Montana Diocese hosts 1st Catholic Women’s Conference

(left to right) Julie Reyna, Velma Burnett, Mary Jane Fox

We’re very excited for the Diocese of Helena, Montana; the local women hosted their diocese’s first, sold-out Catholic Women’s Conference on Saturday, April 16, 2016 at Carroll College in Helena.

What is their connection to our ministry?

We’ve been mentoring and guiding them throughout their conference planning process. Velma Burnett, the woman behind Helena’s successful event, was a founding member of the San Antonio Catholic Women’s Conference steering committee when she and her husband lived in San Antonio.  Over the last several years, she has worked towards the goal of bringing the conference to her new home diocese and obtained Bishop George Leo Thomas’ permission and blessing to go forth!

Mary Jane Fox (Pilgrim Center of Hope co-founder & Catholic Women’s Conference founder) presented, “Courageous Love: Living the Vocation of Woman Today” during the Helena event.  She was pleased to be joined on her roundtrip by Catholic Women’s Conference emcee and steering committee member Julie Reyna, who presented “Joyful Womanhood: The Heart of a Woman”.

Women who attended the Helena conference gave high praise to the event:

• “So very blessed by the day: the speakers who tugged and nudged my heart and being surrounded by my beloved sisters in Christ. Thank you to all who put this together.” – Nancy
• “Thank you so much. This conference was such a rich experience. A gift beyond imagining.” – Carolyn
• “This ‘soul ‘ is full of gratitude! ! Thank you all of you for bringing this to Helena!” – Valerie

The San Antonio “Come to Me” event continues to mentor women in other dioceses in launching their own Catholic Women’s Conference. If you are interested in bringing a conference to your area, email ministry@pilgrimcenterofhope.org.