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Back in the 1980s, right after I moved to Atlanta, I attended a lot of Braves games. The route between home to stadium was quick and passed by a Krispy Kreme calling out with “Hot Donuts Now.” The most notable landmark, however, sat at the corner of Gordon Street and McDaniel Street. Above its front door, in white lettering, read the sign: “The Perfect Church.”    If I was traveling with a companion, The Perfect Church never escaped a mention. To my father, an active pastor over four decades, I’d sometimes point at the sign and suggest, “I’ll bet you always …

Among the books, photos, and flotsam and jetsam that accumulate on my office shelves, one item qualifies as an automatic keepsake. It’s a framed certificate presented to “Miss Jane P. Holt” from 1962, signifying her status as a “Charter Patron” of Montreat.   Signed by Tom Belk, the original chair of the Patrons program, the certificate reminds me of Jane’s enduring commitment to Montreat, just as it represents for me the generous, faithful commitments to Patrons on the part of so many others over the last sixty years. The certificate reminds me that the true strength of our ministry lies in …

As you may know, roughly one year ago the conference center announced its intention to pursue a special use permit (SUP) from the Town of Montreat to build a new lodge on its campus, replacing three lodges on the same site.   A year later, signs and fliers still dot the Montreat landscape. This summer’s edition includes the claim that pollution to our valley will occur if the lodge comes to pass. This is simply not true.   The stringent ordinances and regulations that apply to this project, along with the inspections and reviews that are part of any modern construction process, …

Greetings from Montreat! Today I write to share an update on two important projects that the conference center is currently undertaking.  First, those in Montreat will notice extensive activity at the Moore Center as we begin renovations of the Huckleberry Café space. While it was closed during 2021, we developed plans to revitalize and create a more welcoming gathering space for all who come to Montreat. The initial construction phase will be completed by early June, and we look forward to welcoming you all back for ice cream and coffee this summer!  Over the next two years, a larger vision …

An Update on MRA’s Lodge Project – an update from Richard DuBose, president of Montreat Conference Center.

Gratitude is the word of the upcoming weekend. On Saturday evening, the conference center will host the annual Patrons Banquet to honor and express appreciation to those donors who generously supported our programs and operations over the previous fiscal year. This year’s casual evening will include food trucks, supper under a tent, and Amanda Anne Platt & the Honeycutters, Asheville-based musicians now drawing national attention. Any review of the previous year must include praise of decisions made by our Board of Directors just as the pandemic was dawning. As stated several times in this space and elsewhere, at the spring …

As we approach the end of our fiscal year on April 30th, we are as usual doing our best to reach out and remind everyone to make their Montreat Fund gift in time. Making some of those calls this week got me thinking about Dorothy Allen, a longtime Montreater who passed away in January at the age of 99. Dorothy was an original donor to Montreat’s Patrons Fund in 1962, though she pointed out to me once that she was not an original Patron per se. Dorothy told me that she and her husband, Kirk, just couldn’t find the funds …

In his memoir, Montreat: A Retreat for Renewal, former MRA president Calvin Grier Davis described the decisions and rationale that led to the formation of the Town of Montreat in 1968. In the run-up to the first election, Davis noted, “It was assumed by many on the Board, and some of the citizens, that the officers of the Mountain Retreat Association would be elected to serve on the Town Council, that their experience would be available to administer the affairs of the town and there would be little change in the Town of Montreat.”  A page later, Davis reported the …

Looking Forward: Out Mission and Calling – a Montreat weekly update from Richard DuBose, president of Montreat Conference Center.

Lodge Site Selection – a Montreat weekly update from Richard DuBose, president of Montreat Conference Center.

Plans for a New Lodge – a Montreat weekly update from Richard DuBose, president of Montreat Conference Center.

March monthly update from conference center president Richard DuBose.