More than 620 women gathered at Leoni Meadows during the first two weekends in October for the 24th annual Christian Women’s Retreat. The weekends were filled with activities designed to renew those who attended both spiritually and socially. “It was great to be in God’s country of Leoni Meadows, dreaming about God’s plan for our lives,” said Suzan Williams, former president of Christian Women’s Retreat. “The theme of Dare to Dream focused on the faith blockers that keep us from fulfilling God’s direction in our lives.”

Music played a large part in the weekends, as it does every year. This year’s special musical guest was Soul Real, a trio from Louisville, Ky., made up of a country singer, a bluegrass singer, and a classically trained soprano. “Their music was awesome,” said Lynda Fletcher, one of the attendees. “Each song was like a sermon in itself.”

In addition to the powerful musical presentations, there were several inspirational and informational topics covered by various speakers. One of the members of Soul Real, Rhonda Jo Connor, was the weekends’ keynote speaker. She spoke on Jeremiah 39:11, encouraging women to find their spiritual gifts and to not be afraid to use them. Other talks at mini-sessions were presented by Ed Fargusson, who spoke about a man’s mind; Judy Crabb, who gave a talk on horomones; Cindy Cochran, who lead out in an outdoor Bible treasure hunt; RaeJean Riesenberger, who spoke on healthful eating; and Suzan Williams, who talked about grandmothering.

The retreat was started by Pam Whitted, who had a vision and a burden for a place that women could go to that was just for them, because she felt that women had some spiritual needs that were not being met. It has become a weekend getaway for women to socialize and be ministered to by a team that put the program together.

The event has become so popular that the facilities could no longer accommodate all of the women who wanted to attend in only one weekend. Now that the event has split over two weekends, with each weekend’s programming being the same, many women are thankful that they are able to partake in this wonderful retreat. “It was so awesome,” said Althea Roderick. “It’s the best retreat that I’ve ever been to.”