DCCW convention will be April 26-27

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SALT LAKE CITY — Women from throughout the Diocese of Salt Lake City will gather for the 2025 Council of Catholic Women convention at the end of April. The event will include the annual Woman of the Year banquet on Saturday, which honors a woman from each parish or mission who provides exemplary service.

For the convention, “We have an inspiring and informative program designed to focus on our convention theme, ‘Called to an Encounter with Jesus,’” Annette Pressley, DCCW president, wrote in the Call to Convention.

The keynote speaker will be Michael Edwards, director of the diocesan Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministries. Edwards is in diaconate formation and also is the co-chairman of the Blessed Carlo Acutis Apostolate, which offers youth retreats in the diocese.

Edwards’ talk, titled “Young Saints, Timeless Lessons: How Their Lives Teach Us About the Eucharist, Forgiveness and Faith,” will “explore the inspiring lives of young saints and how their examples can guide us in deepening our relationship and encounter with Jesus,” according to the Call to Convention flyer.

Guest speakers Kevin and Kit Cummings will present “Encountering Grief – A Catholic Understanding of Miscarriage, Still Birth and Infant Death.” Their talk will offer the Catholic perspective on the loss of a pregnancy.

Like Edwards, Kevin Cummings is a member of the current diaconate formation class. Kit Cummings is a commissioned lay ecclesial minster in the diocese.

This year, the convention also will feature speakers chosen by the DCCW’s leadership commission and legislative commission.

The speaker for the leadership commission is Alex Guzman, another deacon candidate. Guzman is involved in many ministries at St. Mary’s Parish in West Haven. His topic, “Responding to the Call: A Life of Stewardship and Service,” will invite listeners “to reflect on the questions: We know he is calling, but are we answering? Are we even listening?” according to the Call to Convention.

The legislative commission speaker will be Dr. Natalie King, a palliative care physician in Utah who serves on the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Palliative Care and Hospice Task Force. She also is the author of Intensive Caring: A Practical Handbook for Catholics about Serious Illness and End-of Life Healthcare, which is available from Ave Maria Press. King will speak on “Called to an Accompaniment: Navigating Serious Illness and the End-of-Life for Catholics.”

The convention will begin with breakfast on Saturday, April 26. The full day of events will include morning presentations by Guzman and King. Edwards will speak in the afternoon. Participants are encouraged to attend the regular 5 p.m. Vigil Mass at the Cathedral of the Madeleine. The photo of the Woman of the Year recipients will take place immediately following the Mass, and the awards banquet will begin at the hotel at 7:15 p.m.

Sunday’s events will include the Cummings’ presentation. The convention will adjourn at 1:30 p.m.

WHAT: DCCW Convention

WHEN: April 26-27

WHERE: Little America Hotel, 500 Main St., SLC

Registration costs vary; visit www.dccwutah.org for information or to register. Registration deadline is March 21 for both the convention and the Woman of the Year banquet. Pre-registration is required for the banquet. Participants are responsible for their own hotel reservations; instructions are at www.dccwutah.org. Deadline for hotel reservations is March 25.