Symposium asks women to find the empowerment within themselves

Nevada Daily Mail

The 2005 Women's Symposium Steering Committee has announced the theme for this year's event, "Empowerment! Look Within …"

Scheduled for March 5, on the Cottey College campus in Nevada, the event will feature two speakers -- Courtney McCool, 2004 Olympic Silver Medalist in Gymnastics, and Heather Carpenter, representing LIFETIME, an organization aimed at helping parents to succeed in meeting their goals.

Seventeen-year-old McCool, Blue Springs, will appear along with her mother Linda.

Courtney McCool has been training since age 8 and moved up to the highest level in gymnastics, becoming a junior international elite in 2002. Her lifelong dream of becoming an Olympic athlete came true when she finished second in the all around competition at the US Olympic Trials, securing her position on the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team. In Athens, she was able to submit her original beam mount to the Code of Points, a move that has now officially been named The McCool.

Courtney will speak of her ambitions, role models, obstacles and rewards along her path from childhood to Olympic athlete. Linda will provide a narrative of what Courtney's dedication to her dream has meant for the family.

Carpenter, the second speaker scheduled, is a Cottey College alumna, and the LIFETIME organization recently received national recognition for its efforts to help low-income mothers and fathers pursue higher education and training. She is arriving a day early to present a free workshop for social service providers and the families they serve. Created by student mothers at the University of California, who earned college degrees while raising their families with government assistance, LIFETIME is committed to helping others do the same.

The organization's mission is to empower parents to determine, pursue and achieve their goals for education, employment and economic security. Their goal is to help parents enroll in, continue and successfully complete higher education and training -- a long-term investment in families with lasting results, according to members of the 2005 Women's Symposium Steering Committee.

The Women's Symposium is an annual event, now in its 15th year, which takes place on the first Saturday in March. The goal of the event is to enlighten, educate and empower women. This year's Symposium, in the Haidee and Allen Wild Center for the Arts, begins at 9 a.m., March 5, with registration and coffee. The McCools' presentation begins at 9:30 a.m., and Heather Carpenter will speak at 10:45 a.m.

The Symposium concludes with a buffet luncheon in the Raney Dining Room at Cottey College. Tickets are $25 each, and are now on sale at the Nevada Daily Mail, El Dorado Sun, Fort Scott Tribune and at the main hall on the Cottey College campus.

Child care services will be provided at a nominal fee from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Anyone wishing to use this service may call Sharon or Debbie at (417) 667-3344 for more information.