Women’s Recovery Week with a Focus on Racial Trauma & Healing

A Healing Space for Women Who Have Survived Sexual Abuse

This Recovery Week is a holistic experience designed to create a relational, healing space for survivors to explore and engage the present impact of their stories of past sexual abuse. Women’s Recovery Week with a Focus on Racial Trauma & Healing is a focused, immersive experience designed to help survivors explore the ways their stories of past sexual abuse have shaped their lives. These intensive workshops led by Linda Royster, LCMHC, along with Allender Center Facilitators, encourage participants toward a deep engagement of the psychological, spiritual, biological, and social aspects of both the personal and collective experience of trauma and abuse.

Designed for, and led by, Black, Indigenous, Latina, and Asian/Pacific Islander women, this three-and-a-half-day intensive workshop is an opportunity to reflect on the wounds of your past, understand their impact, and learn to bless your story.

Racial and sexual trauma, which are essentially identical, influence us physiologically and psychologically.” -Linda Royster, LCHMC, The Implications for African American Women in Dr. Dan Allender’s book, Healing the Wounded Heart

Want to attend a Recovery Week in 2026? Start here.

Recovery Weeks fill quickly every year, and spots are limited, so the best way to ensure you have a chance to join us is by adding your name to our 2026 Interest List. By signing up, you’ll be the first to know when applications open. No pressure, no commitment—just a simple way to stay in the loop and take the next step when you’re ready.

Dates & Location will be announced soon.
Applications will open on January 7, 2026.

Join the Interest List for 2026: Women’s Recovery Week with a Focus on Racial Trauma & Healing

Questions? We encourage you to reach out to our Programs Team at programs@theallendercenter.org with your questions and to receive more information.

Quick Links:

About Women’s Recovery Week with a Focus on Racial Trauma & Healing

Recovery Week offers a kind, nurturing environment for participants to engage this sacred, healing work away from everyday distractions and in the context of relationship with other survivors. This three-and-a-half-day intensive workshop provides teaching and discussion with Linda Royster, LCMHC, extending from Dr. Allender’s work in the book The Wounded Heart.

Recovery Week also includes small Story Group work facilitated by an Allender Center-trained facilitator. These groups are carefully curated spaces that invite participants to explore past abuse and its effects. Participants will be able to share their stories and struggles with others, as well as in daily individual sessions with an Allender Center Facilitator trained in Narrative Focused Trauma Care®.

This Women’s Recovery Week provides a focus on Racial Trauma and Healing as a lens through which to examine stories of harm through the unique cultural and societal perspectives of women who may hold shared experiences. This workshop is both designed for, and led by, Women of Color. This Recovery Week is intentionally small, limited to 10 participants.

Important Dates & Location:

We’re still putting the final touches on the dates and location for the 2026 Recovery Week. In the meantime, we invite you to mark your calendar with the application deadlines listed on this page. If you’d like to be the first to know when details are confirmed, join the Interest List. We’ll send you an update as soon as everything is finalized for the Spring 2026 Recovery Week for Women with a Focus on Racial Trauma & Healing.

Women’s Recovery Week with a Focus on Racial Trauma & Healing 2026 Dates: Coming Soon
Location: Coming Soon

Application Dates & Deadlines:

Applications open: Jan 7, 2026
Applications close: Jan 26, 2026
Interview window: Feb 10-13, 2026
Decision letters sent: Feb 20, 2026
Registration/Begin payment deadline: Mar 2, 2026

Waitlist Round (if spots remain):

Applications: Feb 16–Mar 2, 2026
Interviews: Mar 9-13, 2026
Decision letters: Mar 20, 2026
Registration/Begin payment deadline: Mar 30, 2026

Applications must be fully complete (online application, letter of recommendation, and scholarship request if applicable) to receive consideration and move forward with the required interview, which will be processed on a first come, first served basis. Please carefully read all of the details about how to apply below.

How to Apply for Women’s Recovery Week with a Focus on Racial Trauma & Healing:

We’ve introduced a new application process to provide clear expectations, transparency, and support for every applicant. Each application is carefully reviewed by our Programs Team to ensure readiness, safety, and relational fit for this intensive experience.

Step 1: Submit Your Application Materials (Jan 7-26, 2026)

Applications open January 7, 2026, and close January 26, 2026. To be considered, you must complete all four parts:

Online Application: Fill out the short online application form during the application window.
Letter of Reference: Provide the name and email of someone who knows your story (mentor, pastor, small group leader, or counselor). After you submit this, we’ll contact your reference directly with a form to complete. Your application is not complete until the reference form is received. You can track the status in your application portal. You may also wish to follow up with your reference to ensure they have submitted your letter of reference.
Application Fee: A non-refundable $50 application fee is required.
Scholarship Request (if applicable): If you want to be considered for a partial scholarship, include your request with your application. Requests submitted after the application window may not be eligible.

Important: Applications missing any of the above will not be considered. All materials are reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis, so apply early. Late or incomplete applications may only be considered during the Waitlist Round in February 2026.

