Yesterday, I had the amazing opportunity to be a part of a Sharing Station at Women's Conference. I was helping represent Mormon Women, which is sponsored by the More Good Foundation. I loved meeting so many women and explaining to them the point behind the More Good Foundation (which is basically to put correct and positive information about Mormons --and the LDS Church --out online, so when people go looking for answers or information, they won't find just the lies and bitterness). A lot of them were excited about it and many wanted to know more. Personally, my favorite part was having the chance to quote a friend of mine who once said (not word for word):
People don't realize that the majority of Mormon women are happy in the Church. They love the Gospel, their testimonies are strong, they don't feel oppressed nor patronized, they are educated, and they are strong, intelligent women! The problem is, nobody knows about them because they aren't online. So, those who are online just assume they don't exist...
She said this about a year ago, when she was jump-starting Mormon Women, and I think she was very wise. And our focus yesterday was to give women the information they need to have their voices heard online. It doesn't necessarily have to be through blogging -- it could be through simply leaving a comment over at Mormon Women, or sharing their testimony. It's also a place where women (and men, of course) could send their friends from other faiths to get the right answers. Lds.org and Mormon.org have all the right answers, too, but many people would rather hear from every-day Mormon people. Those who are living it and not necessarily preaching it as their "job." I'm not trying to downplay the vast importance of such websites (I mean, they are the "official" sites, you know!), I'm just showing how your normal Mormons --the every-day-run-of-the-mill-living-their-lives-ones --are the ones that most people watch and want to hear from.
That's me, you know. And maybe you, too.
Anyway, it was just awesome! I loved it. The best part was the people I ran into! Here is the list of people I saw:
*A lady who is in my brother and SIL's ward in the Bay Area
*Lindsay B. from my old ward in the Bay Area
*Emily J. --also from my old ward in the Bay Area (I haven't seen Lindsay or Emily for over a year!)
*Jennifer H. M. --a high school friend I haven't seen in years!
*My Grandma and Aunt Cathy! (technically they are Brandon's, but as Grandma said last night: "Oh, I'm Cheryl's Grandma!")
How fun is that!?
Overall, it was a fabulous experience! I was glad to be there.
And now, dear reader, if you would like to help out, or get your own Mormon voice added to many others across the world, please visit the following websites:
Mormon Women
More Good Foundation
Mormon Bloggers
That is all. #1's Baptism is tomorrow! Much to do...see you next week...
8 comments:
I'm glad you had fun! I just love Women's Conference, but couldn't go this year. So I'm aiming for some time at Education Week, which I've never been to before. I hope tomorrow goes beautifully!
How fun you got to see our friends in Utah!
Good job promoting at Women's Conference. I totally agree with your friend's quote and purpose.
But when I go to the Mormon Women website it doesn't feel user friendly or personal. I would like to see more personal accounts and less information. Also there are no pictures of Mormon Women doing the things we do or links to other blogs so people can get a peek into our lives. I'm not sure I'd want my blog linked because who knows who'd be showing up like anti LDS stuff.. I'm such a scaredy cat.
The surface looks pretty but I need more depth. That may come with greater readership and participation so I'll subscribe today and will remember to comment.
Cheryl, thanks for the update!
Janelle, your feedback is great, and we appreciate it. FYI, we agree with you, actually! We want the site to be more visual (with more photos, etc), less text-heavy, less an information-sharing site and more a place for personal experiences.
THAT is a key reason why we wanted to be part of Women's Conference -- because the site can't be that way without many women participating and submitting their personal stories, photos, videos, etc.
So, please, spread the word. Help us make it a better site.
And if you want to become more involved, please send us an email at gmail, with either username: 'mormonwomen' or 'mormonwoman'
Thanks!
What a great experience for you, Cheryl! It sounds exciting. Someday I'll go down for Women's Conf. Now that I am farther away I kick myself for not going when I was ten minutes away.
What a great opportunity!
What a great service you did, my dear! Am off to check out those sites.
What a great idea...I shared it at Relief Society today when we were asked how we can find daily opportunities to share the gospel.
It was awesome to see you there--what a treat!
Keep up the good work.
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