Happy Thanksgiving 2019

November 26, 2019

 

 

 

 

Dear Friends of Malvern Retreat House:

As we approach Thanksgiving and the beautiful season of Advent, we wanted to take this moment to express our gratitude for your continued support and engagement with Malvern Retreat House (MRH). Each of you plays an important role in MRH being a vibrant center of spiritual renewal and formation.  It is a center that honors our rich legacy while creating new, exciting ways for retreatants to explore their faith.  We work diligently to develop fresh programming and experiences throughout our sacred space for more than 20,000 retreatants and 7,000 active members of the Men and Women of Malvern served each year. 

Certainly though, we live in challenging times that have found so many struggling with their faith. The work we do at MRH is needed now more than ever, which is why we welcome all who seek guidance, healing and peace.  It is why we encourage and nurture individual relationships with God, Himself. 

To actively respond to the needs of our retreatants, MRH creates opportunities to delve deeply into the abiding questions of faith, helping to guide conversations about – and with – God. Our retreat tradition, which has been central to the Men and Women of Malvern’s faith experience here, inspires our ongoing work. We seek to connect with retreatants in the most relevant ways, offering programs that focus on marriage, family, teens and young adults, those in grief, those in recovery and much more.  We also support diverse populations who wish to deeply engage their spirituality, such as international retreatants and those needing Spanish-language services.  MRH is a place for all and we remain committed to that end.  

We also remain committed to MRH as a spiritually, programmatically and operationally safe space for our retreatants. As the oldest, largest Catholic retreat site in the United States, uniquely lay-owned and operated, this is of the highest priority to the Board of Directors and Executive Team.  We are fully engaged in the ongoing, expert work needed to ensure that the strongest protocols and safeguards are in place and intentionally implemented for our retreatants and staff with particular emphasis on the protection of minors.  Equally important, we are committed to ensuring that these efforts are transparently communicated to all.  

As we begin to look ahead to the 100^th anniversary of our charter in 2021 as well as our presence on these historic and holy grounds, we are invigorated by the work of delivering retreat experiences defined by spirituality and excellence while embracing the opportunity to expand our outreach to new faith communities.  We undertake this work with great energy and zeal. Our confidence in the success of this work is rooted in your ongoing prayers and support of Malvern Retreat House. 

We thank you and we wish you a Happy Thanksgiving, a reflective Advent and a joyful Christmas season.

 

With Deep Gratitude and Faith,

Mark Poletunow                                           Jacqueline J. Delaney
President                                                      Chair, Board of Trustees
Malvern Retreat House                                Malvern Retreat House