Area women learned some key principles on how to make them stronger and aware at a special conference April 22 in Bryan.
The Bryan Area Business Woman’s Club hosted the “Total Women’s Forum,” in the New Era Building. More than 50 women attended the event with the theme of “Fortifying the Female.”
The event was designed to bring women together to inspire each other by sharing information, event organizer Wendy Jennings said. The best way to do that was by having interesting speakers and informative topics, she said.
“In today’s world we just don’t have time to communicate that,” Jennings said. “So we thought if we offered something for just a few hours in the morning, we can be out of here by noon.”
The day featured two main speakers, Montpelier Police Chief Dan McGee and former Bryan resident Carolyn Wettstone. In between were breakout sessions on boundaries, healthy lifestyle choices and future planning.
Mc Gee spoke on awareness and self-defense giving practical tips on how women can protect themselves in the modern world. His emphasis was on the little things women can do to remain safe such as locking their cars and homes and holding their purses close and being aware of their surroundings when at the mall.
The police chief also spoke on rekindling talking people head on to bring an end to bullying or bad behavior.
“We have abandoned all the things we used to do,” McGee said. “Go to people (if something is wrong), don’t bad mouth them on Facebook. The right adult will handle it in the right manner.”
Wettstone lived in Bryan in the 1970s when her father was the minister at First Presbyterian Church. She moved to Iowa and became an anchor and Emmy-award winning investigative reporter. She recently published a book “How I Kicked the Cancer Fairy’s Butt,” which followed her battle against breast cancer.
Shirley Fry, the program coordinator for Shalom Counseling and Mediation Center in Bryan, led the breakout group on “Generations and Healthy Boundaries.” The subject matter dealt with understanding the expectations of the Millenials and how women can set healthy boundaries for their lives.
Assistant Williams County Prosecutor Rachael Sostoi spoke on Future Planning and Jeanette Roberts spoke on Healthy Lifestyle Choices. Roberts has worked the past 10 years helping employees at Community Hospitals and Wellness Centers.