Joanna Shenk co-coordinator of the Women in Leadership Project
By Joanna Shenk
1. The diversity of workshop and paper presentations
I am glad to see many women presenting who are not known on the “Mennonite circuit” yet. I’m also impressed with the variety of topics that will be discussed. Here are some glimpses. You can find the full listing, along with descriptions and pictures on the conference website.
- RAW: Mentoring Anabaptist Woman Church Leaders, Sandra Perez
- Resisting Evil, Supporting Love: Anabaptist Theology Opposing Violence, Beth E. Graybill
- All You Need is the Word: How Slam Poetry Challenges Privilege and What the Church Can Learn From It, Hillary Watson
- The Kitchen-Table Theology of ‘More-with-Less’ and ‘Mennonite Girls Can Cook’, Malinda Elizabeth Berry
- The Broken Things: Finding the Sacred in an Empty Womb, Jennifer Harris Dault
- Praying with Women in the Bible, Laura Lehman Amstutz
- How Does My Culture Enrich Mennonite Tradition? The Story of the Laughing Warrior Girl, Sarah Augustine
- Earth, Air, Fire, Water: Connecting as Women through Art and Story, Yolanda Kauffman, Kathleen Landis
- Our Words Matter: Julian of Norwich and Diverse Images of God, Maria Byler, Lindsay Davis
- I am Animal: Theology, Identity, and Creaturely Love, Nekeisha Alexis-Baker
- Fierce Love: Woman as Spiritual Leaders Building Communities of Shalom – a Theology of Women and the Earth, Anita Amstutz, Erica Littlewolf
- Self-Love as an Intercultural Gift, Emily Morgan Ralph
2. The conversational orientation of the plenary sessions
Often conferences feature keynote speakers, who stand alone on the stage and infuse knowledge into the conference participants. At All You Need is Love we are committed to a dialogical way of learning. Our three plenary sessions will each feature a panel of women, sharing their experience and expertise in conversation with each other. As planners we believe that our learning happens in conversation with the thoughts and experiences of others, and that on our own we have many blind-spots. We’re honored to have an excellent line-up of plenary panelists.
3. The food at the National Conference Center
It is delicious and there so many options! No matter your dietary needs (or wants) the National Conference Center will take good care of you! As a vegetarian I found more than enough fruits, vegetables, grains, cheese (and dare I say, french fries!) to keep me satisfied while I was there last weekend. There are plenty of vegan options as well, and the dining services are glad to accommodate those who are gluten free or who have other allergies. Additionally, during breaks between sessions a generous amount of snacks and drinks (hot and cold) are also provided. Needless to say, you will not be hungry during the conference!
4. We have over 175 people registered!
And there’s still time to get in on the experience. Visit the registration page to get signed up for this fabulous gathering! Don’t forget, men are also invited to come as listeners and supporters.
For any conference related question, please feel free to be in touch with me. See you in Leesburg!