UPCOMING RETREATS & EVENTS: Call us today ... pre-registrations (two weeks) are needed for COR-sponsored retreats.
FLOWERS IN BLOOM: God's Insight for Our Lives. Join us for our late springtime Evening of Prayer on Thursday, June 1, 2023 (5:00-8:00 PM).
Program includes dinner and the retreat for only $25 per person if you register by May 18th (2 weeks in advance). Late registrations might be possible based on availability for a $5 late fee; call first to confirm space.
Retreat will feature numerous Scriptural references to flowers replete with discussions of the relevance and symbolic correlations of flowers in our spiritual lives. Flowers are a beautiful reminder of our glorious God and creation. In the Bible, flowers are often used as symbolism for beauty, growth, the environment, fullness, and more. Evening will be facilitated by Dr. Nancy P. Askins, Executive Director, Center of Renewal at Stella Niagara.
REMINDER to BRING to the RETREAT: Participants are asked to bring to this retreat one or two artificial flowers and/or leaves on a stem. Please DO NOT bring real flowers since many people have allergies. (No need to purchase artificial flowers if you have none at home; we will have some extras you can borrow for this retreat activity.) NOTE: You will be able to take your own flowers back home after the retreat.
Call 716-754-7376, Ext. 1 to pre-register or request detailed flier via email or US Mail.
Fr. Tom Hartle's Preached Retreat Week (July 23-28, 2023). Details forthcoming. Call us to be on mailing list for flier.
2023 Advent Silent Retreat Weekend by Sr. Marcella Kiesel, OSF. Friday to Sunday, December 1-2-3, 2023. More details to follow in 2023. Sr. Marcella's retreats are always a meaningful, deeply spiritual experience. Mark your calendar for the first weekend in December to participate in our two-night retreat which will run from Friday dinner through just after Sunday lunch. Call us to be placed on our list to receive the flier when completed soon.
CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER GROUP meets the 1st Tuesday evening of each month. Advance reservations are not needed for this ongoing event, but feel free to call us to confirm a particular session will meet. Questions? Please call Center of Renewal at 716-754-7376, Ext. 1 or 2.
EVENINGS OF PRAYER: A series of new one-evening-only themed mini-retreats, including dinner, to be offered throughout the year. Pre-register two weeks in advance to avoid $5 late fee. Day of event: Check-in from 4:30-4:50 PM, opening prayers at 5:00 PM, dinner at 5:30 PM, with retreat evening session from 6:30-8:00 PM. Only $25 per person by two-weeks-prior deadline, $5 extra late fee afterward depending upon availability ... call us for details.
More retreats are regularly being scheduled. Watch for details.
Ongoing Program Schedule
In addition to providing hospitality to both groups and individuals seeking quality meeting and overnight accommodation facilities in an environment of peace and tranquility, Stella Niagara's Center of Renewal designs and offers its own sponsored retreats and programs with featured retreat presenters for spiritual growth and lifelong learning.
Examples of the ongoing schedule of sponsored retreats and programs include partial or full single retreat days on a special topics. Retreats in recent years have been scheduled to commemorate special church days such as Ash Wednesday and the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi, Papal Encyclical topics and themes, wellness and spirituality, peace and justice, and Biblical topics.
Weekly or monthly retreat programs have included a women’s spiritual reading group, a six-week study group on “Laudato Si: On Care of Our Common Home” Encyclical by Pope Francis, and the Guided & Meditation Prayer Group currently meeting on the first Tuesday evening of each month. Overnight retreats have typically been scheduled from one to six nights in length, affording the retreatants to focus more intently on a specific themes during the entire retreat. Retreat presenters are garnered from among visiting scholars, theologians, priests, sisters, and brothers, all knowledgeable specialists in their respective fields and ministries. Other retreat themes have included embracing change, benefits of the 12-step program for everyone, thoughts and behaviors, fruits of the Spirit and Pauline mysticism, and understanding self and others through Biblical comparisons. Directed Retreats can be scheduled on a customized basis throughout the year.
One key example of specialized group programs throughout the year which consider Center of Renewal their “retreat center of choice” include the Women’s Respite Program under the direction of its founder Sr. Diane Gianadda, OSF. For many years, this meaningful program has benefitted single moms and grandmothers of low income, mothers of autistic children, and women with cancer, with each event serving 20 to 30 women. Center of Renewal is proud to serve as the retreat ministry location for these meaningful outreach programs.
