‘Sole Sister Run’ Helps Fund Retreat House

CAPE MAY POINT – More than 100 people braved a rainy forecast and participated Oct. 4 in the Fifth Annual Sole Sister 5K Run and One-Mile Fun Run/Walk to benefit St. Mary by-the-Sea Retreat House.
“It’s such a fun event, you can feel the energy,” said Theresa Cusimano, race coordinator. “We started the race in conjunction with our 100th anniversary, and it’s continued to be a good way to broaden awareness of our house and reach out into the community.
“The Cape May Point Volunteer Fire Department really taught us how to do a race,” she said. “For our first three years, they helped with volunteering, scoring, putting up the finish line, and basically running it. Last year we ventured out on our own, and we’ve made a few changes along the way to hopefully entice more runners.”
The event contributes to the success of the retreat’s operation, along with hundreds of volunteers who help operate the facility during spring, summer and fall.
This summer, there were over 800 retreatants, according to Joan Dollinger, administrator, “and for each of the 100-plus retreats we had, there are 20-25 volunteers who help make this place run. We couldn’t be as successful as we have been without the help from the community.”
For over 100 years, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Philadelphia have operated the retreat house, adopting two themes that reflect its location in Cape May Point – Ocean of Grace and Tides of Transformation. According to Dollinger, those themes describe what happens to volunteers and retreatants. “It’s important to occasionally step out of the hustle and bustle of our lives and engage in some deep reflection and prayer,” Dollinger said.
“We value our history, and really try to preserve and build on it,” she said. “Our environment is key, in that we have the beach and wonderful ocean view; the dolphins that seem to know when we are watching them and perform for us, and the birds and Monarch butterflies that the Point is known for. All these elements are built into the retreat program. Finally, its mission of unity and reconciliation, being united with God and one another is a huge part of who we are.”
St. Mary by-the-Sea was originally built as the Shoreham Hotel in 1890. Dollinger said it’s the only original hotel in Cape May Point that remains. It operated as a hotel for about 10 years before being converted into a home for infirmed persons for another 10 years.
In 1909, the Sisters purchased it for $9,000. Crosses were added to the roof, the ballroom became the chapel, and the nuns came for retreats and vacations.
Besides the main retreat house, two other buildings are part of the complex: St. Joseph House, purchased in 1913, and Queen of the Sea, purchased in 1923. Both were moved to their present location on Lehigh Avenue after the storm of 1962.
Dollinger said the Army took over the facility in the 1940s because of the German boats that were offshore. The bunker and lookout tour that exist today from that era are tourist spots, and because of mines, bathing did not occur off the shore until 1966.
While the number of retreatants has remained steady over the years, Dollinger said what’s changed is the configuration. “Up until 1980, only Sisters of St. Joseph came here for retreats,” Dollinger said, “and then it was opened up to other religious orders. It opened up for lay people in 1990.”
Dollinger, who grew up in Cape May, was a teacher and principal at Star of the Sea School in Cape May. “I remember riding my bike here and trying to watch the nuns over the fence during the summer,” she said. “But we didn’t recognize the sisters because they were out of their habits.”
Cusimano is a member of the house’s Advisory Board and was taught by the Sisters of St. Joseph in Bethlehem, Pa., as was Advisory Board member Patrice Maloney Callahan, who first suggested the idea of sponsoring the race.
The run is coordinated through the Development Office of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Philadelphia and St. Mary’s.
Although there is a well-established group of volunteers who help the retreat operate, Dollinger said they can always use more. If anyone is interested they should go to their website (www.stmarybythesea.org) and check out the “volunteer” section.
Sole Sister Winners
Cape May Point – Stig Blomkvest, of North Cape May, won the overall Sole Sisters Race Saturday, finishing the 5K race in 19 minutes and 56 seconds. Erin Howe, of Newtown Square, PA, was the top female runner, finishing in 21 minutes and 55 seconds.
Winners in each age category were:
Men:
* 15-19: Ryan Jacob, 24:14.1
* 30-30: Jeffrey Krajewski, 20:50.0
* 40-49: Christian Kittle, 20:44.1
* 50-59: Jeff Stouch, 20:53.3
* 60-69: Karl Vester, 23:26.6
* 70 & older: Michael Crimaldi, 33:50.3
Women:
* 14 & under: Molly Effer, 28:53.9
* 15-19: Emily Effer, 31:41.1
* 20-29: Kelly Paskor, 34:33.0
* 30-39: Danielle Rossi, 27:01.4
* 40-49: Wendy Willis, 23:12.0
* 50-59: Deb Riley, 27:31.9
* 60-69: Janice Strigh, 32:31.0