Faithful of all ages are encouraged to join the hundreds of their brethren Aug. 12-13 poised to embark upon a two-day, roughly 37-mile pilgrimage from St. Hedwig Church, Trenton, to the National Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa Shrine in Doylestown, Pa.

Begun in 2003 in gratitude to the Mother of God for the centennial of the parish, the annual retreat, conducted on a weekend near the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, attracts Catholics from St. Hedwig and surrounding parishes who exhort Mary for her loving intercession.

The trek begins early on Aug. 12 in St. Hedwig Church, 872 Brunswick Ave., Trenton, with Exposition and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. The first leg of the journey takes the pilgrims to Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, West Trenton, and following breakfast, across the Delaware and Raritan Canal and over the Washington Crossing Bridge to rest in Pennsylvania’s Friends of Washington Crossing Park. Along the way, the pilgrims and accompanying clergy pray, sing and witness stories.

After a rest stop in Newtown, Pa., the group proceeds to their dinner destination: a rural farm in Bucks County, Pa., where they set up camp for the night. A candlelight Mass is followed by prayer, the opportunity to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation, then out for the weary pilgrims

Breakfast the next morning is followed by the trek to their destination: the Marian shrine, where Mass and a Rosary procession will begin at 7 p.m.

To register, or for further information on the pilgrimage, contact Wioletta Wyszynski at 609-577-5312.