August 2-9, 2026
7-Night Retreat $875
Fr. Joe
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Joanne Fantini,
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Eleanor
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Madeleine
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Marge
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Rev. Deb
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Fr. Joe Donnelly |
Fr. Joe is a senior priest of the Archdiocese of Hartford, was ordained in 1971. He holds a bachelors degree from St. Bonaventure University in Olean NY, a licentiate in systematic theology from the Gregorian University in Rome, and a Masters degree in Christian Spirituality from Creighton University in Omaha. He has served in parish ministry, on the seminary formation faculties of St. Thomas Seminary in Bloomfield and the North American College in Rome and as chair of the Board of Directors of St. Vincent DePaul Mission of Greater Waterbury as well as in several archdiocesan ministries. Father Joe retired from parish ministry in 2021 and now serves at St. Thomas More Catholic Center at Yale and leads retreats and parish missions. | |
Joanne Fantini,
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Joanne is the mother of four adult children and a grandmother. She is a vowed Agrégée of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston. She currently serves as the Director of St. Joseph Spiritual Ministries at the communities Spirituality Center in Newton, MA. Previously, she served as Director of Eastern Point Retreat House and as a member of the staff. Joanne received her Master's Degree in Pastoral Ministry with a concentration in Spirituality from Boston College including a year-long practicum at CRD and the Jesuit Collaborative. Joanne has been providing spiritual direction and retreats since 2007 in the Ignatian tradition. Directing 4,7,8 and 30 day retreats. | |
Eleanor Guerin, RSM |
Eleanor Guerin, RSM Sister Eleanor is a Sister of Mercy of the Americas. She is engaged in a freelance Spiritual and Personal Development Ministry. She enjoys providing spiritual direction, directed retreats, the Spiritual Exercises in Everyday Life, discernment processes and offers days of prayer. She holds a M. A. in education from SUNY Albany and an M.A. in theology from St. Michael’s College, Colchester, VT. She completed an internship in spiritual direction at Mercy by the Sea, Madison, CT. Eleanor enjoys art journaling and working with dreams. She has experience in pastoral care and bereavement ministry. | |
Madeleine Lane, SSND
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Sister Madeleine is a School Sister of Notre Dame from St. Louis, Missouri. Her love has been directing retreats by the sea since 1979, as well as community facilitation for women religious and leading workshops in the areas of spirituality, mental health, grief and loss. She has a degree in spiritual direction from Creighton University and other degrees in education, pastoral counseling, and Marriage and Family Therapy. In addition to offering spiritual direction and therapy in St. Louis, Missouri, she serves as an international retreat companion, guest speaker, facilitator, and workshop leader. She has also been an adjunct professor at Creighton University’s International Spirituality Graduate Program, and Aquinas Institute of Theology. | |
Marge Milanese
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Marge Milanese is an Associate with the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, and a life long searcher, student, and world traveler. B.A.’s in English, and Religious Studies from the College of St. Rose, Albany, an M.Ed. from Boston College, and later graduating as a Spiritual Director from the Center for Religious Development in Cambridge, MA. paved the way to Marge’s Ministerial Journey and extensive experiences as an elementary and high school educator, Parish Life Director of Faith Formation, Albany Diocesan Instructor for Catechist, Lay Formation Training Certification, and as a Hospital Director of the Spiritual Care Dept. Embracing her encore profession, Marge is a seasoned Spiritual Director and Retreat Facilitator accompanying people of all Faiths desiring to pursue the "more" via the Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius and/or seeking guidance reflecting upon their own lives in the Presence of the Holy One. Marge’s Wellness Connection Retreat Center in Waterford, NY is a peaceful setting for encountering her local directees and retreatants and a launch pad from which she is available as a guest presenter/director/facilitator. |
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Rev. Deb Pallatto
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Rev. Debbie is an experienced spiritual director and retreat leader and previously taught the School of Spirituality at Mercy by the Sea. She enjoys helping others in developing a personal relationship with the Holy, in seeking one’s prayer life in creative ways, and in acknowledging God’s presence in all aspects of one’s life. She is currently pastor at Second Congregational Church UCC, in Coventry, CT. Her career has included elementary school teaching and counseling, and teaching education, psychology, and global studies as a professor for 28 years. Global mission is a passion of Debbie’s and she has taught pastors in China through Global Ministries, UCC as well as in S. Korea and Ghana, and had volutneered in Haiti for the past 14 years. In additon to regular retreats at Mercy, she loves Tai Chi, yoga, hiking, and kayaking. |
