When driving into Oregon, Illinois – a scenic town in Illinois – one smells the pine trees, observes morning dew rising from the Rock River, and hears the sounds of kids yelling, bonding and having a good time. Such is the experience of Snowball, an annual retreat held each winter.

Operation Snowball is an international program that teaches youth all about prevention education, community advocacy and leadership development to create a positive impact in the community.

“Snowball’s for students to make good choices. It’s anti-drugs, anti-alcohol, it’s practicing good mental health,” staff leader Beth Schuck said.

Located in Oregon, Illinois is Lorado Taft Field Campus, owned by Northern Illinois University, where Snowball is typically hosted. West Chicago went from Feb. 9-11, a rescheduled date following a cold spell in January. Many students from Leman and Benjamin Middle Schools have been to Lorado Taft previously for a program called Outdoor Ed.

Shortly after the Chronicle arrived, it was breakfast time at Harrison Dining Hall. The cooks had served pancakes, sausage, eggs and orange juice. Before participants could eat, they had to sing the meal song, which was pretty catchy: “Here we sit like birds in the wilderness waiting for something to eat.”

After campers were finished eating, they would take all their food scraps and scooped them into a bin. At Loredo Taft, there is a no-scrap policy, and the food waste is recorded in a system called the “ORT Report.”

Dr. Will Dwyer, principal of West Chicago Community High School, and Mark Poulterer, ESL teacher, talked and were about to shake hands during one of the breakout sessions. One of the main things that were discussed during this session were safety concerns, including fighting at the school, and how can the students and staff help fix these issues.

The Wildcat Chronicle’s primary goal while reporting at Snowball was creating a video interview. Here, senior Brandon Heath is interviewing Dwyer for the Operation Snowball video. Multiple questions were posed to Dwyer, including “What have you learned at Snowball?” and “What is something you really like about this program?” To watch the full interview, click here.

Another ice breaker that was done at Snowball was a follow the leader trust exercise. “We had to walk to lunch blindfolded following one person” and “We had to sing too,” said senior Joshua Grage.

After the breakout sessions and lunch time, the mentors led everyone in another team building activity, a scavenger hunt. Each group had to complete specific tasks in a two-hour timeline where group members had to take photos to document the process. One of the activities involved naming an animal for each letter of the alphabet. 

A favorite activity of senior Dominic Cicero’s was “when we had to piece together a heart using oddly-shaped pieces of paper to receive our clue. It was a very challenging team effort, but ended up being rewarding in the end once we had made the bright pink heart by using our ability to work as a team.”

Towards the end of the evening, there was a No-Talent Talent Show. Groups were given around 2.5 hours to prep and “perfect” their routines. The green group performed a magic-based show in which they would do comedic magic like choosing a card from a deck and guessing or making someone disappear with a blanket but making it obvious. Pictured above is junior Evelyn Garcia Robles drawing a stick figure as her act.

Another aspect of the Snowball program is community advocacy. One way they show their commitment to this idea is by giving notes to each other through a mailbox system. Participants could write notes of positivity or about their experiences together for others to read.

Located in one of the rooms was a surfboard and a Baby Yoda inflatable. Poulterer saw these seemingly random objects and took the moment as an opportunity for a picture.

Lorado Taft offers an expansive and picturesque setting for the annual retreat, even in the middle of winter.

One of the many sculptures located on the sculpture trail is a statue of the Seven Muses created by one of Lorado Taft’s students. According to the City of Oregon, “The exact details concerning the creation of this sculpture are unknown, but it is believed to be a work of students of Lorado Taft at the Eagles Nest Art Colony.”

For students and staff alike, the Snowball retreat offers a chance to reset, and to build strong connections with other people. Many of those who attended Snowball said they formed friendships with people they would otherwise never have spoken to or met. These strangers formed their own unique “family” as part of the experience, a word that came up frequently in discussions.

“My favorite part about it is probably the family style way of eating,” senior Arely Jacobo said. 

Mealtime was clearly a favorite. For junior Lauren Dusing, the highlight of the trip was “meeting new people then sitting around the dinner table in there, and it’s like you’re one big family.”