Support Special Olympics! AV5K October 1st!

The Annual AV5K is happening in less than a month at the Antiochian Village Running Trail! Sign up to run the only wooded trail 5K in the Valley and support The Special Olympics!

The first 150 registrants will get a free wicking running shirt, and the top three finishers in each age category will receive medals! If you don't want to run, walkers are always welcome in the event!

Stick around after the race for some great door prizes from local businesses and snacks prepared by our famous kitchen at Antiochian Village!

Registration starts at 9:00am, and the race will begin promptly at 10:00am.

For more information call Barli at 724-238-3677.

10% Off Holiday Parties for 2012!

Just announced: If you book your office Holiday Party at Antiochian Village by September 15th you will receive 10% off! Small, medium and large office parties are all welcome! Come celebrate the holidays with your coworkers in the mountains, with the famous food of our Chef Tim!

To take advantage of this limited time offer, call The Antiochian Village Conference and Retreat Center at 724-238-3677, and ask for Zach!

"Real Summer!" Day Camp a Success!

Recently the Antiochian Village "Real Summer!" Day Camp finished it's inaugural week. The program consisted of a five-day camp offering environmentally friendly activities ranging from outdoor involvement to the arts.

Attendees to the camp enjoyed learning about fish and fishing, PH levels in the local water level, aquatic insects and animals, and birds of prey outdoors. These activities organized, by Program Development Director Barli Ross, allowed the kids to engage the natural world in a way that isn't always afforded to our youth.

Indoors the attendees created a mural to liven up a wall in one of the Village's multi-purposes rooms. Under the direction and guidance of Mosaic Artist Jennifer Wagner, the kids reused pieces of old glass, cutting the different colors to the sized and shapes that they needed to create this piece of art which includes representations of the gazebo and pond.

With the success of this first year you can look for information to come about more programs like this one next year!

Mosaic Class and Day Camp Registration Still Open!

There are still a few spots left for Antiochian Village's Mosaic Art Classes, and "Real Summer!" Day Camp!

The mosaic class is open to anyone at any artistic level, who is interested in making eco-friendly stained glass mosaic artwork. Artist Jen Wagner will be conducting the classes, held at Antiochian Village each evening next week. Each participant will end the week with a piece of mosaic art!

During the day "Real Summer!" Day Camp will be happening at the Antiochian Village Conference and Retreat Center, for children ages 8-12. The camp will feature indoor arts activities and outdoor environmental activities, all focusing on sustainability and environmentalism.

To register for the Mosaic Classes, or to register your son or daughter for "Real Summer!" Day Camp, call The Village at 724-238-3677, and ask for Barli.

Ligonier Relay for Life- AV Team a Success!

It was a rainy weekend in the Ligonier Valley, but that didn't stop hundreds of people from flocking to Weller Field for the annual Relay for Life.

The Theme this year called for each team to choose a Holiday then dress up and decorate their booths accordingly. Antiochian Village chose "The First Day of Hunting Season" with the slogan "Hunting for a Cure."

Donning orange hunting vest or fuzzy antlers, the AV team took the team lap on Friday, and then stood along the side of the track and cheered alongside the other teams for the survivor's lap.

AV's booth offered a rubberband-gun shooting range with little deer, each with the name of a different cancer. Winners were awarded a deer-shaped cooked made by Darci... and many contestants came back repeatedly for the sweets.

AV's team successfully raised over $1500 this year. Last year the Ligonier Valley Relay for Life was the 2nd highest per-capita fund-raising' Relay' in the nation.

House of Studies Counseling Program in Full-Swing

Recently, Zach Simons sat down with Dr. Ron Moslener to talk about the Antiochian House of Studies "Pastoral and Marriage and Family Counseling Program, which takes place at Antiochian Village. -


“It’s a crazy story,” remembers Dr. Ron Moslener with a smile, “It came to me in the middle of the night.”

We are sitting in an office on a brilliantly sunny May afternoon at Antiochian Village.  I’ve caught Ron in a brief window he has between teaching and getting to the dining hall for lunch.  He is here for two weeks, conducting classes in his “Pastoral Marriage and Family Counseling Certificate Program,” part of our Antiochian Orthodox house of Studies.

A few years ago, while talking with a priest, Ron was lamenting the fact that Pastoral Counseling  was not addressed sufficiently by many seminaries.

“They listed [Pastoral Marriage and Family Counseling] as one their top three issues in my surveys,” he recalls, referring to research he conducted exploring those issues pastors and other church workers see the most.  His realization of this issue lead him to propose the certificate program to the Orthodox house of Studies.  And he is certainly the man to do it.  Ron’s full-time job is teaching, what else, a Masters Program in Counseling at Geneva College.

“We realized there was no way for clergy to commit to a 60 credit-hour, $40,000 degree in the field,” he says, but that didn’t eliminate the need for formal, guided training.

The program runs two years, and meets in two-week sessions at Antiochian Village Conference and Retreat Center.  The five students in the inaugural class have classes that are not simply lecture-based, but will have hands-on approach as well.  They will apply what they have learned and review counseling sessions (confidentially, and with permission) as a group.  Programs like this one are important to help equip clergy to better serve in their parishes.

The program is open to clergy of all denominations, and people who deal with these issues in their professional work at churches. For more information on getting involved in the Orthodox House of Studies, you can contact Antiochian Village at 724-238-3677.   AV

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Seen at The Village!

In what we are hoping will become a recurring series on the blog, we present to you our first "Seen at The Village!" post, highlighting fun images captured at Antiochian Village.

This edition features a men's group who had an early Spring afternoon off at The Village, and decided to play a game of pick-up basketball at The Antiochian Village Sports Complex. Click on the images to see high resolution versions of the images!

