Kalien Retreat

Days of rest and relaxation are the norm at Kalien Retreat. The 55 verdant acres of forested Appalachian Mountain foothills have been set aside for solitude and peace. Kalien Retreat features guest cabins of rustic elegance—each sheltered by acres of natural wildwood and verdant meadows. There are hiking trails, private picnic and seating areas, seasonal waterfalls and streams, scenic views, and good ‘ole fashioned peace and quiet.

A 188-year-old oak tree Old Majestic serves as the retreat’s natural landmark. Each cabin features a mountain-facing deck which spans its length. And it’s positioned perfectly to begin the day (at whatever time you choose) with coffee, sunrises, animals, and birds, in our nationally certified wildlife habitat. The overnight Keefer-Roberts cabin features a gas fireplace, memory foam mattress, 100% Egyptian cotton sheets, tiled rain shower, Keurig coffee maker, a small but functional kitchen, a small table/desk, vintage cigar leather loveseat and ottoman, a planked cathedral ceiling, and walls of locally-milled eastern red cedar. The entrance porch will soon be screened-in and feature a quaint swinging twin bed.

Kalien has been created with our guests in mind. No matter if you desire complete and utter solitude or friendly and confidential southern hospitality, Kalien is the place for you. One can stay a week in solitude and never see another human being, or savor an optional gourmet dinner and other experiences with Kalien’s resident hosts, Randy and Gina Elrod, at an outdoor table made from hand-sawn planks crafted from an on-site tree felled by lightning. If desired, a private online calendar informs when a casual drink and conversation with your hosts and other guests can be had around a crackling fireplace or under a star-filled sky.

Kalien Retreat is operated under the auspices of the 501c3 public charity Creative Community, Inc. Seventeen acres are dedicated especially for Kalien and the additional acres are the private residence BeauChamp Farm of Kalien’s founder and hosts. Their rustic-modern home is called Rivendell. While BeauChamp Farm is a private residence, Kalien has reciprocal usage privileges of the hiking trails, entrance, and dining and other options when offered.

Backstory:

In 2002, burned out and struggling to find my soul working as a Creative Arts Pastor in one of America's largest megachurches, I first dreamed of creating a space where encouragement is embraced. My wife Gina and I have purchased and paid for fifty-five wilderness acres in the Appalachian Mountains to provide a beautiful place of encouragement and solitude. We call it Kalien which means "beauty is calling".

At Kalien we have set aside sacred ground so that one can find the time and space to reconnect with oneself and one's ideas, a place where the sound of solitude has an encouraging ring to it.

Amid the bustle of our lives, it's easy to lose sight of those moments of solitude that can be so invaluable and rewarding. "Solitude is a crucial and underrated ingredient for creativity. From Darwin to Picasso to Dr. Seuss, our greatest thinkers have often worked in solitude." —Susan Cain (Quiet)

But the reality and demands of daily life mean we can't just hightail it to a cabin in the woods like Thoreau for two years. And let's be honest—many of us simply don't want that kind of seclusion.
But moments of solitude—even small ones—when self-imposed, intentional, and fully appreciated, can have profound effects on our productivity and creative thinking. That's why we have created "spaces within community."

Each Kalien cabin will be at the epicenter of at least one acre to insure complete solitude. And a central gathering space will be provided periodically if community is desired.

Due to the affordability of labor and regional materials such as cedar, we are able to build and furnish a cabin in rustic elegance for the unbelievable price of only $15,000. Generous gifts from our Board of Directors and matching funds from Dell Computer and Health Corp of America (HCA) have enabled us to purchase tools and vehicles to facilitate the building.

My personal artist cabin "The Hawk's Nest" at Kalien was built this past July 2015. We are now ready to construct the next cabin for our non-profit Creative Community. All donations are completely tax-deductible.

We are proud to have been awarded the Gold Participant Standard by Guidestar.com—the world's largest source of information on nonprofit organizations.

Help us build and open our first public cabin for use by June 2016 and together let's provide real people that desperately need encouragement and solitude a place to stay by mid-year. Who knows? It could be you that stays here first.

A Place of Encouragement and Solitude

http://Kalien.org