More power to you!

Mary Rose Bacani Valenti

April 14, 2009
Loretto College SchoolI was recently invited by Loretto College School in Toronto to present a workshop at their First Annual Women’s Conference. The aim of the conference was to empower young females of today to become successful women of tomorrow. There were about four other all-girls’ high schools invited, 15 workshops hosted by women of different backgrounds, and two keynote speakers. Even though the rain and wind made it difficult to travel to the conference, around 300 students were present in the Atrium for the main talks and no less than 250 for the workshops.
My workshop was entitled “Being Salt + Light”. I shared the values reflected in my work, demonstrating them with clips from some of my programs. I then presented what I had gone through to get to where I was, naming some of my obstacles and successes. It so happened that my alma mater, Thomas Aquinas College in California, had written a profile about me that I was able to use in my presentation.
After concluding with a clip from my latest documentary, Beloved: The Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia, I encouraged the students to know themselves and to stand strong. I remember how tough high school was for me – I felt pressured to make decisions that I wasn’t ready for.
It was truly a wonderful experience to be able to share something of myself with others. I hope that through hearing these women speak about their struggles and priorities in life, they found new role models who value inner beauty and God’s voice speaking to their hearts. I continue to pray that such conferences bear great fruit in the lives of young women.