Also, would you like to help with flower gardens, landscaping, mowing, or something that you are familiar with on the grounds of San Damiano?

We are looking for adults who have time to spend a week or more, helping with various positions at San Damiano Retreat Center in southern Illinois. Accommodations and meals are provided for couples or singles to stay at San Damiano.

Positions vary from dining room helper, dishwasher, telephone attendant, housekeeping and cleaning, gift shop attendant, outdoor work such as carpentry, plumbing, landscaping, gardening, or mowing. You pick out the type of work you would volunteer to do.

Volunteers work a thirty-eight hour work week with a one week minimum. The preferred week is from Saturday to Saturday.

Living accommodations are provided in the Convento. The Convento is the Volunteers Residence, next to the Visitor Center, and is a non-smoking, air-conditioned building. The Convento has six one-bedded rooms, three bathrooms, one community room with television and VCR, a dining and kitchen area, and a laundry room with washer and dryer. Towels and bed linens are provided. Volunteers may enjoy breakfast in the Visitor Center. Food for other meals is provided for volunteers to prepare in the Convento kitchen. Daily housekeeping services for the Convento are not provided.

San Damiano Retreat Center’s phone number is (618) 285-3507. Please note phones are not in individual rooms, but messages are received and forwarded from the Visitor Center Office.

Pay phones are available in the Conference Center Bell Tower, next to the Visitor Center.

For an emergency after Visitor Center office hours, the Manager’s residence phone is (618) 285-6138. The Resident Caretaker’s residence phone is (618) 285-3251.

If you are interested and would like to find out more about the volunteer program or would like an application please call our Business and Administrative Office at (618) 234-1445.