Dominican Retreat Center marks 60 years

Founded for women of a previous era, the Dominican Retreat and Conference Center in Niskayuna is marking 60 years as it adapts to meeting the spiritual needs of today's Catholics and other seekers.

Staffed by the Dominican Sisters of St. Catherine de' Ricci, the retreat center was established to provide women an opportunity to step away from their busy lives and be refreshed spiritually, said Sister Carolyn Krebs, OP, president of the congregation.
Sister Carolyn said the Dominican Sisters of St. Catherine de' Ricci are a religious order that is native to the Albany diocese. The order was founded in 1884 in Glens Falls by Lucy Eaton Smith, whose religious name was Mother Mary Catherine de' Ricci of the Heart of Christ.

"During our entire history we have had sisters in the Albany Diocese," she said. "It is the diocese of our founding."

Emancipation
The foundress was concerned about the lack of opportunities women had to be renewed spiritually in the 1880s.

In addition to the first retreat house in Glens Falls, Mother Mary Catherine established another on Madison Avenue in Albany. St. Vincent de Paul Church's parking lot now stands in its place.

What was originally called the Dominican Retreat House opened in 1948 at its current location on Troy-Schenectady Road. Its slogan is "solitude on a busy highway."

Sister Susan Zemgulis, OP, director of the center, detailed changes over the decades.
Originally retreats were held in the Whitbeck House, the original house on the property. By 1958 the current handicap-accessible retreat house was built.

Remnants of a stone wall that surrounded the property still remain. A windmill, which can be seen from the road, pumped water for the original house and is now available for private retreats year-round.

The chapel of the retreat house boasts a mural of seven women in Church history painted by the popular children's author and artist Tomie de Paola.

Changing Church
While the structure has history, events within the walls were also historic. Sister Carolyn said the retreat house offered many programs after the Second Vatican Council, held during the early 1960s, to explain changes made in the Church by the council.

"It was a tremendous center geographically and strategically after Vatican II," Sister Carolyn said.

"We helped people to understand Vatican II and we brought together Catholics from different walks of life." For example, she continued, "We've offered a retreat for people with disabilities for 50 years."

Although the retreat house was founded to serve women, Sister Sue said it now meets the needs of men as well.

Respite for all
Retreatants come from across the diocese as well as from surrounding states. Programs in-clude non-denominational offerings, such as sessions for people in recovery or on men's spirituality.

The center strives to keep up with modern life and offer programs that can fit into people's busy schedules.

"We now offer evenings that provide brief respite," Sister Sue said. "We have sung vespers on Thursday evenings. You can come in for an hour at the end of the work day and be recharged and then go home."

The retreat and conference center also offers breakfast and dinner programs. "We have 'Breakfast with the Saints' and 'Soup with the Saints' so that people can get to know our spiritual ancestors," Sister Sue said. "It gives them a change to connect with the lives of other holy people."

(A Mass marking the 60th anniversary of the Dominican Retreat and Conference Center will be celebrated by Bishop Howard J. Hubbard on November 16 at St. Helen's Church in Niskayuna. A reception will follow at the Dominican Retreat and Conference Center. For more information on the celebration or on the conference center offerings call 393-4169 or visit www.dslcny.org.)

(11/13/08)