What is The Forge?
A retreat for male amputees to focus
on faith, fitness, surfing, and healthy living
The Forge Retreat is the male counterpart to the Beautifully Flawed Retreat, designed for male amputees to focus on faith, fitness, and holistic living. After years of successfully operating our retreat for women and with high demand for a men’s outreach, we launched the first Forge Retreat in 2020 just before the start of the global COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, we hosted our second Forge retreat in conjunction with the women’s retreat in Del Mar, California, the first dual retreat for the organization.Â
With a target age range, the Forge Retreat facilitates a 4-day experience for men with a limb loss or difference to learn how to surf, workout as an adaptive athlete, hear messages from other speakers who have overcome adversity, and learn what it means to grow in God-centered courage, leadership, and masculinity. In 2021, the Forge Retreat partnered with This is My Story, a filmmaking ministry of Kevin Durham and Matt Manzari that exists to bring light to the connection between personal experience and the testimony of God-empowered perspective.
There are virtually no programs out there that cater to limb-different men that are faith-based, empowering, experience-driven, and that are created with the intention of equipping these men with physical, emotional, and mental tools to overcome adversity in their lives. The Forge goes above and beyond, from the group sessions talking about our self-worth, identity, and the obstacles in life; to the sessions of instructional body-care that alleviate pain, and much more. The action-packed activities are there to create fun memories, laughter that breaks down walls, and ultimately bring opportunities for amazing growth and friendship.