Refuge is a space that can be rented for all sorts of celebrations and gatherings.
We invite you to use the space at Refuge to come together in community to celebrate, to learn, to connect, to gather, to plan, and to live life fully.
As you step through the blue velvet curtains at the front entrance of Refuge, let your shoulders drop and your guard down. You are free to be your full self here.
To be a refuge in a community is to be a space that celebrates full expression of self, successes, and the joyful milestones and memories of life.
Refuge was designed with elegant finishings and lush touches with unique lighting to set the mood for any occasion. Our interior design merges the simple elegance of clean cream walls and brushed nickel finishes with pops of rich jewel tones and dimmable lights in all zones to create a vibrant space that feels intimate and celebratory.
Natural light floods through the main window of the lobby space, and dances on the hallway floors. Our private enclosed outdoor courtyard is one of the few outdoor spaces available for events in Troy enclosed by warm red brick buildings and full of flowering trees, plants, festive lights, and seating areas arranged for conversation and connection.
Community Agreements
⁕ We host events that are held with positive intent; no racist, homophobic, transphobic, ageist, ableist, fatphobic, or any other type of discriminatory event will be allowed at Refuge.
⁕ We ask that you respect Refuge as if it were your own home, it is our home and we open the space to you.
⁕ We ask that you respect our neighbors and the surrounding community, we like our neighbors and we hope you do too.
⁕ We agree to support local businesses by offering recommendations for catering and services in the Troy area.
⁕ We love the environment and pledge to not have any styrofoam, glitter, or any other harmful materials at the events we host.
⁕ We are always looking for ways that we can do better in the community through our guidelines and our environmental practices, we welcome feedback!
Tara, our Chatelaine (AKA Keeper of the Keys)
Tara Rainstrom has long been revered for her creativity, and deeply loving and skilled way of bringing people together. Tara grew up in Cambridge, NY, eventually settling for many years in Albany’s Lark Street area where she immediately felt a sense of home - and most recently, making her way to Troy to realize her vision for Refuge. She has a unique knack for designing creative events and gathering experiences. As an activist she has organized many fundraisers and events to raise awareness, as a professional she has curated and facilitated many conferences and workshops, as an artist she has taught after school programs in dance and art, and as a community organizer she has a passion for bringing people together in women’s circles, clothing swaps, mixed tape parties and beyond - - Tara puts a new shimmer on the old adage “hostess with the mostess.” Come and experience the magic for yourself!