The Mosaic Art of Jen Wagner Coming to The Village!

This summer Antiochian Village is pleased to welcome Jen Wagner to the Village!

Jen will be on site June 13-17 2011 to offer classes during our REAL SUMMER Day Camp for kids. She will be actively engaging the kids in exploring the arts for the program. She will also be offering an exciting Stained Glass Mosaic class each evening for adults!

Jen has been working as an artist, but also blogs for Maryland Life Magazine, a publication that has also featured her and her work. She has done lots of mosaic work for local businesses, restaurants and private residences near her home in Maryland. If you would like to see some of her work, go to www.facebook.com/jennifer.wagnermosaics

If you would like to register for the class, or enroll your child in REAL SUMMER Day Camp, (which will feature outdoor activities and indoor hands-on arts) please call Barli Ross at Antiochian Village at 724.238.3677.

Barli Takes a Craft Lesson!

This afternoon we have a group with us who, among many other things, offered a breakout session about environmentally oriented crafts for students. Our own Barli Ross, along with staff members Debi and Pam, took the class. Barli is extremely excited about the possibilites for applying these new ideas with our Summer Day Camp children, and other events in the coming months!

Barli Ross is our Director of Orthodox Programming. She can be reached at The Village at 724.238.3677 ext. 425. 

The Sweetest Things- a post from Zach Simons

I came to Antiochian Village last year as the new Director of Marketing and Sales, not knowing a whole lot about the strengths of the organization. I had heard lots about the hospitality and the views, but what i heard most from people who have frequented our halls is "the food is amazing."

It was weeks before I had the opportunity to try the food, and it didn't disappoint. I'll be writing more about Chef Tim and his unbelievable culinary creations in the future, but for now I want to mention what unexpectedly blew me away that night: Darci's Desserts.

Already full on some of the best hor d' Oeuvres and a meal fit for a king, I was instructed to go over to the dessert table and try a few things. Darci (our pastry chef) was standing there describing her creations to our guests as they smacked their lips in anticipation of their final course.

A Red Velvet Cake, a Peanut Butter Meltaway Cake and a light green item of gorgeous design that she called "Mint Chocolate Cheesecake." Not having much of a sweet tooth, i typically will forgo dessert, but I took a slice of this creation of Darci's and it felt like my life changed. Creamy and smooth, with just the right tones of mint and accented by crisp full-flavored chocolate shavings I knew I had a new favorite.  It was the perfect way to end a wonderful meal.

-ZS
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Zach Simons is Director of Marketing and Sales for Antiochian Village. He can be reached at 724.238.3677 or at his Pittsburgh office at 412.259.3768.

"Weed and Feed" Service Weekend

Do you find gardening to be peaceful and restorative to your soul? If so, join us April 29-May1st for our "Weed and Feed" retreat, a weekend of gardening and learning. Participants bring their gardening gloves, and work in our gardens between speaker sessions, liturgical services, meals and times of fun fellowship. 

This year our speaker will be Vigen Guroian, Orthodox author and Professor of Orthodox Christianity at the University of Virginia, Cahrlottesville. His popular books include "The Fragrance of God," "Inheriting Paradise," "Tending the Heart of Virtue" and his most recent title, "Melody of Faith: Theology in an Orthodox Key." Vigen is an avid gardener, tending perennial and vegetable gardens with his wife, June, at their home in Virginia.

For more information, or to register, please visit our website at www.antiochianvillage.org.

New 2011 Museum Exhibit Opening Soon!

Museum Curator Julia Ritter has been hard at work the last few weeks, preparing the Antiochian Heritage Museum for our upcoming exhibit "Structure and Symbolism in Stone: The Architecture of Ancient Christian Syria."

The exhibit focuses on the beautiful stone architecture of churches and homes from 5th Century Christian Syria, which has been remarkably well preserved. The exhibit features photographs from American exhibitions from Princeton to the region between 1899-1905.

As always, there will also be item on exhibit from our permanent collection including icons, and religious artifacts from the Eastern Orthodox Christian Heritage as well as an original 1617 King James Bible.

Check back to find out details about the Exhibit Opening!

The Biggest Loser- Pet Edition!

Antiochian Village is partnering with the Ligonier Valley YMCA for "The Biggest Loser- Pet Edition!"

The event started March 5th at the YMCA where owners and pets weighed in together, then took a walk around town guided by YMCA CEO Ben Wright. Over the course of the next month, there will be a walk each Saturday for pets and owners to get exercise and promote healthy, active living.

March 12th will see the teams come to Antiochian Village, and walk through our wooded trails, guided by Barli Brown. Each walk starts at 1pm.

For registration, please contact the Ligonier Valley YMCA.

Vera Bradley Bingo!

Do you like Vera Bradley? Do you like basket raffles? Do you enjoy playing games like bingo? Do you like supporting a good cause?

If the answer to any of these questions is "yes" then come join us for Relay For Life Vera Bradley Bingo! The event is happening at Antiochian Village in our Auditorium on Sunday, April 3rd 2011. Doors open at 12:30pm and you can enter to win any number of baskets in our raffle. $25 Dollars will get you your bingo tickets, all the food provided and a shot at some of those great gift baskets! All proceeds benefit Ligonier Valley Relay for Life. 

So come out, join, the fun and support a great cause!

Antiochian Village's New Blog!

Antiochian Village Conference and Retreat Center now has a blog! Follow out posts on here to find out what is going on at the Village! Check back with us regularly, and subscribe to our RSS feed to find out what is going on at The Village, upcoming events and reports on recent past events!