2026 Women’s Retreat
September 26-27 (Friday evening optional)
2026 Guest Speaker, Alice Murray
About Alice… Pastor Alice Murray serves as Pastor of Care at FaithLife Lutheran in Marion, Iowa. She has been married to her high school sweetheart, Erik, for 27 years, and together they are the proud parents of two amazing children—Noah and Avery.
Before entering seminary, Pastor Alice spent 18 years as an elementary school teacher, an experience that deeply shaped her pastoral heart and her love for walking alongside people in all seasons of life. She is especially passionate about accompanying others through both the valleys and mountaintop moments, and has spent much of her ministry caring for those who are grieving and navigating seasons of loss, suffering and mental health concerns .
Pastor Alice loves spending time talking about God with others—or spending time with Him curled up in her favorite chair at home with a big cup of coffee. She is currently working toward mental health coach certification and is deeply committed to helping churches better understand how faith and mental health are meant to work together.
She is honored to share, listen, and journey together with women during this retreat.
What to Expect:
We will gather beginning at 9:00am on Saturday for our first session. Breakfast refreshments will be available and you can plan on plenty of hot coffee and tea all weekend long!
What about the Friday evening option? If you can, come early and spend the evening in a way that best suits your needs. The Friday evening option includes heavy hors d’oeuvres, fellowship, and lodging; but, if your soul desires extra rest and not-so-much socialization, grab some food and escape to your cabin early! There is no wrong way to spend your time. After all, this is your time and we want to you enjoy yourself fully and be restored! Adding the Friday evening option is $35 for those staying at camp as well as for commuters.
Registration will include a seat at all speaker sessions, small group studies, worship, three meals on Saturday, two meals on Sunday, snacks, an array of free-time options, a bountiful pouring on of encouragement and inspiration, as well as so much more. Be sure to mark this on registration so we can include you as we prepare and schedule those optional activities. Your registration and cost options are:
- Arrive Saturday morning, staying overnight at Riverside = $160
- Arrive Saturday morning, staying off-site but attending Sunday = $140
- SATURDAY ONLY registration, no lodging = $115
- Friday Add-On (whether or not staying onsite) = $35
Lodging:
As usual, you will have the ability to stay right here in one of our cozy cabins on camp. We anticipate that groups of ladies will register together and we encourage that – this will allow us to place you and your close peers in a cabin together. There will be a Cabinmate request section in registration that you will want to complete if you have specific people you’d like to be in a cabin with. No cabinmate request? No problem! You are not alone and we are excited for you to connect with your assigned cabinmates as well as the many other women who will be in attendance on this special weekend!
If you personally do not feel comfortable being in a cabin with ladies you do not know or if you’d prefer a hotel, you can check out lodging options right in nearby Story City or Ames.
Additional Costs: (optional)
Horseback Trail Ride = $10
Craft Activity = $10
2025 Sample Itinerary
Saturday, September 27
8:30-9:00am – Check-in at Mortvedt (Our coffee/smoothie shop in Mortvedt will be open from 7:00-9:00am!)
9:00am – Welcome, Worship, Session #1, Small Groups @ Chapel
12:00pm – Lunch
1:00-4:00pm – Free Time
4:00pm – Snack in Dining Hall
4:30pm – Group Activity/Service Project
5:00pm – Session #2
5:45pm – Small Group Breakout
6:45pm – Group Picture & Supper
7:45pm – Prayer Service
9:00pm – Campfires with S’mores (optional)
Sunday, September 28
7:30-9:00am – Breakfast (option for outdoor or indoor)
9:00am – Worship & Session #3
10:30am – Small Group Breakout
11:00am – Closing and Ministry Time
11:30am – Lunch and Depart
