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Well-Being Retreat

Well-Being Retreat offers a unique opportunity to explore wholeness through a spiritual, health, financial, and vocational lens.

Mark your calendar now to attend Well-Being Retreat 2020 in Montreat, August 17-19. Additional details will be available in early spring.

Well-Being Retreat can help you become more deeply rooted in your life and ministry. This annual gathering is sponsored by The Board of Pensions of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), in partnership with the Presbyterian Foundation.

What you’ll learn

At Well-Being Retreat, you will

  • increase your understanding of the value of living a whole and balanced life;
  • develop/refine strategies and practices to thrive in your daily life;
  • gain knowledge on topics you choose; and
  • renew your relationship with God, God’s creation, and God’s claim on your life.

Who should attend

Active and retired members of the Benefits Plan — including ministers, employees, spouses, and surviving spouses — are welcome.

This annual gathering, sponsored by the Board of Pensions in partnership with the Presbyterian Foundation, is an opportunity to participate in worship, fellowship, learning, and reflection. Each retreat centers on a different theme, always related to wholeness.

For all participants, Well-Being Retreat offers time away from the usual routines to think, breathe, and renew. And it can help ministers recall and renew their CREDO vows and learnings.

Costs

There is no conference fee. Participants are responsible for travel, lodging, and a nominal meal fee. Payment for lodging and meals must be made at the time of registration.

Registration

Online registration for Well-Being Retreat will open in early summer 2020.

Questions?

Email us with any questions.

Well-Being Retreat 2019

This past August, more than 115 active and retired ministers and employees of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), spouses, and surviving spouses gathered by Lake Susan’s shore for rest, renewal, worship, and learning.

The tranquil beauty of Montreat reinforced this year’s theme: Life Is More — a reference to Luke 12, which reminds us that it is primarily spiritual, not material, pursuits that fulfill us.

Workshop topics and speakers

Workshop topics and speakers included the following:

  • Storytelling and proclamation: Rev. David Norse and Mr. R. Eric Thomas
  • Caregiving and grief: Rev. Beth Scibienski, author of Who Is God When We Hurt?
  • Life transitions/leaving well: Rev. Lori Neff LaRue, Director, Wholeness Education, Board of Pensions
  • Budgeting and debt management: Jacqueline Boersema, Director, Financial Education, Board of Pensions
  • The pastor as CEO: Karl Mattison, Vice President, Planned Giving Resources, Presbyterian Foundation

Other topics ranged from keeping Sabbath, to healthy weight, to housing options in the third act of life. Free time and space for silent retreat were part of the agenda, to provide a contemplative experience.

“This event … [is] one of the best I have ever attended. It not only helped me with some of my own stuff, it gave me some great ideas to bring back to the local church. I can’t stress enough the importance of the workshops for self-care and for church care, a good balance of both.”

—Well-Being Retreat participant

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