St. Joseph Retreat & Conference Center is a Tipton, Indiana based Catholic retreat center that in its origin served as the home of the Sisters of St. Joseph.
I first experienced St. Joseph Retreat Center way back when I originally became ordained and the Sisters of St. Joseph operated this as both their home, a place for retired/elderly sisters, and an actual retreat center. At the time of my last visit, I'd known that the sisters located here were dwindling in numbers and it didn't particularly surprise me when I heard that the Motherhouse closed in 2013 as the Order had been reduced to 14 sisters. The property lay empty for around 3 years when the Lafayette Archdiocese bought it and began renovations before opening it up as the retreat center in 2017.
St. Joseph is in a very rural setting. While the sisters may be gone (sadly, I very much enjoyed their presence), St. Joseph Center still has a very strong atmosphere of religiosity. There's no mistaking this is a Catholic retreat center from crosses over doorways and in rooms to a decor that includes religious icons and a large amount of religious-themed artwork.
While I can't fathom why someone who is not of a religious persuasion would want to stay here, I am not Catholic and truly love this environment.
St. Joseph Retreat Center offers an altar, sanctuary, statues, shrines, stained glass, Stations of the Cross, Confessional, Sacristy, an Allen Organ, sound, lighting, and a variety of facility options.
St. Joseph Chapel maintains much of the traditional feeling of the original chapel, though it was somewhat upgraded in 2016. It has 260 seats and is considered part of the main level conference center.
The conference center also includes four meeting rooms, 2 larger conference rooms, a library, a carpenter's shop, a business centers, and two meeting spaces. While simplicity is definitely the rule here, the conference center is air conditioned. It is non-smoking.
There is a large dining room adjacent to a kitchen that has been updated. There's also a smaller, formal dining room across the hall. Most of the room areas have names associated with the Catholic history.
There's parking in back and front (most in back). There's a front entrance that offers electric doorways for wheelchair users. Doorways tend to be wider and the Conference Center's history serving older sisters is obvious in the sense that accessibility has always been a consideration despite the historic status of the building. The conference center has updated the technology here somewhat, however, free wifi is now included.
The top two floors are primarily used as rooms for those doing overnight or weekend type retreats. Rooms are simple. Have I mentioned they are simple? Most have twin beds, simple lighting, and very basic accommodations. This is a "retreat" facility in the religious sense. There are o televisions, radios, or even alarm clocks in the rooms. That said, they do have rooms with accessible bathrooms including the room I was in - 320. It offered a modestly sized roll-in shower and grab bars. The mirror was too high. The rooms have traditional keys. The hallways have a variety of religiously-themed artwork and even a couple places for prayer. If you don't want to pray here, then you're probably not meant to pray.
The conference center does offer a kitchen and even meals for formal retreats, though for folks like me simply staying overnight there are no food options. Plan accordingly. This also means no vending machines, etc. However, Tipton is nearby and it's fairly easy to find meals within a few minutes if needed.
The retreat center offers 87 rooms with 207 beds. Rooms are air conditioned, have smoke detectors, and the free wifi. Each floor has two hospitality rooms. There is a small kitchenette with a water bottle filling station. There is an emergency telephone on each floor.
Third floor offers some suite options include one suite that apparently has a queen bed option. The majority of beds are twin.
There's a hostel wing with 28 bunk rooms accommodating 116 people. It would be great for a youth conference/retreat. Two of the rooms here are accessible.
The St. Stephen Wing accommodates couples and does have more queen-sized beds. This wing also has a private dining area and even a laundry area.
There are a couple private residences on the grounds. Nazareth Bungalow is not wheelchair friendly, though is great for personal retreats with a small group of up to six.
St. John of the Cross Cabin accommodates up to two people and is wheelchair accessible.
There are various other places to gather around the grounds - two grottos being among my favorite spots (though not sublime in terms of accessibility). While there are a handful of places that are not truly accessible, I always found St. Joseph mostly wheelchair friendly and it has improved since the 2016 upgrades.
Retreat prices can vary. Staying overnight typically is $70 for a room. read more
