Sacred Seed Retreat

Fri. May 2 – Sun. May 4, 2025

Retreat begins on Zoom for an hour on Friday, a two-hour contemplative time on Saturday at Plainsong Farm, and finishes on Sunday afternoon together for two hours at Plainsong Farm.

Cost: $120

Sacred Seed Retreat: a Contemplative Journey into Creation

is a hybrid, silent, directed, weekend retreat.

Have you been hungering for silence or to retreat or to be in nature? Is it hard for you to get away for a few days or more to do so? We created this retreat to meet your need. You don’t have to leave home for a few days, and you are provided gentle structure to support your efforts at meeting God in nature and in silence. The Dominican Center and Plainsong Farm have collaborated to offer you a retreat that tends the sacred seed of your soul so that you can be sustained by God in the life you live.

We will gather together on Zoom Friday evening where you will meet your fellow retreatants and your Retreat Director, Gail Heffner, and be guided into creating a contemplative, silent lifestyle for the next 36-48 hours. Because retreatants are generally staying at home or in a hotel for the weekend, rather than at a retreat center, this will take some intentionality that we will assist with.

On Saturday, you will have a two-hour span of time to enter creation at Plainsong Farm in Rockford, Michigan, so you will need your own transportation. You will be met by Emily Ulmer, Program Director at Plainsong Farm who will welcome and orient you, including prayer cards to support your contemplative time in creation. The rest of the day is yours to continue in silence wherever you wish.

We close on Sunday together by gathering at Plainsong Farm where Gail will lead the group in group spiritual direction to listen each other into God’s presence as we unpack the weekend’s experience in silence and nature.

Silence the world around you. Silence the world within you. Silence the thoughts that shout out to you. In the stillness hear God’s voice. In the quiet, sense the Divine’s presence and the spiritual love that is waiting to embrace you.

Facilitators

Gail Heffner

Gail Gunst Heffner is a spiritual director who was trained at the Dominican Center and certified in 2016. Gail is also an Emerita faculty member at Calvin University and has a PhD in Urban Studies from Michigan State University. From 2004-2020 Gail served as the Director of Community Engagement at Calvin where she co-founded and co-directed Plaster Creek Stewards, a watershed restoration initiative. She has a new book on reconciliation ecology, Reconciliation in a Michigan Watershed: Restoring Ken-O-Sha published in May 2024. Gail enjoys photography, hiking, and spending time with friends and family (especially four little grandchildren) at the Lake Michigan coast.

Emily Ulmer

Emily Ulmer is a co-director at Plainsong Farm & Ministry. Her work at Plainsong weaves together her passion for gathering folks of all ages for wonder and reflection, young adult discipleship, environmental justice, and grassroots community development. Emily enjoys long slow walks, canning, spending time with friends and family, and taking care of her dog Stu.