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3. Women’s Retreats

Variations on Retreats:
Purpose, Planning, and Other Tips

By Jeannie Inglehart, Deb Wilkens-Costello, and others at the
Maiden, Mother, Crone Retreat, near Annandale, Minnesota, 2000

Want to host a women’s retreat? First, you need to make some preliminary decisions.

Consider the following questions:

• Who will it serve?
• What is the purpose of the retreat?
• What fee will be charged? Will the sponsoring agency underwrite the retreat to lower the registration cost? If money is lost or raised, will the sponsoring agency absorb the losses or gains?

Planning for Your Retreat

• Once the above questions have been answered by the sponsoring organization, a Retreat Planning Committee can be formed to work on the following details:
• Goals of the retreat/ expectations
• Concept or theme for the retreat
• Scheduling considerations: church school and other potential calendar conflicts
• Length of the retreat: One day or evening? Overnight? A whole weekend?
• Location: Consider convenience, travel time, potential for lodging, and space to be used for gatherings of all persons registered.
• Will child care be offered? If so, where?
• To find a retreat center that will meet your needs, try the following:
  • Talk to others and ask for their recommendations
  • Call the Chamber of Commerce to get retreat names and phone numbers
  • Use the Internet
  • Call your local YWCA/YMCA camps
• Things to consider before you call retreat centers:
  • How many people do you hope to register?
  • What atmosphere are you hoping for? Would you prefer a natural or urban setting? A conference-type setting?
  • What food do you want and what do retreat centers offer? Will you have vegetarians in attendance?
  • Will you need overnight lodging?
  • What will your registrants be able to afford?
  • Will you be asking the retreat center for extras like special meals, linens, firewood?
• Questions to ask on the phone:
  • What are the costs and what is included?
  • Availability?
  • Space options-are lodging rooms and meeting/conference rooms available?
  • Would there be a contract between the two parties?
  • Is a deposit required?
  • Are there “minimum” charges? What happens if not enough enroll? How will you handle it if you get more registrants than expected?
  • Are there deadlines for reporting numbers enrolled? Penalties?
  • Is the place accessible to wheelchairs, etc.?
  • Can they send information such as maps/directions, floor plans, rules of the center, etc.?
• Program
• Budget (based on fees, estimated attendance, and set costs such as food)
• Timeline
• Registration/information materials/map
• Marketing: announcements (verbal, press releases, flyers, bulletins, church newsletters, e-mail, brochure)
• Mailing list
• NOTE: It is a good idea to have one subgroup work on programming while another is responsible for marketing; of course, at least one marketing person should attend each program planning meeting.

During Your Retreat —
Plan for the following, in addition to any activities you want to include:

• Registration
• Opening Ritual
• Review of Goals of the Retreat
• Schedule of Events
• Program/speaker(s)
• Housekeeping Issues (works well to have the same person announcing throughout)
• Plans for Socializing/Entertainment
• Plans for Meals/Snacks
• Clean-up

At the Close of the Retreat

• Evaluation (determine ahead of time what constitutes success)
• Thank those who helped. Send written thank-you’s later.
• If you’re planning to have a retreat the next year, ask for volunteer planners now.
• Tell your church and the community about your success through newsletters, announcements, etc.
• Leave a written record of the retreat in a public place.