Step 2: Schedule Your Interview (Feb 10-13, 2026)

Once your application and reference are reviewed, our Programs Team will reach out to you to schedule a one-on-one online interview, which will take place between February 10-13, 2026. Interviews provide a safe space to share your story, ask questions, and discern readiness. Interview slots are available on a first come, first served basis. You must complete your interview within the interview window of November 3-7, 2025; if not, your application will be waitlisted.

Step 3: Receive Your Decision (Feb 20, 2026)

After interviews, our team will carefully review each application. You will receive a decision letter on or before February 20, 2026, with instructions for next steps.

Step 4: Complete Your Registration & Begin Your Payment Plan (by March 2, 2026)

Once accepted, you have until March 2, 2026, to secure your seat by making your first payment through your online learning portal. If your first payment is not received by the deadline of March 2, 2026, your spot will be released to the Waitlist Round.

Waitlist Round (if spots remain)

Applications: Feb 15–28, 2026
Interviews: Mar 4–11, 2026
Decisions: Mar 15, 2026
Registration/Begin payment deadline: Mar 31, 2026

Costs & Payment Policy

We are still finalizing our plans for the dates and location of this 2026 Recovery Week. Please join the Interest List to be notified when details are finalized and released for the Spring 2026 Recovery Week for Women with a Focus on Racial Trauma & Healing.

Preparing for Recovery Week

Engaging the Healing the Wounded Heart online course is recommended before arriving at Recovery Week. Our hope is that the course will foster categories and a shared language among the group that will deepen your experience. Individuals accepted into a Recovery Week will be able to access the course at no additional cost.

Disclaimer

Recovery Weeks are a unique psycho-educational experience that allows you to engage your life stories specifically as they relate to narratives of sexual abuse. The sessions are designed to encourage you to engage your story in a holistic way by exploring psychological, spiritual, biological, and social aspects of the experience of trauma and abuse. Please note: this program is not therapy and does not act as a substitute for therapeutic engagement.

These workshops are a time to reflect on how abuse has shaped your life. The issues considered are betrayal, powerlessness, ambivalence, and how the gospel frees us to trust, dream, and embrace life. You will be invited to engage the profound brokenness of your heartache all the while learning to love your own story.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is this workshop different from other Recovery Weeks?

Highly specialized content focused on the particularity of issues related to the impact of sexual abuse and needs related to recovery for Women of Color.
Attendance is limited to 10 participants to allow for a smaller, more focused and tailored setting.
This workshop is 3.5 days rather than 6 days to make it more accessible and affordable.
Additional care and time is taken in the application and acceptance discernment process, to ensure this is an experience that centers Black, Indigenous, Latina, and Asian/Pacific Islander people as the global majority of the world’s population.

How do I know I’m ready for a Recovery Week?

If you’ve already begun engaging your story—through a Story Workshop, Narrative Focused Trauma Care training, work with an NFTC-trained individual, or in individual or group therapy—you may find Recovery Week to be a meaningful next step. If you’re brand new to story work or group work, it can feel like a big leap, and that’s okay. We’d be glad to talk with you about whether this is the right time. Please reach out to our team at programs@theallendercenter.org.

Can I still apply if I have already attended a Recovery Week?

Yes! This work is lifelong, and many participants return to Recovery Week more than once. We think you will find this to be a different experience.

Will Dan Allender be leading this Recovery Week?

No. This workshop is solely led by Linda Royster, LCMHC, along with Black, Indigenous, Latina, and Asian/Pacific Islander staff and facilitators from the Allender Center.

Is everything I share kept confidential?

Yes. Confidentiality is a core value of Recovery Week. While you’ll be sharing within a small group, each participant commits to honoring one another’s stories with care and respect. Our Facilitators and Instructors also hold confidentiality as a sacred trust.

What if I need financial help to attend?

We know the cost of Recovery Week can feel like a barrier. That’s why we offer a limited number of scholarships each year. You can request scholarship consideration as part of your application. We also encourage you to ask your community for support. Many participants have obtained support from their church or other fundraising efforts.

If you have more questions, we’d be glad to assist you. Please email us at programs@theallendercenter.org for more information.

Testimonials

What previous participants of Women’s Recovery Week with a Focus on Racial Trauma & Healing have said:

“I was completely engulfed in the satisfaction I felt as our grounding exercises, teaching, small group, etc culminated in giving us back to the Lord. I love that the leaders did not rush us when crying, did not pat our backs, but simply allowed our tears to fall. And, even – to cry with us. What an amazingly fruitful and fulfilling experience. This retreat was nothing short of powerful.” -Women’s Recovery Week with a Focus on Racial Trauma & Healing Participant

The impact of being in a group comprised solely of women of color was tremendous. This environment offered a sense of safety, camaraderie, and belonging that would not have been possible in a more racially diverse group or a group that included the presence of any men. So, I am incredibly thankful for this!” -Women’s Recovery Week with a Focus on Racial Trauma & Healing Participant

Join the Interest List for 2026: Women’s Recovery Week with a Focus on Racial Trauma & Healing