DCCW convention keynote speaker is ValLimar Jansen

Friday, Mar. 20, 2015

SALT LAKE CITY — The annual Diocese of Salt Lake City Diocesan Council of Catholic Women convention, which draws participants from throughout the state, provides a time for fellowship, spirituality, information and fun. The theme is “Catholic Women United in Truth.”

The convention “is an opportunity to gather together as Catholic women in Utah,” to catch up with old friends, make new friends and learn about the faith and ways to put it into action, said Bonnie Siegrist, DCCW president. 

This year, the keynote speaker is ValLimar Jansen, who will present “Women of Faith, Women of Hope.” Jansen is a recording artist, speaker and actress; she will examine the lives of some Church mothers, mystics and martyrs. In the afternoon session, she will discuss ways to put faith into practice.

Jansen was a keynote speaker at the National Council of Catholic Women two years in a row, and “she is amazing,” Siegrist said. “She engages the crowd. The energy that she projects, the faith that she has – she appeals to women of all ages.” 

At the Salt Lake convention, the slate of speakers also includes Chaplain Pamela Lloyd of Volunteers of America, who will present “The Many Faces of Our Homeless Youth: What We Can Do About It;” and Susan Dennin, the diocesan director of communications, whose topic is “Evangelizing from the Heart.”

The speakers and their topics were chosen in part because “youth and the New Evangelization were two of the focuses that Bishop Wester had asked us to work on this year,” Siegrist said. 

One of the highlights of the convention is the Woman of the Year banquet; Siegrist expects that at least 35 women from parishes throughout the diocese will be recognized for their service by the Most Rev. John C. Wester, Bishop of Salt Lake City, and Monsignor Robert Servatius, DCCW spiritual advisor. 

WHAT: DCCW Convention

WHEN: April 25-26

WHERE: Sheraton Hotel, 150 West 500 South, SLC

Keynote speaker is ValLimar Jansen; the event includes the Woman of the Year Banquet. 

Registration deadline is March 27; visit http://home.catholicweb.com/slcdccw. For information, contact your parish women’s group or DCCW President Bonnie Siegrist at utahbonnie@comcast.net or 801-580-6960.