woods, canoe, paddle board, tubing, kayaking, sports, Frisbee, Disk Golf, and more

OR You can PSET if needed

DINNER

Saturday Evening
Main Session 3
Campus Time
Optional: Bonfire, late night worship session

Sunday Morning
Main Session 4
Small Groups

LUNCH

Pack up and leave after lunch - return to campus by 3:30/4pm.