While the Uplands Center’s mission has always been, in its simplest form, “serving those who serve others,” it is gearing up to target the pressingly urgent recovery needs of COVID-19 pandemic health care professionals and first responders as soon as social distancing restrictions have been lifted. These battle-weary heroes and heroines of self-sacrifice and service will need renewal and recovery after months of ceaseless suffering. Grueling work hours, succumbing to COVID-19 infection, isolation from families, senseless and grievous mass mortality, sleep and nutritional deprivation, and chronic traumatizing stress levels may leave these critical service professionals deprived of their physical, mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing.
The Uplands Center hereby stands committed to providing renewal retreats for groups of medical professionals and first responders in the hushed tranquility of our 290 acres of remote Catskills mountains. At this very moment, there is a significant expansion renovation underway which will enable our facility to host larger groups of care-givers affected by this COVID-19 pandemic crisis. We are striving to be prepared to receive those medical professionals and first responders who will be in ardent need of renewal, post-traumatic healing, and restorative interconnection with their community of peers in Uplands’ serene natural setting. This expansion of residence and facility offerings will include a meeting room for large group discussion, a creative arts studio, a fitness room, a commercial kitchen and expansive dining room to house large gatherings and offer organic homemade meals, and multiple treatment and changing rooms adjoining our pool, sauna, hot tub spa facilities. Post-renovation, the Uplands Center will have the capacity to house retreat groups of up to 35 attendees.
We will provide multiple healing and restorative offerings including support group discussions about trauma and grief, self-care and stress reduction techniques, massage, yoga, meditation, creative art projects, nature hikes, and home-cooked organic, nutritious meals from our own produce gardens. The Uplands Center seeks to extend its offerings to COVID-19 pandemic health care providers and first responders with the very same urgency, dedication and generosity of spirit and service with which they did for us and all the our COVID-19 stricken patients and victims.
The Uplands is led by a licensed clinical psychologist with extensive experience working with victims of trauma (and those who serve them) in both individual and group settings. Contact us with inquiries for group retreats to The Uplands Center.
