Offers opportunities to refocus on Jesus, grow closer to God
St. Clare of Assisi Retreat Center, Hampton, is opening the doors to retreats that many parishes, organizations and individuals previously could not afford.
The nonprofit center opened in October 2020 and is run completely by volunteers, so it offers an affordable place for retreats, meetings, Masses and other faith events, said Deacon David Reaves, founder and president of the Philippians 2 Foundation, the charitable organization that purchased the building at 620 Buckroe Ave.
Bishop Barry C. Knestout granted ecclesiastical recognition of Philippians 2 Foundation as a Catholic entity in the diocese on June 29, 2022. On Thursday, Oct. 13, the bishop celebrated Mass at the center, and blessed the building and grounds. St. Clare is the only Catholic retreat center in Hampton Roads.
Because retreats can offer a unique way to grow closer to God, they can be a vital part of one’s faith life, center leaders said.
Deacon Reaves explained that retreats give people the opportunity to “just step outside of the busyness of their everyday life and sit at the feet of Jesus.”
“A lot of people need healing, and they get that healing by spending an intense, condensed amount of time with God in many cases,” he said. “I never cease to be amazed at what happens on these retreats.”
Volunteer-run facility
That’s why Deacon Reaves said “the Lord placed in my heart” the need for an affordable retreat center beginning about eight years ago.
The deacon didn’t figure out the logistics until 2019, when he was transferred to St. Joseph Parish, Hampton. There, he learned that a previous Methodist church owned by the parish and the Knights of Columbus Council 511 was for sale. After visiting the site with his wife, Deborah, secretary of the Philippians 2 Foundation, the couple decided the building would fit the bill. He started the foundation in April 2020 to purchase and oversee the center.
Deacon Reaves said the foundation’s mission is “to draw people into a closer relationship with God.” It does this primarily through the retreat center, but the foundation also promotes vocations to the priesthood, diaconate and consecrated life. The center has hosted retreats for men discerning the priesthood, and Deacon Reaves hopes the foundation will expand on these efforts, possibly offering financial aid to seminarians.
He added that the center is also a ministry for the more than 50 volunteers who help care for it because they create an environment for people to encounter Christ. With the exception of a charge for food if a group chooses that option, the center operates on a donation-only basis. It has recommendations for donations depending upon the size and nature of the retreat, but there is no set fee, Deacon Reaves said.
The 12,000-square foot building has a 1,000-square foot meeting space, a chapel that can seat about 70 people, five bedrooms and a room that doubles as a dining hall and fellowship hall. Outside, there is a grotto with an image of the Holy Family, a rosary garden, a waterfall where one can sit and meditate, and a brick patio with a fire pit.
‘All are welcome’
The center can accommodate a day-long retreat for about 70 people or an overnight event for about 50, Deacon Reaves said.
The foundation is raising funds for a projected $750,000 addition that will add semi-private rooms or private rooms for Marriage Encounter weekends, discernment retreats and silent retreats. The 4,800-square foot, three-story expansion will include a dedicated confessional and two smaller rooms that can be used for reconciliation or spiritual mentoring. The foundation has already raised $251,000 for the project.
Although the retreat center is open to other Christian groups, so far it has been used almost exclusively by Catholic parishes and organizations.
Several parishes have used St. Clare Retreat Center for confirmation and RCIA discernment retreats, St. Joseph Parish has regular book club meetings, the Kerygma Group offers retreats several times during the year, and the Nocturnal Adoration Society and the Order of the Discalced Carmelites of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel meet there.
The center hosts separate Cursillo weekends for English-speaking men and women four times a year and for Spanish-speaking men and women twice a year.
“All are welcome,” Deacon Reaves said of the various events held at the facility.
The Philippians 2 Foundation offers its own events, and Deacon Reaves said he is happy to help parishes or organizations write and/or facilitate their own retreats as well.
Mike Rieger, who has helped Deacon Reaves create and facilitate many retreats, said the events offer “a break, a way to step back from our normal routine and spend focused time with Jesus Christ to open ourselves to the Holy Spirit.”
Be open to God
Likewise, St. Joseph parishioner and foundation board member Lisa Ranellone said her first retreat “transformed” her life as she “realized and understood how much God loves each and every one of us.”
She explained that retreats can be “a deep experience” that allow one to “experience God in a new way, a deeper way, a more intimate way” because “when we get out of our normal environment, I think we’re open to new things or even seeing things in new ways.”
“Sometimes we’re kind of hesitant or fearful (to go on a retreat) because we don’t know what to expect, but if you’re open to attending a retreat, I think the openness really allows God to penetrate you in new ways as far as his love and his grace,” Ranellone said.
As Deacon Reaves explained, “people are so filled with the world that when we go on retreat, it allows us to empty ourselves and then to be filled with God.”
The foundation is named after Philippians Chapter 2, Deacon Reaves’ favorite passage, in which St. Paul describes how “Jesus humbled himself and poured himself into humanity,” he explained.
Calling the retreat center “a tremendous resource that’s been developed there for our Catholic community,” Rieger said before it existed, he primarily attended only retreats and events offered by his parish, St. Gregory the Great, Virginia Beach.
He explained that having a regional retreat center allows Catholics from various parishes to come together in fellowship and develop relationships with people they may later call upon for support “to just talk about different things that we’re going through and also to help hold ourselves accountable for carrying out our faith, carrying out our faith commitments.”
Additionally, it gives people on retreat the opportunity to see the different “characteristics and charisms” of other parishes and learn what they are doing, Rieger said.
Editor’s note: More information about St. Clare of Assisi Retreat Center, including a calendar of events, can be found at philippians2foundation.org.