Nativity High’s camel mascot emblematic of student desert adventure

By Christina Gray

The stunning but harsh red rock desert landscape of Moab, UT, brought a group of outgoing freshman from Nativity High School to its knees this May in more ways than one.

For five days and six nights, 16 students, accompanied by the head of school, three teachers, two priests, and one emergency room doctor/parent, made camp together after a daily program that entwined the physical and the spiritual. Daily Mass, morning and evening prayer, silent reflection, and around-the-campfire rosary prayer and song, defined the days, as did hours of backpacking, rock-climbing, fluctuating temperatures, and the discomfort of being “unplugged” and far away from home.

“The experience of only carrying what you need, going through ups and downs, sharing food, carrying burdens, and going through challenging terrain together, taught us to trust and rely on each other as a family,” Ethan M. Acena Allagadan, an outgoing 9th grader told Catholic San Francisco.

Nativity High School, a classical education academy on the Star of the Sea Parish campus, finished its first school year this spring after welcoming its first freshman class in August 2024.  Head of School Diana Adamson, who was one of the trip’s adult chaperones, said that the school curriculum includes a week of “academic travel” each year.  Math and science teacher, Tyler Popa, who is also director of campus ministry, and Dominican Brother Athanasius Thompson, were also a part of the adult contingent.

“Our school year is a week longer than other high schools in order to allow for this experiential learning outside of our city and outside of students’ comfort zones,” she said.

Persevering through hard things

Adamson said the purpose of the freshman trip to Moab, located between Canyonlands and Arches National Parks in eastern Utah was to challenge students to experience God through nature, and to connect to Christ’s suffering through their own physical suffering on the trail and backcountry. Basic wilderness skills and team building are learned, both of which are required for survival in harsh desert conditions.

Students were separated from their mobile phones at the airport before the group landed in Salt Lake City and drove nearly four hours to Moab. Phones were not returned to them until the end of the trip.

“They had to wrestle with not being able to communicate with anyone back home and lean on each other for support,” said Adamson.

Students learned that they could persevere through hard things, “like having to hike for miles carrying all your necessities on your back, being cold and tired,” she said.  The group’s simple meals at camp were often dusted with a fine red sand jokingly nicknamed, ‘Moab spice.’

One student celebrated his 15th birthday during the trip by carrying a 30 lb. bag of water to and from the river for cooking. Some students were homesick or cold at night, said Adamson. The wind was so strong some nights that the tents barely stayed secure.

“It was not an easy trip for a group of city kids, especially, but the students showed true resilience and support for each other,” she said.

Catholic Outdoor Renewal

The daily program itself was coordinated and led by COR Expeditions, an outreach ministry of Wyoming Catholic College, said Abramson. COR is an acronym for ‘Catholic Outdoor Renewal.’ Its founders, each of whom experienced transformational encounters with Christ through backcountry experiences, run programs in wildness locales out of a desire to share their wilderness conversions with families, schools, organizations and others.

Adamson said the school chose to work with COR because it was an experienced adventure company rooted in a Catholic program of “new evangelization.” “Every major figure in scripture has spent time in the wilderness in preparation for the mission that God has called them to,” its website reads. “The wilderness is a place to learn to ‘Be still and know that I am God.’”

Many students might not have experienced the trip without  a donor-funded scholarship that covered the nearly $1,000 cost per student.

Seasoned outdoorsmen Father Joseph Illo, pastor of Star of the Sea Parish, and Father Michael Liliedahl, a professor at St. Patrick’s Seminary & University (see “Intrepid Shepherds” in the July issue of Catholic San Francisco), accompanied the student trekkers as chaplains. Their costs were covered by COR. Both packed their vestments and a full Mass kit in their backpacks.

Photos from the trip show towering rock altars built by the students for each Mass and students kneeling in the red dust before and during Communion. At night, the group reflected upon the day’s difficulties and victories and the moments they felt most the presence of God.

“This was an unforgettable experience, and I still tell many stories about it to friends and family,” said one of the students named Matthew.

Father Illo said a highlight for him was watching a student’s confidence, courage and trust grow over the course of the experience.

“I’ll never forget seeing a student who was deathly afraid of heights overcome his fear and rappel off the rocks with the best of them,” he said.

“Be a camel”

Adamson said that the camel — the school’s mascot — represents the mission to build a school culture that teaches students how to be true “camels” in our world. The challenging trip helped students better understand the nature of a camel and the importance of “being a camel.”

The school website explains that the camel represents humility and the willingness to bear another’s burden. Camels kneel down when receiving heavy loads. 

“Being a camel is not comfortable, or easy, or flashy,” it reads. “But camels are filled with purpose, determination, and a willingness to accompany people on their journey.  They are full of grit, they are humble and helpful, and in the case of the Nativity, they come bearing gifts.  They can put you on their back – no matter where you come from or how far you have to go – and take you to see for yourself, a child, born in a stable, that redeemed our world.”

Note: Donations of any size are greatly needed to help fund academic scholarships such as these, said Adamson. Visit nativityhs.org.