Building Community, Strengthening Faith, Supporting Each Other
Each spring and fall, Friends General Conference’s Ministry on Racism Program creates welcoming spaces for Friends of Color and their families to gather, connect, and grow together. These retreats nurture multigenerational community through:
- Mutual support and sharing — Creating safe spaces for authentic connection and conversation
- Worship — Deepening our spiritual practice together
- Exploring our faith — Discovering new dimensions of Quaker spirituality and tradition
- Sharing our journeys — Learning from each other’s paths to Friends meetings
- Building networks — Identifying meaningful ways to support one another in our communities
Our Retreat History
Our retreats have brought Friends together across the country, with gatherings in upstate New York, the Philadelphia area, Washington DC, Chicago, and California.
When the COVID-19 pandemic began, we quickly adapted to ensure continuity of community. We held virtual retreats via Zoom in April 2020, October and November 2020, and March 2021. Since 2021, we’ve embraced a flexible approach, thoughtfully choosing between hybrid retreats that welcome both in-person and virtual participants, and online-only gatherings when virtual connection best serves the needs and circumstances of our community.
For current health and safety guidelines, please see our FGC Pandemic Policy.
Ready to join us? Explore our upcoming retreats, frequently asked questions, and highlights from previous gatherings below.
Upcoming Retreats
2025 Online Fall Retreat for Friends of Color
Friday, November 7 to Sunday, November 9, 2025
The 2025 Fall Retreat will be an online event held on Zoom. Registration is now open.
Registration Fee: $60 (includes a $20 deposit that will not be refunded if registration is canceled after Sunday, November 2, 2025).
Applications for financial aid are due by Sunday, October 12, 2025. Financial aid is available through the Mahala Ashley Dickerson Fund.
More details coming soon!
Retreat FAQs
Topics
For our Friends of Color programming, only Friends who identify as and live a life as a Person of Color are permitted to attend. For our interracial retreats, both BIPOC and white participants are welcome to attend per the guidelines described in the event description (for instance, a retreat for interracial couples may only allow white participants to attend with a partner who is BIPOC). If you have questions about whether or not a retreat is right for you, you can always contact a Ministry on Racism staff member for further guidance.
A hybrid retreat is a retreat which offers programming for participants at an on-site location while also providing a space online for on-site and virtual attendees to commune. Virtual participants will have opportunities to interact with on-site participants and other virtual participants over zoom. We do our best to ensure that virtual participants are an integral part of the hybrid retreat.
We typically offer three types of registrations for in-person participation. The following are listed from most to least expensive:
- Overnight, single room (room to yourself)
- Overnight, double room (share a room with another participant)
- Commuter (no overnight accommodation)
All in-person registration options include meals. Registration fees for each option may differ depending on the location of the retreat.
If you choose to attend virtually, you will be sent a Zoom link the week of the retreat where you may attend the retreat online. The virtual registration fee for retreats is $60 per person.
The Ministry on Racism aims to select diverse retreat locations to reflect the geographic diversity of Friends of Color in North America. The general region in which a retreat will be held alternates with each retreat. We are always looking for retreat centers that can accommodate our diverse participants. If you have had a good experience with a retreat center near you, we would love to hear about it!
General outlines of the schedule (number of sessions, time of sessions) are made available around the time that registration opens for the retreat. The full retreat schedule (description of sessions and facilitators) will usually be finalized the week before the retreat. If you would like an idea of what the retreat schedule will look like, you can view schedules from past retreats on our website.
You can pay the registration fee for the retreat in the registration form for the retreat. You may also pay using FGC’s one-time donation form:
- In the dropdown menu that says “Please Use My Gift to Support,” select Ministry on Racism
- In the Comments and Feedback section, write “Registration Fee: Event Name”
You may also pay via check. Make the check out to “Friends General Conference.” In the memo line, write “MoR Retreat Registration.”
Mail the check to:
Friends General Conference
1216 Arch St #2B
Philadelphia, PA 19107 Please note that we are unable to process checks from outside of the United States. Non-US residents should pay with a debit or credit card in the registration form or through our online donation form in US dollars. Thank you for understanding.
Yes. Through the Bayard Rustin and Mahala Ashley Dickerson Funds, there is financial support to Friends of Color living in North America to attend FGC-affiliated events. The Bayard Rustin Fund provides funds for travel expenses and the Mahala Ashley Dickerson Fund provides funds for program and registration fees.
If you registered for a retreat but are no longer able to attend, please contact a Ministry on Racism staff member immediately. We require a deposit as part of our registration fees which will not be refunded in the case of a last minute cancellation or a no-show without prior notice.
