Women from local churches to present conference
Katy Nicholson Herald Staff Writer
ROANOKE RAPIDS - Teen pregnancy rates and domestic violence have been in the headlines lately, and some local women have decided to do something about it. When Katie Williams read “Sex and the Soul of a Woman: The Reality of Love and Romance in an Age of Casual Sex,” by Paula Rinehart, the recently-married 27-year-old found a profound connection with the book's message. Barbara Walls, a 54-year-old who has been divorced and now has been happily married for 23 years, and Caroline Long, a 50-year-old who has never been married, also read the book and were able to relate to it.
They have organized a conference for women of all ages and faiths to promote self-respect as well as abstinence until marriage, and Rinehart, a Christian counselor from Raleigh, will be there to give a presentation. The conference, which will be held Saturday, March 17 from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at William R. Davie Middle School, is free to the public. At an organizational meeting last Thursday attended by women from about 15 different churches, Walls explained that though the conference will have a Christian theme, it is open to everyone.
“We have ladies who are coming who may have no idea about Jesus Christ and they just want to talk, so we need to just let them talk,” she said.
Also included in the conference will be four personal testimonies, an interview session with Rinehart, music and prayer. Each woman will receive information and the opportunity to visit booths provided by the Pregnancy Support Center, Halifax Regional Medical Center's HIV/AIDS program, Hannah's Place, New Beginnings, and Not Me, Not Now. All who attend will receive a free lunch. Organizers hope women will bring their daughters to the conference. Though the conference is recommended for women ages 12 and up, younger girls are encouraged to attend if their parents think it is appropriate.
“There are a lot of things I think women don't know how to discuss with their daughters, because it's been in the closet so long and it's just taboo,” explained organizer Linda McRae.
Churches also have a responsibility to help guide young women, Walls said.“We don't want to talk about sex in the pulpit, but it's in their faces, it's in schools, it's in the magazines,” she said. Though 770 seats will be available, Walls said women should pre-register for the conference at www.spiritualspa.net . To make donations for the conference, call Barbara Walls at 308-9480 or Katie Williams at 537-2218.
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