Mount Olive College, local churches hosting women's conference March 19
By Becky Barclay
Published in News on March 9, 2011 1:46 PM
Speakers, displays and special music will all be part of special day-long program later this month to help women be the best they can. The HOPE Women's Conference will be held March 19 at Mount Olive College.
Sponsored by the college, Whitley Church, The Bridge and WHFL TV, the program's acronym stands for Helping Others By Providing Empowerment and is primarily for women 13 and older, but men may also attend.
Registration will be from 8 to 9 a.m. in Kornegay Arena at the college, followed by worship music at 9 a.m. by The Matt Barlett Band.
At 9:22 a.m., Alaine Strozier will give a talk. She is the founder and president of A Woman, A Wife, A Mother Ministries, a nonprofit organization geared toward empowering women. There will also be videos and a special presentation by Whitley Church's Mime Ministry.
Diane Hardee will speak at 10:30 a.m. She is the chief executive officer of the Eastern Pregnancy Information Clinic in Kinston and New Bern. Her presentation will be followed by another video.
Participants will break for lunch at 11:30 a.m.
Breakout sessions will be held from 12:30 to 3:15 p.m. Topics include How To Become A Better Parent, How to Identify Abusive Relationships, Basics of Relationships, Girls' Only and Ask the Doctor. Two doctors will be on hand to answer medical questions from those attending the conference.
At 3:30 p.m. Patricia Warren, owner of Artistic Dance Academy and director of Dance For Christ, will speak and there will be a 30-minute performance by Dance For Christ.
At the end of the day, prizes will be given away.
Throughout the day, various agencies will be on hand with information for participants. Some of the agencies will include the American Red Cross, Pregnancy Center, Mount Olive College admissions, Doubletree Temp Agency, BeautiControl, Wayne Uplift, Goshen Medical Clinic, Wayne County Health Department, Academic Abundance, Wayne Memorial Hospital, Mount Olive Counseling, First Pentecostal Holiness Church of Mount Olive's Celebrate Recovery and Whitley Church's Call to ARMS program. Celena Smith, local author of a children's book, "Who Wants to Know?" will be there with her book and to answer questions.
"It's an empowerment conference, and the way you empower people is give them information," said Jimmy Bryant, outreach pastor at Whitley Church and The Bridge.
"We want to empower women to let them know that their life has value and hope. There is a way out of depression, a bad lifestyle and more."
Bryant said conference organizers hope to encourage women to let them know that there are things out there that can help them improve their lifestyle and help them become a better, more productive person in society.
Tickets are $8 in advance and $10 at the door, and include a continental breakfast and a full lunch provided by the college. They are available online at www.HOPECONFERENCE2011. com, by calling Whitley Church at 735-5411 or Mount Olive College at 658-7758 or e-mailing to mbass@moc.edu. Mount Olive College students can attend for free with a valid student ID.
Although pre-registration is encouraged, Bryant said walk-ins will be taken if there is space.