The local chapter of Soroptimist International ladies have been working hard to deliver a brand new style of the Power of a Girl Mother/Daughter Conference for 2016.
This year, the conference will feature a wide variety of topics that families can choose to attend based on their needs and interest. The event take place at Red Deer College, Cenovus Centre on Feb. 27th, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.. The event costs $20 for moms, with girls gaining free entry.
“Depending on the family dynamics and issues people are facing, some of the workshops might not be relevant at that time, so people are able to pick something that is more interesting to them right now,” said chair of the event, Dianne Macaulay.
Due to the seriousness of some of the topics, this year’s event will be open to young ladies aged 12-14.
The topics include information on self-harm, online and social media safety, resiliency, safe spaces to heal from abuse and healthy families in mind and body.
“In the past we’ve had the day set up where everyone who attended was in the same sessions. We would have one or two sessions in the morning, and one or two in the afternoon. This year, the participants are going to start off with an absolutely amazing keynote speaker – Karen Klassen, an author from Calgary. She’s going to bring everybody together, lift our spirits and give us some positive vibes for the morning,” Macaulay said.
“Some of our other morning sessions include a presentation on behalf of the Sexual Assault Centre on proper texting and social media topics. We talk about boyfriends and girlfriends sending inappropriate photos, and the moral and legal reasons why those shouldn’t be sent or received.”
Macaulay said another topic to be presented would include a discussion on self-harm.
“Unfortunately self-harm is an epidemic that isn’t going away or getting any better so we want to talk about tips to deal with it, signs of self-harm and the ways people are self-harming. We want to show some better ways to deal with stress and depression,” she said.
Macaulay assured the entire day would still be a fun, uplifting experience for the guests. She said although some of the topics are serious, the time for mothers and their children to get together is always a great experience, and one they hope to bring a lot of families into.
“We’re really hoping to fill the seats and get the information we have out into the community. We’re hoping to have 200 people attend, as we do have the space this year at RDC. We’d like everyone to register by February 21st, because we will be providing lunch with the catering crew at RDC and need to let them know how many people to expect,” she said.
“All day long, there will be a really fun photo booth as well. It’s got the fun backgrounds, lots of props and lots of costumes. We’re going to have some movement activities with Alberta Health Services throughout the day to kind of break up the sessions. This year there isn’t any crafts or dancing, but the atmosphere is still going to be uplifting and fun.”
Attendees must register by Feb. 21st. Additional information and registration contact for the event can be found online at www.motherdaughterconference.com.
kmendonsa@reddeerexpress.com
