The old saying goes, “the hardest part of climbing the mountain is arriving at the trailhead.” Once we start on the trail, we can usually just keep putting one foot in front of the other, even when the path gets steep, and complete the hike to enjoy the sense of accomplishment that comes along with the experience. The trick is to overcome all the excuses that keep us from ever getting started. We find it can be similar with our retreats. Many tell us something like this: “I almost didn’t make it here, and even thought about turning back on the drive, but I’m so glad I came!” Once they get here, our participants very quickly feel at home among peers with similar backgrounds, and enjoy the activities that get them out in nature or exploring challenges they have never tried. Here are some basic facts about retreats, and testimonials of people who overcame their hesitancy, stepped into the unknown, and are glad they came. We hope they encourage you to do the same.
- Since 2014, over 100 retreats have been held, serving hundreds of First Responders, Veterans, spouses/caregivers, and children from throughout New England.
- Camp Resilience retreats combine outdoor activities, facilitated peer-to-peer counseling, and life skills workshops.
- Life skills workshops are facilitated by trained volunteers and staff with years of experience working with Veteran and First Responder communities.
- Camp Resilience is devoted to tackling an array of issues affecting veterans and first responders—offering a wide variety of tailored retreats that take the healing process out of the clinic and stress the importance of camaraderie and wellness in fostering resilience and recovery. Retreats have proven great success retreats for families, couples, and veterans coping with military sexual trauma, post-traumatic stress, or moral injury.
- Some retreats are general in nature with life skills devoted to topics such as resiliency, anger management, mindfulness, wellness, and financial management. Other retreats have a specific focus such as equine assisted learning, adaptive sports, spouses and caregivers, couples, families, PTSD and moral injury, and military sexual trauma.
- Retreat activities vary by season but may include hiking, kayaking, sailing, scuba diving, aerial treetop adventure, rock climbing, biking, snowshoeing, downhill skiing and cross-country skiing.
- Costs for all participants are covered by generous grants and individual donations. Transportation to/from the retreats is not included.