“I go down to the edge of the sea.
How everything shines in the morning light!”

-Mary Oliver 

                                                                                 

We are delighted to invite you, your staff and key volunteers to Mercy by the Sea in Madison, CT, on Wednesday, October 2, 2019 for a day of refreshment and renewal for Christian ministry teams of all denominations. We are aware of the challenges in ministry, the demands that impact our lives. At the same time, we seek to treasure the gifts and graces that we experience along the way.

Our hope for this day of presence is to reaffirm your personal and shared call to ministry. We’ll have a gentle mixture of ideas, prayer, poetry, relationship, and quiet time along with a delicious lunch prepared by Mercy by the Sea’s wonderful kitchen staff. We are asking $15.00 a person to cover lunch expenses; the rest of the day is a gift to you.

Who Is Invited?

Come down to the edge of the sea … religious educator, pastoral team, music minister, pastor, key volunteers, groundskeeper, Church office administrators from Christian-based ministries. Come, experience the beauty and prayer-soaked walls as you participate in our program.

We would love to welcome you to this sacred seaside setting on October 2nd. Let us know how many spaces to save by September 24, 2019. Contact Rosemary Jones in Guest Services (203) 245-0401, Ext.114, indicating if you have food allergies or request a vegetarian/vegan lunch. If you have any questions about the program or who might benefit from participating, email Lisa Irish, [email protected]. Please be assured that Mercy by the Sea is a wheelchair-accessible, smoke-free environment.

Your Retreat Team

Gail Thibaudeau Bellucci, M.A., has served in a variety of ministerial settings including parish, educational and currently with the Archdiocese of Hartford Secretariat for Pastoral Services. Gail’s hope for ministerial outreach simply is to share faith and presence with her brothers and sisters on the journey.

Rev. Laura Fitzpatrick-Nager, M.A., MDiv is Senior Associate Minister at The First Congregational Church of Old Lyme in Old Lyme, CT. Laura is also an author, spiritual director, and workshop presenter. Laura writes that “Mercy by the Sea is a place of sanctuary for me and I enjoy sharing this holy landscape with others.”

Lisa Irish, M.A., MEd, BCC, ministers as a spiritual director, retreat leader and author. Her experience includes parish staff, school faculty, and pastoral care. Trained as a chaplain, Lisa understands ministry as an invitation to presence in the space that resides between ongoing human needs and the unending love of God.

Karin Nobile, M.A.L.S., is Program Associate at Mercy by the Sea who helps develop, implement and co-facilitate experiential spiritual programming as well as special events. Karin is a 2017 graduate of Mercy by the Sea’s School for the Second Half of Life and has a penchant for social entrepreneurship and social justice.

Rev. Tom Sievel, currently Pastor of Our Lady Queen of Angels Parish in Meriden, is a spiritual director and a Retreat Director at Mercy by the Sea. Besides the call to spirituality he is a Master Gardener and a member of the Mission Integration Committee at Mercy by the Sea.