Monday Breakfast: Archdiocese for Military Services

Forging Future Priests for Service at Home and Abroad

Monday Lunch: Messenger Eagle

Vocations Today No Longer Begin In-Person

The old playbook isn’t working. And it’s not sustainable. If the same methods aren’t consistently bringing new, qualified men into your vocation pipeline year after year, it’s time for a paradigm shift.

Today’s mission field is digital. Young men are searching, scrolling, watching, and discerning long before they ever reach out. And most relationships begin online before they ever lead to something in-person. So, what if your ministry could start where the search begins? What if you were visible in the moments a man is searching for answers, guidance, or your office? Make it effortless for him to find your website — one that’s clear, compelling, and easy to navigate.

Discover a different approach that is already producing growing numbers of qualified men, year over year, building digital attention and turning it into authentic relationships, discernment, and vocations.

Tuesday Breakfast: St. Mary Seminary & University

The Seminary as a School of the Interior Life

Please join Fr. Shawn Gould as he provides a very brief introduction to Fr. Jean-Jacques Olier’s sense of the seminary as an apostolic house dedicated to forming seminarians and priests in the interior life of the Lord.

“To live supremely for God in Christ Jesus” These are the words Fr. Jean-Jacques Olier used to describe the aim of the Seminary of St. Sulpice. It was a house to help men conform to Christ in an apostolic community centered on the Lord’s presence in the Blessed Sacrament so that, living supremely for God, they could truly say with St. Paul that it was no longer they who lived, but Christ who lived in them. (Pietas Seminarii 1; Gal. 2:20)

Tuesday Lunch: Vocation Ministry

The Vocation Ministry Blueprint: A Proven Path to More Vocations

Join us for a dynamic lunch session to discover the Vocation Ministry Blueprint, a practical framework designed to help vocation directors cultivate a sustainable culture of vocations across their diocese. Grounded in prayer and guided by data, the Blueprint provides effective strategies to engage priests, parish leaders, educators, and the faithful in creating an environment where vocations are recognized, encouraged, and supported.

Hear firsthand from Fr. Paul Clark, Vocation Director for the Diocese of Jefferson City, whose diocese welcomed one new seminarian in 2024, three in 2025, and nine this year after implementing Vocation Ministry’s collaborative approach. Discover the strategies behind this remarkable momentum and how they can be adapted for your own diocese.

Leave with practical tools, fresh ideas, and a clear roadmap for building a culture of vocations that bears fruit for years to come.

Wednesday Breakfast: SERRA International

Have you heard of Serra Spark and the Seven Greats?”

Please join SERRA International as they present tools from the Serra SPARK toolkit.  The tools were built for Vocation Directors by the USA Council of Serra International in collaboration with the NCDVD Serra Spark is a valuable resource for anyone involved in vocation work at both the diocesan and parish levels.

Pastors, and parish vocation ministries can all learn and expand their vocation activities with the ideas and tools made available through the 7 Greats booklet along with the online version (serraspark.org) containing more than 30 tools and resources.

Wednesday, September 16th

Sponsored by St. Joseph’s Seminary and College

America 250: Patron Saints, Patriots, Presidents

Wednesday, September 16th

Sponsored by the Labouré Society

Chartered Yacht Cruise and Dinner

Dinner in Town

On Tuesday, September 15, 2026  NCDVD will run a free shuttle bus to St. Patrick’s Church, located on Main Street for anyone wishing to have dinner in downtown Huntington. The Bus will depart the Retreat Center at 6:15 pm and then will return every 30 minutes starting at 7:30 p.m. with the last bus returning at 10:00 p.m.
*Note: Dinner will not be served at the Retreat House on Tuesday or Wednesday

–

Driving your own car into town?

Anyone who wishes to take their own car into town please note that there is ample municipal parking, which is free, located on Gerard Street. Should you choose to park on Main Street, that is metered parking.

–

Guide to Restaurants in the Huntington Area:

https://biz.huntingtonchamber.com/list/ql/restaurants-food-beverages-22

–

These restaurants are NOT walkable from the NCDVD bus drop off:

• https://www.millpondrestaurant.com
• https://huntington.restaurantprime.com
• http://www.rothmannssteakhouse.com

–

Discover Long Island

http://www.discoverlongisland.com/

–

Beaches

• Jones Beach State Park – https://parks.ny.gov/parks/jonesbeach/
• Robert Moses State Park – https://parks.ny.gov/parks/robertmoses/details.aspx

–

Wineries

• Del Vino – https://www.delvinovineyards.com
• Long Island Wine Country – https://liwines.com

–

I Love New York

https://www.iloveny.com/places-to-go/new-york-city/city-guide-new-york-city/

–

Playbill’s Ultimate Guide to Broadway Ticket Buying

https://playbill.com/article/playbills-ultimate-guide-to-broadway-ticket-buying