ABOUT
The Border Mountain story starts, like many stories do, with a big adventure and high hopes. The adventure began in the wilderness of northern Idaho in a log lodge at the foot of Border Mountain, one of the local mountains that skirted the Canadian border.
JoAnne Chitwood, a registered nurse, author, filmmaker, and healing retreat leader, dreamed of establishing a retreat center for clients focused on healing emotional wounds from childhood trauma. She and her team moved to the Idaho lodge in the summer of 1997, supported by funds from her hospice training series, My Gift: Myself.
At first, things were wonderful in that mountain paradise. Bears, wolves, moose, and elk were regular visitors in the meadow in front of the lodge. Wild apples, strawberries, and elderberries abounded for the picking. Clients came and went, sharing testimonials of how their time at Border Mountain changed their lives.
Then, in one horrible day, it all came crashing down. Many of you know the story of the tragedy that struck JoAnne and her family, and how the dream splintered like broken glass. You can read the whole story here.
JoAnne, after a period of healing, continued to do retreats and speak for women’s gatherings, churches, and other events. She kept writing books about emotional healing and grief recovery based on her own healing journey. She provided resources to hospices for training their staff in the very best ways to support the dying and their families. Review our hospice training materials.
All through the years, she continued to search for that ideal property to establish a retreat center in which she could create the nourishing, welcoming environment that she dreamed of so many years before in northern Idaho.
In the spring of 2022, after years of discouragement and delay with the pandemic making it impossible to do retreats, she found a beautiful property that would work well for Border Mountain in northern Georgia. She, with her film partner, Duane Lamar, are in the process of creating a documentary about the search for the right Border Mountain location and the healing programs that will be conducted there.
It is truly a passion and a dream come true for JoAnne and her team to be able to work with men and women who have experienced emotional trauma in their lives and are suffering in their relationships with themselves and others as a result. Some very important members of her team are the gentle horses that make an equine therapy program possible. And the experts and celebrities that lend their knowledge and support to the healing program.
If you, or a loved one, are aware that you would benefit from a warm, accepting, nourishing, healing experience, visit our retreat page. Or you may be impressed to support the program to make it possible for someone else to go through a retreat. If so, donate below.
Mountain of Grace
One Woman's Journey from Heartache to Healing
Many of you have asked for the backstory on Border Mountain, so here it is! Mountain of Grace is the dramatic story of JoAnne's journey from heartache and tragedy to deep healing and purpose in the formation of Border Mountain.