By Stephanie Manseau
Co-Chair, CWR Conference 2019 Committee
Registration is, as you are no doubt aware, now open for CWR’s 25th annual conference, which will take place October 1-4 in Mesa, Arizona. We hope to see you there!
Every confer
ence is planned by a committee composed of CWR members like you, who strive to provide everyone with the most relevant content and speakers. Fun also needs to be factored into the experience with the welcome reception and evenings out. When putting the conference schedule together, conference committees also ensure there is ample time for conversation and networking. It is thus a global experience that committees need to work on, and it comes as no surprise that each conference requires a two-year planning process.
One of the first things a committee agrees on is the conference theme. As you must have noticed over the years, conference themes always refer to communications and usually integrate some element of the location where the event is taking place. This provides inspiration for prayer and visual elements such as the conference brochure and table centerpieces, but it serves mostly as the underlying thread which gives the conference its unique tone for that year.
In 2019 we will gather under the theme “Voices Rising in the Desert: 25 Years of Prophetic Communication.” We are, of course, celebrating a 25th anniversary. You probably haven’t been in your current position that long but, as you think back, were there not times when you felt quite alone proclaiming the importance of outreach through first, websites, and then, social media? Were you not that lone voice who had to convince leadership teams and Sisters that their stories had to be told, humility notwithstanding? Did you not have to justify the cost of technology, quality printing, or communication audits? Do you remember expressing the need for a crisis communication plan despite the fact that it was very unpleasant to even consider? Yes, you were, and you are, that lone voice which carries the voices of the sisters and their mission. Sisters tell the stories of the peripheries to which they are called to go. They give a voice to those who don’t have one. And you are making sure that voice is heard. Our gathering in Mesa next October will provide you with the tools and resources to keep doing just that. Let us celebrate together and unite our voices so as to be stronger, together, and keep proclaiming our message…for those who have ears, will hear!