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ARC Retreat Center |
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1680 - 373rd Avenue NE, Stanchfield, MN 55080
763-689-3540
arcretreat@hotmail.com
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ARC (Action, Reflection, Celebration), is a retreat center operated by a residential community, rooted in Christian tradition, emphasizing the values of simplicity, justice and healing, mercy and prayer, serving individuals and groups seeking time apart, rest and spiritual renewal.
The Lodge at ARC ARC is located 55 miles
north of Minneapolis (ten minutes north of Cambridge), on 90 acres in central
Minnesota's pine woods. We offer four-season hospitality for about 20 people in
our cedar Lodge, Hermitage, and Cottage (which is a complete log home.)
Spiritual direction, retreat ministry, and a labyrinth meditation experience are
available to retreatants, as well as a fine library of spiritual books and
journals. Therapeutic massage can be arranged with advance notice. Reiki, a form
of natural healing drawing upon the energies of the body, can also be arranged
with sufficient notice. Trails for walking, cross-country skiing or snowshoeing
wind through woods and wetlands.
Winter Mid-Week Retreat Special! Guests are welcome to attend yoga classes held at ARC on most Thursdays, 10:45-11:45. All levels of experience and mobility are welcome. The $7 fee is paid directly to the instructor.
Some of those visiting this site may be familiar with founders Ruth and Loren Halvorson. If so, you will want to know that Loren is undergoing serious health issues. The family has welcomed visits and greetings at Loren's CaringBridge Site.
The Cottage at ARC
among friends. February 26-28. Open to all. Contact ARC or Shepherd's Choice (763-434-7453) to register. Current Winter and Spring weekends open for groups: March 19-21, May 7-9 Open for small groups and individuals: February 12-14, April 16-18 The Hermitage is still available for many Winter/Spring weekends. Now is the time to book your fall retreat. Several October weekends are still available. See Calendar page. Consider gathering your group for a mid-week retreat Greater availability, lower cost
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Watch this Web site for future openings. We welcome volunteers at almost any time, and especially: Woodcutters are
invited to join our Saturday wood days:
ARC Wish List (Most are tax deductible. Ask your tax advisor.)
Weaving a Vision for ARC’s Next 30 YEARS
by Jan Wiersma, Director
At the top of the living room stairs beneath the vaulted ceiling of the
library stands a solid witness to the past: a loom. Built around 1885, the
loom was probably jointly owned by an entire farming community who shared
its use. It was rediscovered some years ago in the attic of Loren
Halvorson’s great-aunt, and brought to life again this summer by Don and
Julie Karsky. The loom now stands ready to use, with 40 yards of cream and
brown warp thread waiting for new patterns to take shape across its multiple
strands.
Like the long warp threads of a loom, visible themes run through the history
of ARC. Guests who return after an absence delight to see that so little has
changed: their favorite napkin ring, the quilt in room 13, the earthenware
crocks and the healthy, warming soups inside them, the reassuring stability
of the logs within, the trees outside. The amazing generosity of our
friends.
Coqui Conkey, who has volunteered regularly since
2004, commented on her last visit, “Community members come and go but
community is still community.” Those who live here might say, “Volunteers
come and go, but the spirit of volunteering remains the same.” And ARC has
remained deeply steadfast in its mission to provide time and space apart for
rest and spiritual
renewal, its commitment to silence.
Like the flying shuttle creating multi-colored fabrics from these vital,
continuous warp strands, guests and community members have woven their own
subtle or spectacular designs here: books have been written, friendships
birthed, losses mourned, transitions weathered, lives altered for good—or
better.
Slow but perceptible changes have grown customary as well: deeper
environmental awareness, new emphasis on local and organically grown
produce, fairly traded products: beverages for our cups and crafts for our
gift shop. Meals are still created on site, every clove of garlic diced and
every carrot chopped by hand, but nearly every week brings fascinating new
challenges to the creativity of our cooks in preparing gluten-free,
dairy-free, or vegan meals—needs that were rare or unknown 30 years ago. We
have grown more sensitive to people with disabilities as well, with
wheelchair access throughout the main floor, including automatic doors for a
bedroom and adjacent bathroom.
Retreats in early years helped liberate women from socially defined
background roles in home and church; today professional coaches offer
retreats “for experienced women leaders at VP and higher levels who are
ready to step more fully into their power.” Early retreats offered members
of various denominations the chance to share their faith; now Christians,
Jews, Muslims and Buddhists may be found comparing their spiritual journeys.
What will the next 30 years bring? One thing is clear: ARC is not the
exclusive property of any one interest group but a community resource to be
offered liberally to a still awakening world. Like the loom in the library,
it is here to be shared by the many who come bringing needs as old as
humanity—the search for meaning and purpose in life, comfort in sorrow,
stability through change—and as new as the cybernetic age. Whether you are
reading from a paper in your hands or a computer screen on your desk, you
are invited to help weave our next 30 years.
If you are interested in hermitage or small group retreats, be sure to visit The Dwelling in the Woods, another "sanctuary in time."  |
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