An in-person, self-guided cross walk for Good Friday

Although many Good Friday services are remote this year, one Christian camp is carrying on its annual self-guided cross walk.

From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, people of all ages are welcome to tour the grounds at Camp Manitoqua and Retreat Center while meditating on scripture readings.

People may bring their own readings, stop into the office and pick up scripture readings or access them this year with a special QR code, according to Kim Bukantis, office coordinator. Maps are provided, too.

Bukantis said the cross walk typically involves picking up a colored bead at each station. Attendees would then make a bracelet from the beads.

“Red was for the blood of Christ, black was for sin and white was for the resurrection, " Bukantis said, adding that, together, the beads symbolize how Christ “washes away our sins.”

People will still leave with bracelets, except that this year the bracelets are premade, Bukantis said.

The event leads to the camp’s cross at the top of the hill, she said. People reach it at their own pace.

“We have this one lady that who takes about an hour. She rests and enjoys the grounds,” Bukantis said. “But some people can get through it in 20 to 30 minutes.”

Bukantis isn’t certain how long the Camp Manitoqua has offered the cross walk. She’s worked for the organization for eight years and the camp has held it in some form all eight years, she said.

But the number of people it attracts varies from year to year, she added. But entire families do come out, too, with “kids in strollers,” she said.

“It really depends on the weather,” Bukantis said. “If it’s cold and rainy, we might only have 40 or 50. But if it’s a beautiful day, we’ll have more people.”

Camp Manitoqua and Retreat Center is located at 8122 W. Sauk Trail, Frankfort. Facemasks and social distancing is recommended, Bukantis said.

For more information, call 815-469-2319 or visit manitoqua.org.