June 8th to June 10th, 2018 was the first ROYA Ladies’ Retreat at Saint Dumitru Monastery in Middletown, NY. This new initiative aimed to teach young women, between the ages of 16 and 30, skills and characteristics that are needed in the roles of orthodox wives and mothers. We were blessed to have Archpriest Chad Hatfield (President of Saint Vladimir’s Theological Seminary) and Presbytera Flavia Ene as speakers, presenting on “Marriage as the Path to Theosis” and women’s role in an Orthodox context, respectively. Additionally, we had Tatiana Milea, mother of five, there to discuss the role of mothers. There were also several women who came to support us and cook for us during the retreat, particularly Geta Alexandru.

On Sunday, Father Timothy Avram served the liturgy and the ladies sang the responses. We also sang “Avem o Țară” to honor the Romanian Saints being celebrated that Sunday, June 10th.The beautiful weather we had all weekend long allowed us to eat our meals and lead our skill activities outdoors.

Some of the practical skills we were taught included Lenten cooking, formal dining etiquette, knitting, and gardening. We had 7 young ladies participating in this first retreat and we hope, with additional interest, to have another retreat for young women in the Fall or next Spring. There were several skills we did not have a chance to cover due to the short amount of time, such as sewing, ironing, un-lenten cooking, and many more. We hope God blesses this new project and if He finds it to be good, we pray He gives us the resources to organize many more in the future!

Ana Radu