A Sanctuary for Wholeness

Healing doesn’t have to happen in clinical, cold spaces. Sometimes the deepest healing comes when you’re surrounded by trees, open sky, and quiet moments that remind you to breathe. At Ujima Retreat Center, we believe in letting nature be the environment guiding, holding, and restoring us back to balance.

We created Ujima because we wanted more than just a retreat space. We wanted a sanctuary. A place where people could come as they are, find rest, and leave with a renewed sense of wholeness. A place where healing feels warm, alive, and deeply human.

Every part of Ujima carries intention. From the way we care for the land to the partners we collaborate with, motivated and experienced people who share our vision, this space was built with love. It was created not just for individuals, but for the collective. Because true wholeness doesn’t happen in isolation; it happens when we lift one another up.

Awarded Best Retreat Center 2025 in Central Illinois

This year, we were honored to be named Best Retreat Center in Central Illinois (2025) by Bankrate. For us, the recognition isn’t just about an award—it’s about the affirmation that people feel what we hoped they would when they step onto this land: peace, connection, and the freedom to just be.

2025 Award to Ujima Retreat Center

Ujima means “collective work and responsibility.” That’s the heartbeat of this center. This isn’t just our sanctuary—it’s yours, too.

Come through. Let the earth meet you where you are. Leave a little lighter, a little stronger, and a lot more whole.

#Retreat #Healing #Ujima

Stay Rooted,

Shanelle

Shanelle Koroma is a licensed, clinical mental health & nature play therapist, and Co-Founder of the Ujima Retreat Center