About the Retreat
The caregiver retreat is a one-day getaway for caregivers of any kind: parents, grandparents, respite providers, support persons, and other family members who serve in a caregiving role. The day involves a combination of guided workshops and discussions interspersed with fun activities that help caregivers step away from responsibility and focus on themselves. An optional overnight stay at camp provides a chance to extend time away!
Audience
This retreat is ideal for parents/family members, grandparents, adult siblings, educators, support staff, and friends.
*Childcare is not provided for this event and we kindly ask that this event is adults-only.
Presenters & Itinerary
Presenters:
Patrick Uselding is a former educator and a Project Lead in the Community Learning & Engagement Department at Rogers Behavioral Health. He co-leads the School Partnerships for Wellbeing work that brings preventative mental health and wellbeing support to K–12 schools through training, coaching, and consulting. He also trains and facilitates groups in the Compassion Resilience Toolkit and Up to Me programs, and co-chairs the Youth Mental Health Network through United Way of Sheboygan County. Patrick is based in Sheboygan, Wisconsin.
Ellie Sherven is mom to two children on the Autism spectrum. She is the co-founder of Caregivers of Autism Maximizing Potential (CAMP), a weekend retreat in Wisconsin for caregivers of children on the autism spectrum. Over the last five years, CAMP has provided 400+ caregivers with a safe space for connection, rest, and learning. Ellie is based in Madison, WI, where she works as a marketing and event planner.
About Compassion Resilience: A Session for Caregivers
Caregiving — whether as a parent, grandparent, sibling, respite provider, or support person — asks a lot of us, often for years at a time. This session offers a chance to pause and check in with yourself. Drawing on the Compassion Resilience Toolkit, we’ll explore what it looks like to keep showing up for the people we care about without losing ourselves in the process: recognizing compassion fatigue, noticing the expectations we carry (our own and others’), and practicing compassionate boundary setting — protecting what makes us good at this. We’ll close with simple wellness and resilience strategies to carry with you long after the retreat ends.
About SOS: Sharing Our Strategies
Sometimes the smallest shifts can make the biggest impact for our children. Join this session to share life hacks that have improved your day-to-day. We’ll be discussing the areas in your home, school, and other routines that need troubleshooting and lean on others to provide insight into what has worked for them. From brushing teeth, advocating for accommodations, or adopting new bedtime routines – no strategy or life hack is too small.
Itinerary:
Friday:
9am – Check-in & Light Breakfast
9:30am – Welcome & Ice Breaker Activities
10am – Guided forest bathing or self-guided activity
11am – Compassion Resilience: A Session for Caregivers w/ Patrick Uselding
12pm – Lunch
1pm – SOS: Sharing Our Strategies w/ Ellie Sherven
2pm – Archery or self-guided activity
3pm – Departure or Optional Free Time
3pm – Check-in for overnight guests
5:30pm – Dinner (off-site)
7pm – S’mores Campfire & Social Hour
Saturday:
9am – Breakfast (BYO or off-site)
9:45am – Self-guided camp exploration
11am – Checkout
Registration
Registration Fee
General Registration: $150
Optional Add-on: $99 overnight stay
To register using a credit card, please follow the link below. To register using waiver funds, please see the below section on waiver funding.
Waiver Funding
Families enrolled in Children’s Long-Term Support (CLTS) Waiver, Children’s Community Options Program (CCOP), IRIS or Family Care may be able to use these funds to pay for registration fees. Please note that not all plans can cover the cost of the overnight accommodations and may need to be paid directly by attendees. Check with your service coordinator for coverage specifications.
Please have your service coordinator fill out the Third Party Payor Form, linked below, to register with waiver funding.
Confirmation
Upon registering for the caregiver retreat you will receive a confirmation email. Please note that your registration is not automatically confirmed when using CLTS funds. Registration for this payment method will be confirmed manually and a confirmation email will be sent out after.
If you have registered but have not yet received your confirmation email, please contact Brittany at brittanym@autismsocietywi.org.
Cancellation Policy
If you are no longer able to attend, we kindly ask that you notify us as early as possible so that we may update our numbers accordingly. We are unable to offer refunds for cancellations for this event.
Lodging
On-site lodging is not included in the registration fee but may be purchased for an additional cost of $99 per person. This cost includes overnight accommodations in a hotel-style retreat building and linens. Meals for the evening and following day are not included in this price.
This cost may or may not be covered by CLTS or Family Care/IRIS funds. Please check with your service coordinator for specifics of your plan.
Questions?
Please reach out to Brittany Maren at brittanym@autismsocietywi.org or 920-558-4600
