Accommodations and Family Participation
1. Can my spouse come?
If you are married, we strongly suggest that both spouses come. The spouse is almost always part of the solution! Also, our program is usually a catalyst for much growth, and if you do not grow together, you are more vulnerable to “growing apart!”
2. Can we bring our children?
We have 2- and 3-bedroom cottages that can accommodate families. But we do not have formal programs for your children – That is our dream for the future! If your children are impacted emotionally by some of the things you are struggling with (and they often are – even if you think they know nothing about it!), we have a counselor on staff who has special expertise in working with children and adolescents, and he can be available to meet with your child(ren) for counseling if you make those arrangement with us beforehand. Since we do not have a formal program for the children, we generally contract a reliable child-care provider for children under 12 for the morning hours, when we have most of the adult programming. It is important, however, to confirm with us beforehand that you are bringing children so that we make arrangements for childcare. The person we usually hire does a great job of engaging in constructive and creative activities with the children, not just “babysitting” them. (July is the only month that we utilize a different campus, and therefore regrettably we are unable to accommodate children during July.)
3. What kind of accommodations can we expect?
Every family unit is housed in your own cottage. Some cottages have one bedroom, most have two, and a couple have three. Each single person is in your own cottage — we do not recommend sharing a cottage since you will need some quality “alone” time. (One exception to our usual accommodations: During our July program we utilize a retreat center about an hour south of our offices. The retreat center has nine master bedrooms spread out throughout a large manor house. You would have you own master bedroom. This is the one time that we cannot accommodate children.)
4. What about meals?
Each cottage has a full kitchen. You are responsible to buy your own food and fix your own meals. That allows you to eat according to your own preferences and gives you some “alone time” during the day — often a necessary break! Many of our program participants take the opportunity to share some meals and fellowship together as well, as the sense of community develops. (During July meals are included as part of the program with an additional cost of $200/person.)
