May 5 Women’s Retreat: Persevering Post Pandemic

[CREDIT: WWWRI] The Women’s Wilderness Weekend of RI May 5 Women’s retreat is coming up May 5-7 at the Episcopal Conference Center in Pascoag, RI.

PASCOAG, RI —It’s been three and a half years since the last Women’s Wilderness Weekend and members are excited to gather for nature, nurture and fun at our May 5 women’s retreat!

Sadly, we were forced to cancel our May 2020 weekend as the opening weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic sequestered us away from friends, family, each other, and, ironically, at least at first, the outdoors. Our next May 5 Women’s Retreat was more distant than we imagined.

Luckily, scientists began highlighting the relative safety of the outdoors and the protection of well ventilated areas, and the state relented its restrictions on the public’s enjoyment of outdoor parks and recreation in general.

While spending time outdoors was known to be among the safest things to do during the pandemic, being inside with groups of people outside your household, as we do during our women’s retreats within the The Episcopal Conference Center (ECC), was discouraged by medical advisors at all levels. Consequently, in August 2020, the ECC leadership, along with indoor venues nationwide, was left with little choice but to cancel all events scheduled there through January 2021. Our next May 5 women’s retreat was delayed again.

Women’s Wilderness Weekend continued to hold outdoor events, gathering that September for for kayaking event on the Narrow River, leaving from Narrow River Kayaks for a guided tour of the waterway. That October we met for the Women’s Labyrinth Walk and Craft Day, which was a heartening success. The weather was beautiful for our labyrinth tour with Linda Reed, the labyrinth’s architect, who used to live there when her family owned the property. We followed that up with a short hike to check out a historical cemetery before lunch, then created fall wreaths at tables set up at the labryinth before ending with another hike.

The pandemic persisted, but so did our group’s resolve to remain active. That May, a year into the pandemic, we hosted a tri-state hike to the point where RI, CT and MA meet, capped with a flower essence workshop nearby in Pascoag, RI. That June, we gathered for a foraging hike through Swan Point Cemetery, among the foremost garden cemeteries in the U.S.

In 2022 we held a handful of smaller hikes as we planned (hopefully) for a return of our indoor overnight weekends, but the pandemic had a ways to go yet.

Finally, in October 2022, we received word that the ECC was able to open for events again, and we began planning for our May 5 women’s retreat including hiking, crafts, enrichment classes, friendship & relaxation, in the usual bundle of relaxation, fun and camaraderie that longtime members rave about. Best yet, you’re invited! [Register at this Link!]