Speak Love Conference 2018
What does it mean to speak love? What does it look like? How does it sound? What does it make you feel?
From the moment of our inception, our mission has been to educate young women about dating violence. We have been able to accomplish this through interactive exercises focusing on recognizing patterns of abuse and raising awareness. We also teach conflict resolution and intervention techniques designed to deescalate volatile, and potentially life threatening, scenarios. This is all done with the hope to build self-esteem in our young girls, who will one day become our leaders in their chosen careers and circles of influence.
We are happy to announce that at our Speak Love Conference, we were able accomplish just this, and so much more.
WSO partnered with Farrington High School for an incredible day, which began with a video, highlighting six women who had struggled in abusive relationships. It was a sombering way to start the conference, but one that highlighted the gravity of domestic abuse, and set the tone for the day. Director of the Office of Institutional Equity at the University of Hawaii , Jennifer Solidum Rose and her daughter, also shared some jarring statistics on dating violence, as well as how to identify patterns of abuse.
But the conference wasn't entirely on a somber note: the girls got a chance to move their bodies and stretch their limbs with Yoga instructor, Lauren Oiye, they got to create vision boards and dream their ideal lives with Life Design and Business Coach, Tiare Thomas, and they also got to watch celebrity make-up artist, Mark Quirimit (who does make-up on everyone from Alicia Keys to Rihanna) do a make-up tutorial on Miss Hawaii USA 2019, Lacie Choy.
Throughout the day, the girls were also assembled into small breakout session groups so that they could share their experiences with domestic violence on a smaller platform. Many expressed concerns about domestic violence affecting a family member or friend, and while it was a vulnerable thing to share, the girls were provided a safe environment to talk about these issues and ask any questions they may have lingering. Each group was also provided a peer leader to guide their discussion. What resulted was a full range of emotions, from tears to laughter, but more importantly the breakout sessions allowed for an environment of judgement-free safety and connection.
Overall, the Speak Love Conference was a day of education and awareness. It was also an opportunity for young girls to have fun, connect, and build solidarity.
So, what happens when we speak love? We become united, transformed and powerful beyond measure.
If you are interested in attending our next Speak Love Conference, sign up here and follow our Instagram page @wsohawaii to stayed tuned. We are gearing up for another awesome event on April 11th at HPU.
Additionally, if you are a company looking to volunteer or sponsor our event, sign up here.