Women’s Conference to Launch Global Peace Network in Las Vegas |
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The 20th Anniversary Assembly of the Women’s Federation for World Peace (WFWP)*, to be held in Las Vegas Oct. 25-27 at the new and lavish M Resort Spa Casino, is expected to stand out from other women’s organization events by providing a vast array of practical, hands-on breakout sessions. The conference will provide attendees a cornucopia of goodies for those young and older interested in everything from personal growth, family improvement and interracial and interreligious reconciliation, to sports and the outdoors, health and combating human trafficking. Women will be encouraged to take what they learn back to their home communities all across America and the world and use it over the long term to create substantial and sustainable peace. The Assembly will also be the occasion for the U.S. launch of a new peace organization called the Global Women’s Peace Network (GWPN), which was initiated in Seoul, Korea, in July. The GWPN’s purpose is to work in tandem with the United Nations to improve the overt representation of women and religious groups at the world body and to deepen and widen the UN’s focus on women’s and religious issues as they relate to peace building. Not least, the conference-goers will hear a keynote address by Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, cofounder of WFWP International and wife of recently deceased Rev. Sun Myung Moon. The address will be Dr. Moon’s first public appearance since her husband’s passing. Based on her advance prepared remarks, she is expected to issue a clarion call for the commencement of a new women’s peace movement, centered on the GWPN and the WFWP, that will renew and reinvigorate the UN in humankind’s fervent quest for world peace. Dr. Moon will speak of Rev. Moon’s long-cherished desire to “expand a model movement of true love to the whole world based on living for the sake of others.” She will especially encourage women, with their unique motherly and sisterly love, to start a new movement of families brimming with love and an ethic of selfless giving flowing from that love. At the Las Vegas Assembly, the 20 breakout sessions will feature the following areas: HUMAN TRAFFICKING AND EXPLOITATION
Addressing Human Trafficking: Using the SERVE Model. Presenting this session will be Cynthia Turner, a founding member and the executive director of SeraphimGLOBAL, a 501(c)3 organization formed in 1996 to improve the health, education, and socioeconomic opportunities for vulnerable and disadvantaged populations around the world. She has a background in broadcast journalism and 33 years of experience in international development. Teen Prostitution: The Silent Predator of Girls in the 21st Century. Rev. Zelna Joseph, the presenter, is an ordained minister and has over 20 years of experience leading faith/community-based nonprofit organizations. She is currently completing her dissertation for a Ph.D. in Pastoral Counseling with an emphasis on Women in the Ministry. HEALING RELATIONSHIPS Four Steps to Quick Healing: How Asking Four Questions Can Help Heal Yourself and Your Relationships Quickly. This will be presented by Gwenn Bair, an artist who attended Rochester Institute of Technology and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and who is an international “Helpline” volunteer. NATURAL HEALING Energy Healing: Personal and Planetary Healing for Prosperity and Peace. The presenter will be Margaret Brewster, a registered nurse for more than 40 years. She will demonstrate and apply in practice a synthesis of Energy Healing, Homeopathy, Kinesiology, and Tong Ren Therapy. Healing Through Technology:
Whole-Body Scanning and Muscle Reconditioning. God Did Not Invent Disease: How to Heal Yourself Through Basic Nutrition and Prayer. Rev. Juanita Pierre-Louis holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Social Work from Adelphi University. She has held "Heal Thy Self" Seminars throughout America. HOW MEN CAN SUPPORT WOMEN? Men and Peace: Men and the Reclamation of the Divine Masculine. The speaker will be Peter Brown, cofounder and co-publisher with wife Kimmy Sophia of “The Significato Journal,” an online magazine with the tag line “nectar for the soul,” at significatojournal.com. The couple focuses the magazine on creativity and inspiration, love and beauty, art and music, and public service. SPORTS Kick Off to Confidence: Self-Defense and Self-Control. Leading this session will be Sensei Doug Clark, who has studied and taught Shotokan Karate and self-defense for over 25 years—including to numerous women’s groups. He is a member of the Karate No Michi World Federation and a registered instructor and judge. Artemis Unbound: Femininity, Athletics, and Empowerment. Lesa Ellanson manages New Hope Farms Equestrian Park, a renowned international equestrian facility in upstate New York. She is a nationally certified riding instructor. An avid enthusiast of nature conservation, hunting, fishing, and the shooting sports, she is licensed by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation in wildlife rescue. THE FAMILY AND PEACE Bridging Male and Female
