OCF Board of Directors Hold Annual Retreat and Prepare for Landmark Anniversaries

Wichita, KS – The Board of Directors of Orthodox Christian Fellowship met for its annual in-person retreat from November 21-23rd at Saint George Antiochian Cathedral in Wichita.

Orthodox Christian Fellowship (OCF) is the official campus ministry of the Assembly of Bishops. The Board of Directors meets regularly by virtual means, and dedicates time to in-person meetings throughout the year. Comprised of clergy and lay representatives from the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, the American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese of the USA, Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA, Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America, and the Orthodox Church in America, this year’s annual board retreat was hosted by Saint George Cathedral in Wichita and local board members Joan Farha and Jamil Malone. 

“Our board considered many regular updates from our finance, governance, alumni, and audit committees, and heard from OCF staff on the status of our ongoing ministries,” commented Andrew Boyd, board chair. “We are preparing to reach yet another milestone as our ministry grows, and expect to release the results of our first full external audit in early 2025, an important step as we grow our annual budget to be over $1 million dollars.” 

Deacon Marek Simon, Executive Director of OCF, and Christina Andresen, Director of Ministries, shared updates from the various national, regional, and local efforts to connect college students to the Church and to each other.

“We continue to see strong growth and demand from students for ministry and for fellowship and education. We have 219 active chapters at colleges and universities throughout the country with 61 having been chartered in the past twelve months,” Christina shared in her report.

Deacon Marek shared updates on the Campus Missionary Initiative which has placed three trained, lay missionaries on campuses fulltime to provide ministry support, pastoral guidance, and educational opportunities to our student-led ministry efforts. “In the first year of this effort, we have over 100 students participating in meetings, service projects, worship, education, and outreach at Texas A&M. As we’ve expanded to include Arizona State University and Atlanta (Georgia Tech and Emory University) this semester, we’ve already seen over 200 students on those campuses participate in OCF activities.”

“Although Orthodox clubs and ministries have existed at various universities for some time, 2025 marks the 60th anniversary of OCF’s establishment as a pan-Orthodox, national ministry to and for our college students. Likewise, 2025 is the 25th Anniversary of OCF’s recognition by then SCOBA, now the Assembly of Bishops,” commented board member Natalie Kapeluck-Nixon. “As chair of our alumni committee, I look forward to using these anniversaries to reflect on our ministry, share memories and engage our alumni in our present growth plans. The enduring legacy of this ministry signifies its continued importance in the life of the larger Church, and in individuals in need of Christ’s healing presence at one of the largest inflection points in their lives.” 

“Our Campus Missionaries have delivered over 100 hours of one-on-one pastoral guidance and discipleship across the three locations,” shared Deacon Marek. “It’s amazing to see the impact of these pilot programs in their local parishes, with the local clergy, and the student leaders. We already have several other parish communities asking to host our next round of new, full-time, campus missionaries.” Interested communities should reach out to Deacon Marek to discuss the program. 

Anticipating 2025 as a landmark year for OCF, the board added continuing education to their annual retreat focused on fundraising and development, delivered by new board member Tony Pomonis. A small cocktail hour was also held in conjunction with this retreat for local donors and OCF friends and supporters at the home of board member Joan Farha.