Since the primary purpose of our retreats is to build community and connection among Friends of Color, we encourage Friends to attend the full retreat. However, we understand if you are only able to attend a portion of the retreat. We are unable to provide discounts to Friends who cannot attend the full retreat.
After the retreat, the Ministry on Racism will send an email to participants containing the slides from the retreat as well as links to any resources that were shared during our time together. Participants will also receive a link to an evaluation form to provide feedback about the retreat.
Participants are asked during registration if they would like to share their contact information with other participants. After the retreat, the Ministry on Racism will share the contact information of those participants who indicated that they were comfortable sharing.
We understand that attending a retreat can be a daunting experience. We have formulated a set of guidelines which governs our time together to ensure that Friends can share their authentic selves in the spirit of bravery and mutual care and respect. We also understand that no space will be perfect and that racial woundings may occur. In the instance that you experience a racial wounding at our retreat or any FGC-affiliated event, we encourage you to fill out the Racial Wounding Reporting Form and a member of the Racial Wounding Committee will reach out to you.
Previous Retreats
2025 Online Spring Retreat for Friends of Color
“For Such a Time as This: Struggles, Renewal and Hope“
May 16-18, 2025
The 2025 Fall Retreat was a fully online event that brought together Friends of Color from across multiple time zones for a meaningful three-day gathering focused on community, storytelling, and collective healing. The retreat provided an opportunity for participants to share their personal narratives of struggle and renewal, while fostering connections that transcend geographic boundaries.
The retreat also celebrated joy and informal connections through Saturday evening’s Hangout Time and Zoom Karaoke, demonstrating that meaningful community can flourish even in virtual spaces. During our time together, we also collaboratively created a retreat playlist that captures the spirit and energy of our gathering—a musical reflection of our shared experience, available to listen to on Spotify here.
What’s Next
We invite you to look out for our retreat epistle, which emerged from the retreat’s Story Time Epistle session, and captures the collective wisdom and insights that arose during our weekend together.
2024 Hybrid Fall Retreat for Friends of Color
“Seasons of Justice: Building Solidarity through Times of Change“
November 1-3, 2024
The 2024 Fall Retreat was a hybrid event with options to participate in person and online. The in-person portion of the retreat was held at Powell House in Old Chatham, NY.
2024 Hybrid Spring Retreat for Friends of Color
May 3-5, 2024
The 2024 Spring Retreat was a hybrid event with options to participate in person and online. The in-person portion of the retreat was held in La Jolla, California. Read our epistle here.
2024 Virtual Retreat for Parents of Interracial Families
March 16-17, 2024
This retreat was intended to center Spirit in the creation of a space for meaningful conversations, shared experiences, and valuable insights on navigating the unique dynamics of interracial families within our Quaker community. White and BIPOC parents of interracial families were welcome to attend. Parents of adult children were also welcome.
2023 Hybrid Fall Retreat for Friends of Color
“Remembering and Celebrating Our Past”
November 3-5, 2023
The 2023 Fall retreat for Friends of Color was a hybrid retreat, with both in-person and online offerings. The in-person portion was held at Pendle Hill in Wallingford, PA.
2023 Hybrid Spring Retreat for Friends of Color
“Homecoming: Circle of Healing and Renewal”
May 19-21, 2023
The 2023 Spring retreat for Friends of Color was a hybrid retreat, with both in-person and online offerings. The in-person portion was held at the Casa- Franciscal Renewal Center in Scottsdale, Arizona.
2023 Virtual Interracial Couples Retreat
“Celebrating who we are and awakening to the possibility of who we can become”
March 24-26, 2023
This retreat was intended for interracial couples to build community and connect. Friends of color who are a part of an interracial relationship attended with or without their partners. Friends of color who have previous experience in an interracial relationship were also welcome to attend.
2022 Fall Hybrid Retreat for Friends of Color
“Sankofa: Reaching Back to Reclaim and Revive what was Stolen“
November 4-6, 2022
The 2022 Fall Retreat for Friends of Color was a hybrid retreat, with both in-person and online offerings. The in-person portion was held at Penn Center on St. Helena Island, South Carolina.
2022 Spring Hybrid Retreat for Friends of Color
“Rest as a Revolutionary Act”
May 13-15, 2022
The 2022 Spring Retreat for Friends of Color was a hybrid retreat, with both in-person and online offerings. The in-person portion was held at Menucha Retreat Center outside of Portland, Oregon.