St. Mary of Egypt Refuge

The Refuge is a place where ordinary people come together in a beautiful, natural setting for respite and support.

Throughout the course of your stay you'll have a chance to experience the extraordinary through the people you'll meet, the new things you'll try and by coming in contact with something infinitely larger than yourself.

Are you ready for it?

On the Front Burner

• • News from our Respite & Recovery program:

  — the program was featured in a February news article: Retreat aims to empower trafficking survivors

  — our final report is now available, and we encourage you to explore it so as to understand the outcome

• • Join us for one of our summer events (click ‘poster’ to see an event’s details):

  — ‘Windows of the Soul’ retreat, led by Sr. Catherine Aubin, O.P., July 12–13 (poster)

  — St. Mary’s Refuge Open House, August 1 (poster)

  — Iconography training workshop led by Nicolae Gavriliu, August 3–5 (poster)

  — Seniors’ Day, August 10 (poster)

  — Farm market, Saturdays in Bancroft, daily at the Refuge

  — Family Time, for a summer experience together (poster)

  — Concert and Country Dance, featuring local band ‘Rustic Strings,’ July 26 (poster)

  — Square Dance Evening with caller Berry Chumbley, August 9 (poster)

• • We’re hiring for two Canada Summer Jobs — a forestry worker, and a kitchen helper.
• • Have a look at our latest paper and e-mail newsletters. Contact us to be added to our mailing list(s).
• • Our new Youth-Senior Gift Exchange program offers an opportunity to foster meaningful connections between seniors and young volunteers in Hastings County. Volunteers aged 16-35 engage with seniors in their community, providing practical assistance, personal companionship, and documenting their life stories. By forging inter-generational bonds, the program aims to alleviate isolation among seniors, while offering valuable learning experiences for both generations. Volunteers gain essential skills, create lasting memories, and contribute to a more compassionate and engaged community, fostering empathy and respect across generations:

  — Here’s our invitation to seniors.

  — Would you like to ‘make a difference’ in people’s lives? We’re looking for volunteer coordinators for our ground-breaking seniors’ programs.

• • Our retreat for those hurting from losing a loved one to ‘MAiD’ is now planned for this fall — contact us for further information.
• • The extraordinary beauty, respite, and support above sound great, but what really happens at St. Mary’s Refuge? For a glimpse, have a look at our new videos: “All About the Refuge” and “The Refuge — A Place For Seniors”.
• • The St. Mary’s Refuge cookbook:
  One of the important tasks for all Refuge programs is making sure there’s good-tasting nutritious food for hungry participants. Many who have volunteered their time and skill to cook and contribute for the Refuge have supplied their recipes.
  The cookbook makes a good gift. Our Refuge is Cooking goes for $25 (no HST, but shipping extra). Contact us to order.