Surber Barber Choate & Hertlein

WinShape Retreat - Berry College Mountain Campus

Rome, Georgia

WinShape Retreat is nestled in the rolling hills of the Berry College Mountain Campus near Rome, Georgia. The Retreat occupies the former buildings of the Normandy Dairy Farm designed in the 1930s by Atlanta Architect Sam Cooper and built by the students at Berry. The farm was a working dairy until 2001, and was ranked as one of the top dairies in Georgia. After Berry College announced plans to relocate their dairy facilities to another location, Chick-fil-A Corporation, sponsor of the WinShape Foundation, saw an opportunity to give the buildings a new life. They sought out an architectural firm that could help them realize their vision while sensitively protecting the historic character of the dairy farm complex. The project was originally conceived to accommodate the WinShape Camp for Girls during the summer months, but the vision soon expanded to include top quality facilities for church, corporate, and marriage retreats, thus providing maximum use of the existing buildings on a year-round basis.

The project consists of fifteen existing buildings and the addition of two new compatible structures to accommodate additional beds and complete a second courtyard. Facilities housed in the existing buildings include a dining hall, a multi-purpose/conference hall, lodging rooms that can be converted to dorm style bedrooms during camp operations, and a guest services/administration building. Small cottages and ancillary buildings provide a café, a spa, pottery, arts and crafts spaces, intimate meeting rooms, and a fitness cottage.

A major goal of the project was to give the complex a new use and new life without taking away from the wonderful pastoral ambiance that existed. In that spirit, all the work on the buildings and the site was kept as minimal as possible while still meeting all the requirements of contemporary codes and conveniences.

Client: Chick-fil-A Corporation

Completion: Spring 2005

All Images © Gabriel Benzur Photography