Differences: Do You Feel Your
Relationship with Your Spouse? Linda Haft has been
education director at the Institute for Relationship
Intelligence in Hudson and Bergen Counties in New Jersey since
2003. She is a veteran provider to old and young of solid
information on HIV/AIDS, STDs, the emotional consequences of
uncommitted sex, and the benefits of marriage, healthy
relationships, and risk-avoidance behavior. Empowering Teens with Healthy Choices: What You Always Wanted to Tell Your Teen and Didn't Know How. Heidi Iseda has been director since 2007 of the Clean Slate Education Program, a community-based abstinence education program, with oversight and funding by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services WOMEN AND BUSINESS A Dream Come True: Starting Your Business and Making It Grow. Renee Dawn Day Connor and Pamela Dawn Connor are mother and daughter, enrolled in Crow Creek Reservation, South Dakota, and are of the Lakota/Dakota Nation. They started their handmade jewelry business, Jewelry by Two Dawns, in 2009. Business and Spirituality: Finding Your Purpose and Living It. Pastor Glenda Phillips-Lee is the Spiritual Head of International Gospel Helpers Church Inc. and Star of Hope, Inc. both in New York City. She has spent 17 years as a life coach. RECONCILIATION AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION Become a Bridge! Principles of Reconciliation and Peacemaking. Denneze Nelson was born in Guyana and earned two Master’s degrees, in Religious Education and Social Work. She has done social work with children and the elderly, and she directed a Domestic Violence Safe House Program for women for seven years. She has worked with various churches and organizations to successfully implement Bridge of Peace reconciliation ceremonies. INNER PEACE / PERSONAL GROWTH Real Stress Busters for Moms on the Go: 40 Tips to Mediate Stress and Enjoy Peace in Your Families. Janelle Davenport, the presenter, is founder and CEO of Suisen International, former executive director of the Davenport Center for Families and Cultural Literacy in Aurora, Colo., educator for over 25 years, and a language teacher through Livemocha.com. The 1,000-Year Way of Tea and Spiritual Practice: Experience Transcendence in the Japanese Tea Ceremony. The presenter, Tomiko Duggan, serves as director of the Washington, DC, office of the Universal Peace Federation (UPF). One of the many peace-building series she has organized for UPF has been “The Way of Tea,” in which guests discover the stress-reducing, meditative inner world of the Japanese tea ceremony. Art as Therapy: Healing Oneself through Discovering the Artist Within. Susan Fefferman, an educator for over 40 years, has a BFA from the University of Michigan’s School of Art and Design. She has taught theater production, drama, hobby, fabric arts, and ceramics to all ages as a way to discover one’s creativity in a mindful, healthy life. Change Your Life in 90 days--The Next Step: Find Out Why That Next Step is Critical for Success to Manifest. Lakita Long is completely engaged in helping people change their lives. She concentrates on giving lifelong tools to women through inspiring her audience to each have a “Thinking Out Loud” moment. She is a speaker, author, educator, social therapist, radio host, and consultant. * The registration fee at this point for the entire three-day conference is $400. (Air fare, room, and meals, with the exception of the Benefit Gala dinner on Saturday night, are not included.) * To attend only Friday, Oct. 26, the fee is $100. * To attend only Saturday, Oct. 27, the fee is $125. * To attend only the Benefit Gala (black tie optional) on Saturday night, the proceeds of which will benefit the West Las Vegas Art Center and the Global Women’s Peace Network, the fee is $100. The evening will include a gourmet dinner, presentation of the Herstory Awards (for women of outstanding accomplishments), a comedian, soloists, a band, and dancing. To register, go to wfwp.us/20th Contributed by Robert Selle |
