CREDO offers Camp Pendleton families personal and spiritual development

CAMP PENDLETON – For individuals who need help with marital, family and deployment issues, the Chaplain’s Religious Enrichment Development Operation (CREDO) has been an invaluable service for members and their families working on Camp Pendleton for over 20 years.

According to the group’s website, the concept began in 1971 with the same acronym, but it stood for Chaplains Response to the Emerging Drug Order.

“The program was established by chaplains in the Vietnam era to confront the use of drugs by Marines and sailors,” said Navy Lt. Cmdr. Joseph E. Dufour, chaplain and group director at Camp Pendleton.

The program evolved into a retreat ministry that is applicable to those seeking personal and spiritual development.

The program offers four types of retreats: marriage, family, personal growth and warrior resiliency.

For example, the Warrior Resiliency Retreats (WRR), which are courses designed to reduce stress associated with combat settings and arduous deployments. CREDO, in conjunction with commanders and unit chaplains, will deliver tailored programs to address Combat Operational Stress Control, Pre and post deployment training and personal growth and resiliency training to enhance military readiness and unit cohesion.

Another example is the Marriage Enrichment Retreat (MER), which provides couples with the opportunity to explore ways to keep their marital relationship healthy while dealing with conflicts that may arise.

All of the retreats are one-and-a-half day getaways that provide free food and lodging. Childcare is also provided if needed. The marriage and family retreat focuses on communication skills and creating a healthy family setting. The personal growth retreat brings people who are afflicted with various difficulties together in a healthy environment. The Warrior Resiliency Retreat is for service members seeking help for combat stress.

While the group offers different types of getaways, the marriage and family retreats are the most popular of the four programs.

“The marriage retreat focuses on helping married couples enhance their relationship skills in an attempt to bring them back to where they were when they first met,” said Duncan. “We also help couples reconnect who haven’t had time to focus on their marriage, because of their kids. The overall goal of the program is to get the couples to work as a team.”

For more information on CREDO, go to

http://www.mccscp.com/credo.