San Andres and Providence National Baptist Women's Conference

Dorothy Selebano, president of the BWA Women’s Department, traveled from Johannesburg, South Africa to San Andres in the Caribbean for the National Baptist Women’s Conference that took place October 25 – November 2, 2009. The trip was an experience of long flights and several stop over’s to make flight connections, but upon arriving she was greeted by Sister Viola Wilson Smith, president of the Baptist Women’s Association and many other Baptist women. The tiredness of travel was replaced with the excitement of these Baptist sisters.

The theme of the conference was CALLED TO LOVE. There were about 150 in attendance on the island of Providence, and about 330 in attendance on the island of San Andres. Dorothy presented two papers on the theme. The first one was “Call to Love” and the second one “Love One Another”. If you would like to read the papers that were presented click on the title of the paper.

There were also workshops that were offered. Dorothy led a workshop about the BWA Women’s Department sharing the mission and vision of the organization. She also promoted the Women’s Leadership Conference that will take place in Hawaii in 2010.

Dorothy was in San Andres on November 2 and celebrated the Baptist Women’s Day of Prayer with these dear sisters. She shared about the Baptist women’s work around the world, and helped the women to pray more specifically for the different needs mentioned in the prayer guide. She also encouraged the ladies to give an offering to help impact their world for Christ.

A special highlight for Dorothy was the home visitation. They visited women who could not attend the conference due to health reasons or age. Many of the women they visited were 90 to 100 years old. She prayed for them but they also prayed for her. Some of them had heard her conference presentations that were broadcasted on the local radio station. It was a reminder that God uses His children to praise and honor Him no matter the age.