St Beuno's held a very special place in my husband, David's, heart. David died in December last year, after having been suffering from pulmonary fibrosis, for some years. He was an Anglican priest who offered spiritual direction as part of his ministry. He was initially involved with Loyola Hall and then, when it closed, he was very touched to be offered the opportunity of working on retreats at Beuno's. He undertook the 30-day Full Spiritual Exercises retreat in 2000, when he was about to move to a new parish as vicar, and he was very clear that this retreat made such a difference to his spiritual direction work - work which he always felt was such a privilege.
David always loved going to Beuno's to be part of the team leading retreats and found this both humbling and fulfilling. He very much valued being with the other community members who were so welcoming of him (and of me when I occasionally joined them for lunch). Last July he made the decision that he could no longer take part in the retreats as his health was deteriorating significantly, so he arranged to visit Beuno's to say his farewells to those people who had been an important and treasured part of his life for many years. It was a very sad day - and we were both so grateful for the way that Ruth and Tom, in particular, took trouble to talk with me as well as say their farewells to David. I just want to thank Beuno's for everything it meant to David and all it gave him over many years.