Fund-raising continues for Saint Francis Retreat Center
A June 2006 fire at the Saint Francis Retreat Center that
destroyed the historic main building has given staff an opportunity
to rethink the design of the retreat center. Plans to start
rebuilding this summer are shaping up and the goal is to build a
bigger, better and more technologically advanced conference
arena.
Fund-raising continues for Saint Francis Retreat Center
A June 2006 fire at the Saint Francis Retreat Center that destroyed the historic main building has given staff an opportunity to rethink the design of the retreat center. Plans to start rebuilding this summer are shaping up and the goal is to build a bigger, better and more technologically advanced conference arena.
“We are replacing 25,000 square feet,” said Ed DeGroot, the business manager for the center. “We had all of these functions in one building.”
Friars lived upstairs in the Ranch House, as it was known before it burned down. The space also served as a place for administrative offices and a dining hall for visiting retreat groups.
“We will probably build it back with three different buildings,” DeGroot said.
Fund-raisers are a key in bringing back and improving the center.
Just weeks after the fire, community members gathered together to plan a fund-raiser for the “Bring back St. Francis” fund, as the cause has been dubbed. Cindy Williams, of “Laverne and Shirley” fame served as a guest star for an early fund-raiser at Casa Maria that netted $60,000.
“Fr. Barry [Brunsman] summed it up,” DeGroot said. “We got $60,000 – now we only need to do that 19 more times.”
The “Bring back St. Francis” fund has raised $300,000 since it was established in July 2006. Most of the money has come from small fund-raisers or individual donations, DeGroot said. Some donations have even come from as far away as Pennsylvania.
More recently, JJ’s Burgers approached the center about raising some money in honor of the center.
Even though their restaurant is still young, just over two years old, and the owners still struggle to pay the bills some months, the restaurant staff has donated money for causes they deem worthy in the past.
Jesus Zavala, a co-owner at the restaurant, his brother and wife had held fund-raisers in the past for the American Red Cross to help Katrina victims and for the American Cancer Society.
“We usually like to do something for the people,” Zavala said. “I’ve been [to the retreat center] a couple times. I went there after the fire happened and saw it. It was all burned down.”
From Jan. 22 through Feb. 2, the restaurant owners agreed to donate 10 percent of their profits to the center.
They had raised more than $500 by Jan. 28.
Once the plans for construction are completed, DeGroot and his staff will consider hiring a professional fund-raiser as the project continues.
DeGroot and his staff have been working with two architects and a civil engineer on plans for the new buildings. Other additions to the property include an event center that will look down on San Juan Valley. As they reexamine the needs of the facilities, staff are considering wifi access, digital projectors, Magellan boards and other technology that will add more services to the center. They are also looking at green building options.
“We are definitely going to be building energy conscious and as green as possible,” DeGroot said. “It’s a Franciscan value to be kind to Mother Earth.”
An early estimate of the cost for the new construction is between $3 million and $5 million above what the center will receive from an insurance settlement. As plans are completed, a more precise estimate will be available.
One concern during the rebuilding process is that the San Andreas Fault runs through the property.
“We need to be 50 feet away from anywhere the earth has ruptured in the last thousands of years,” DeGroot said. “If there is no problem, we should be en route to building next summer.”
To ensure the selected building locations are not near historical ruptures, the civil engineering firm came in to dig trenches around the property to survey the underlying earth Jan. 31 and Feb. 1. Results of the digs were not available at press time.
Even though construction is still at least six months off, the center has been up and running since just two weeks after the fire. For now, a modular unit is being retrofitted as a kitchen so the staff doesn’t have to cook at Casa Maria and transport food back to the center. The friars have also made their temporary home in another building on site.
“We have been busy consistently,” DeGroot said. “We used to host two or three groups at a time, but right now because of the loss we have one or two at a time.”
JJ’s Burgers is donating 10 percent of its profits Jan. 22-Feb. 2.
Stop by for a 100 Alameda in San Juan Bautista for a tasty lunch or dinner and help the “Bring back Saint Francis” fund. Open 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Fridays.
