Dominican Retreat & Conference Center

What Dominican Retreat & Conference Center does

Dominican Retreat & Conference Center is a nonprofit Catholic retreat and conference facility operated as a ministry of the Dominican Sisters of Peace, located on 10 landscaped acres at 1945 Union Street in Niskayuna, New York. Founded in 1948 from the Charles Witbeck estate and expanded in 1958 with a 50-person retreat house, the center serves individuals and groups within the Albany Diocese and surrounding Northeast US religious communities seeking spiritual enrichment, reflection, and rest. Its core offerings include overnight accommodations in 45 private rooms, day and evening programs, weekend and extended retreats, recovery programs addressing alcoholism, abuse, and eating issues, series/book clubs, and conference hosting for church, school, and corporate groups. The Windmill, a private three-story hermitage, supports individual directed retreats with discounted rates for clergy and religious.

The business model is a hybrid of program fees, donations, and endowment income. Revenue streams include retreat and conference fees (Windmill hermitage rates $25-$90 per night, custom conference pricing via Hosted Program Director Nadean Verdicchio), an Annual Fund for day-to-day operations and scholarships, special fundraising events including 'More Than Just Desserts' social (over $75,000 raised since 1999), and the Mary J. Kakretz Endowment Fund for long-term financial stability. The center runs approximately 5 core staff with additional volunteers in food service, housekeeping, grounds, and music ministry, and offers select programs via Zoom and a monthly Facebook Live 'Pause for Peace' broadcast. The center holds a Candid/GuideStar Silver Transparency rating and has no external investors, no subsidiaries, and no proprietary technology platform.

Name

Dominican Retreat & Conference Center

Legal name

Dominican Retreat and Conference Center W+M

Website

https://dslcny.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1948

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Dominican Retreat & Conference Center is a nonprofit Catholic retreat facility on 10 acres in Niskayuna, NY, operated by the Dominican Sisters of Peace since 1948, offering 45-room accommodations, recovery programs, spiritual retreats, and conference hosting for the Albany Diocese and Northeast US religious community.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Religious Retreat and Conference Services

NAICS

Accommodation (721)

SIC

Hotels, Rooming Houses, Camps & Other Lodging Places (7000)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTHAGAMAB

Wellness Retreat Centers (Yoga, Meditation & Mindfulness)

Travel & Hospitality/Lodging & Accommodation/Wellness, Spa & Health Retreats

SECONDARYTHAGALAG

Conference Retreat Hotels

Travel & Hospitality/Lodging & Accommodation/Convention & Conference Hotels

SECONDARYTHAHAAAC

Hotel & Resort Convention Venues (Convention Hotels)

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Conference & Convention Venues (Convention Centers, Civic Centers)

Keywords

• Spiritual retreat services
• Conference hosting facilities
• Recovery support programs
• Hermitage accommodations
• Religious hospitality

Headquarters

HQ city

Niskayuna

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Retreat and Conference Fees: The center generates revenue through fees charged for retreats, weekend/extended retreats, conference hosting, day programs, and the Windmill hermitage rental. Rates vary by accommodation type and user category.
2. Donations and Annual Fund: The center accepts online donations and mailed checks. The Annual Fund provides revenue for day-to-day operations, keeping programs affordable, providing scholarships, and facility upkeep.
3. Special Fundraising Events: Annual events such as 'More Than Just Desserts' generate funds for the retreat center. This event has raised over $75,000 since 1999.
4. Endowment Fund: The Mary J. Kakretz Endowment Fund supports future expansion and enhancement of programs and facility, providing financial stability.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Dominican Retreat & Conference Center operates a 45-room spiritual retreat facility on 10 landscaped acres in Niskayuna, NY, offering overnight accommodations, meeting rooms, dining, a chapel, and conference center services. It delivers a portfolio of in-person and virtual retreats, workshops, recovery programs, day/evening programs, weekend/extended retreats, and book clubs, plus a private Windmill hermitage for individual retreats.

Product overview

Dominican Retreat & Conference Center operates as a spiritual retreat facility offering a unified portfolio of in-person and virtual programs. The core offering is the Retreat House—a 45-room conference center providing overnight accommodations, meeting spaces, dining, and chapel facilities. Related offerings include The Windmill (a private hermitage for individual retreats), Day & Evening Programs, Weekend/Extended Retreats, Recovery Programs, and Series/Book Clubs. Programs are delivered both in-house and via Zoom or Facebook Live streaming.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Retreat House and Conference Center

Quantifiable outcome

• First weekend retreat in August 1948 attended by 27 women; current capacity of 45 overnight rooms and 100 meeting attendees

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Dominican Sisters of PeacecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Dominican Retreat and Conference Center is owned and operated by the Dominican Sisters of Peace, Columbus, OH. The center is a Ministry of the Dominican Sisters of Peace, providing spiritual retreat services aligned with their mission.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Pacem in Terris Retreat Center: Catholic retreat and conference center offering overnight accommodations, group meeting facilities, and spiritual programming — comparable operating model and customer base.
• Bethany Center: Catholic retreat and conference center in Highland Mills, NY, offering overnight accommodations, meeting facilities, and spiritual programs — a direct geographic and functional peer to the Dominican Retreat & Conference Center.
• Holy Cross Retreat Center: Catholic retreat and conference center offering overnight accommodations, meeting facilities, and spiritual programs — directly comparable peer in capacity, mission, and programming.
• Maranatha Retreat & Conference Center: Catholic retreat and conference center with overnight accommodations, meeting rooms, and group retreat programming — directly comparable operating model and capacity scale.
• Loyola Retreat House: Jesuit-sponsored Catholic retreat house offering directed and preached retreats with overnight accommodations — comparable Catholic retreat operating model and target audience.
• Mount Saint Joseph Retreat Center: Catholic retreat center offering overnight rooms, conference space, and scheduled spiritual programs — closely comparable peer in mission, capacity, and hosted-program structure.
• Cranaleith Spiritual Center: Nonprofit retreat center in Pennsylvania offering overnight stays, meeting space, and spiritual/wellness programs on a landscaped estate — comparable mission, capacity, and conference-style programming.
• Sacred Heart Retreat Center: Catholic retreat center offering individual and group retreats with overnight accommodations and meeting space — comparable in retreat programming and capacity scale.
• The Cenacle Retreat House: Catholic retreat house network offering spiritual retreats, prayer programs, and group accommodations — comparable faith-based retreat model and programming portfolio.

Regional players

• Canandaigua Retreat Center: Nonprofit retreat center in upstate New York offering overnight accommodations and group programming — comparable operating model but servicing a different region of the state.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dominican-retreat-&-conference-center

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Dominican Retreat & Conference Center