The sign at the entrance reads: Roslyn – A Retreat Center of the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia. These simple words carry the promise that this is a place for the spirit to be fed. Roslyn is a place where the distance between this world and the next feels less. It is a place for those who wish to escape. Clergy, lay leaders and parishioners find peace, solace and repose in its contemplative and spiritual environment.

Roslyn is also the Diocese’s gift to the greater community, opening its facilities to all non-profit and humanitarian organizations. This reflects not only fidelity to the spirit of benefactor Annie Rose Walker’s will, but also the best that Roslyn can ever aspire to be. Here, diocesan youth gather for days of play and worship on 150 acres of beautiful hills and vistas.

At Roslyn, an all encompassing simplicity, generosity and absence of pretension prevail. The staff at Roslyn is a reflection of the place, demonstrating kindness, calm demeanor and considerable quantities of smiles. Roslyn is a hidden world on the fringe of a very busy city – offering a quiet place where people come closer to the Creator.

Its mysterious serenity, simplicity and stillness are the things that make Shrine Mont the place where young and old go to feel closer to God and Creation. Here it feels as though God has made time stand still for a purpose – to still your heart and soul. Through Shrine Mont, the Diocese offers its people – clergy, lay leaders, parishioners and children – a place unlike any other in this world.

Each year, over 70 parishes make their annual retreat to this mountain; over 300 clergy gather for refreshment, renewal and pastoral time with their bishops. Eight hundred children come for what generations consider their most defining Christian formation experience – Shrine Mont Summer Camps. Last year, $24,000 in scholarships was provided so that all children might be able to share in the Shrine Mont experience.

People of the Diocese have been coming to this mountaintop retreat for nearly 80 years. Only God knows how much our world will change in the next 80 years. But faith and experience tell us that Shrine Mont will be offering busy families the same stillness of time, serenity and simplicity that we experience there today.