Letters

Chelsey Hedglin’s Story

October 9, 2025

Every year in August, the Crievewood UMC Youth Group spends the week together doing a variety of activities around Nashville and ends the week with a retreat at Beersheba. “This is the first time that incoming 7th graders are joining,” Chelsey Hedglin, the Youth Pastor, notes, “and the last time that outgoing seniors attend youth group. Hello, seventh graders, goodbye, graduates.” Navigating the transitions within their youth group, they come to Beersheba for an intentional retreat—a time to reflect, connect, and grow together.

“Beersheba is just such a wide variety of spaces and places that you can go to have Bible Study, conversations, worship, and time in nature,” Chelsey explains. “It’s what makes Beersheba unique. We go to the overlook, we go to Vesper Point, we have communion in the chapel, and we have time hiking to Stone Door and playing pickleball and in the gaga pit.”

There are many fun and meaningful activities that they experience throughout their retreat, and two stand out. “Every year, we do an activity called Fill My Chair, where the youth group shares words of affirmation for the graduating seniors,” Chelsey reflects, “and then the seniors respond by saying, ‘I hope you fill my chair with…’ sharing their hopes and dreams for the future of the youth group, and it’s a great example for them to set for the rest of the group.” Then they transition into a time of self-reflection and time with God, writing letters to themselves and opening a letter that they wrote for themselves during the retreat the previous year, ending by gathering together for communion in the Chapel.

“The youth know that this is going to be an intentional time set apart with God and each other. This is something that they look forward to,” Chelsey observes. “I see in our youth an added closeness and bond, and a renewed commitment to their faith as they head into the school year. I can see that commitment is a long-lasting one because of the time that we have had together in retreat. This is a reset, a renewal—an intentional time set apart with God for restoration, growth, and deepening their relationships. The impact lasts well beyond the weekend.”

“There’s just something about being set apart outside of your city in such a beautiful place, experiencing all of the generational history that is in a beloved place like Beersheba,” Chelsey says. “The youth experience real connectedness and growth, renewal, and deeper bonds.”

Thank you for helping make moments like these possible—your support ensures that Beersheba continues to be a sacred space where young people can step away, connect deeply, and grow in faith together.