Thirty former InterVarsity students attended the Labor Day Alumni Reunion for the University of California—Los Angeles held at Campus by the Sea, an InterVarsity training facility on Catalina Island, off the coast of California.

Participants had the opportunity to re-live their InterVarsity experience by participating in a large group Bible study, and hearing about what UCLA’s InterVarsity chapter looks like today. Former classmates also had the chance to hear what God has been doing in one another’s lives since their days attending classes.

“I got to reflect on how God has changed me during the last eight years. I felt encouraged being around older InterVarsity alumni who could offer wisdom and insight about life. I think it’s funny how connected I could feel with people who are practically strangers; the only thing we have in common is that we are alumni of the same school,” Christine Wyatt said of her experience.

Many of the alumni appreciate the authentic Christian community that existed within their InterVarsity chapter when they were in college. Barbara Fiske shares, “I realized during the Bible study that those around me were not college students. They were professionals, missionaries, married, and parents. Knowing that we all participated in the same Christian community, albeit at different times, was a freeing spiritual experience. By the end of the weekend I didn’t see anyone as a stranger.”

Christian community is still very important to InterVarsity students at the University of California—Los Angeles. Currently, 175 students actively participate in InterVarsity on campus by attending large group meetings, or one of the 17 small group Bible studies on campus.