About Our
Lady of the Oaks Retreat House
The Oaks Society - click here for more information
Based on the teachings of St. Ignatius Loyola. we offer conference style retreats
for men, women and married couples. Our Lady of the Oaks presently has 32
retreats for men. 17 for women, 4 for married couples and 1 directed retreat - a
total of 54 retreats a year. Our room capacity is 50; 32 rooms with private baths
and 18 rooms with shared baths.
Situated on approximately 3 acres of land with 160-year-old oak trees along the driveway and in the courtyard. the retreat house provides a beautiful setting for peace and tranquility. Our Lady of the Oaks has begun a training program for future lay directors of retreats. The first year the interns make a 19th Annotation retreat. During the second and third years, the group studies the Spiritual Exercises in-depth on a weekend each month. During these two years of study, each member gives a personally directed retreat under supervision.
Built in a Spanish architectural style, the facility encloses a courtyard with a fountain in the middle that is shaded by century-old live oak trees. An oak arcade lines the driveway leading to the front of the build ing. Behind the retreat house, in an oak grove overlooking a wide cow pasture, is an old Jesuit cemetery containing headstones dating as far back as the mid-1800s. On one side of the retreat house is another cemetery for the community of Grand Coteau in general. On the other side is another, newer Jesuit cemetery, the historic St. Charles Borromeo Church, St. Ignatius School, and a wide, shaded walk- way leading to St. Charles College.
When the facility was dedicated, in October of 1938, the bishop expressed hope that "the laity will make the retreat house a beehive of spiritual activity." The record shows that his hope was and is being realized.
The building was constructed at a cost of $40,000; it accomodated 25 retreatants. Today the facility accomodates 50. The first director of Our Lady of the Oaks was Fr. Sam Hill Ray, S.J. He zealously promoted retreats, traveling the length and breath of the diocese, talking to Knights of Columbus and other lay men's groups, using his natural charm and personal magnetism to win over "converts" to this cause.
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