In Celebration of Another Year of Life Waltena Downs Pride presents The Fourth Annual Gathering of Women "Women at the Tomb: Healing at the Tomb" When we think of a tomb, we think about a place of death. But the empty tomb was a place of resurrection and healing. Join us this year as we experience Healing at the Tomb!
Our Guest Speakers will be Rev. Brenda Winston Walker and Min. Shannan Clarke. There will also be a panel discussion with Mrs. Jackie McFarland, Rev. Janice Roane, and Mrs. Joanne Hampton. Please join us September 8th and 9th, 2023 to receive healing at the tomb! |
Event Schedule and Registration Form
Friday, September 8, 2023 - 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Opening: 6:00-6:30 p.m. Welcome and Introductions - Rev. Waltena Pride /TBA Opening Prayer Interlude 6:30-6:35 p.m. - Mrs. Kathleen Smith Session 1 6:35-7:20 p.m.– Healing for the Soul from the Word of God - Rev. Brenda Winston Walker Closing: 7:20-7:30 p.m. Comments - Rev. Waltena Pride Closing Prayer - Rev. Gilda Parnell Saturday, September 9, 2021 – 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Opening: 9:30-9:45 a.m. Welcome – Ms. Jennifer Pride Opening Prayer – Min. Debby Nelson Interlude 9:45-9:50 a.m.- Song by Mrs. Joanne Hampton Session 2: 9:50-10:35 a.m. – A Multidimensional Experience: My Personal Healing Journey – Min. Shannan Clarke Interlude 10:35-10:40 a.m.- Song by Min. Shannan Clarke Panel Discussion: 10:40-11:30 a.m. – Personal Stories of Healing Rev. Waltena D. Pride, Moderator Mrs. Jackie McFarland Rev. Janice Roane Mrs. Joanne Hampton Open Mic: 11:30-11:45 a.m. Ms. Jennifer Pride, Moderator Remarks ans Final Thoughts: 11:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m.- "My Scars" - Rev. Waltena Pride Closing: 12:15- 12:30 p.m. Healing and Closing Prayers: Elder Alandra Williams Ms. Jennifer Pride |
|
2023 Speakers
Rev. Brenda Winston WalkerBrenda Winston Walker, M.Ed., M.Div.
Associate Minister, Chestnut Grove Baptist Church Charlottesville, Virginia Reverend Brenda Winston Walker is a native of Albemarle County and grew up in the community of Milton, near Charlottesville, Virginia. She is the oldest of three children born to the late George F. Winston and Odell Winston Hearns. Her parents and siblings, Wayne, and Angela, attended Rose Hill Baptist Church in Simeon, Virginia. The life lessons she learned from her family, the church and the elders of the community have sustained her to this day. Brenda answered her call to another level of ministry in 2011. To become better equipped to serve, she completed the requirements for the Master of Divinity Degree in May 2015 at the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University in Richmond, Virginia. Brenda preached her initial sermon and was licensed as a minister of the gospel at Fifth Baptist Church in October 2016. Other opportunities to grow in ministry have included membership in the Baptist Ministers’ Conference of Richmond and Vicinity, participation in the Hampton University Ministers’ Conference, and invitations to preach and minister in the vicinity. As a member of Fifth Baptist Church from 1982 until 2022, Brenda served as an Associate Minister, under the leadership of Rev. Dr. Earl M. Brown and Rev. Dr. Ricardo L. Brown. In church leadership her service included being a member of the Deacons’ Ministry for more than ten years, president of the Mission Society, co-chairperson of the Angel Tree Ministry for 20 years, teacher and director of Vacation Bible School and member of the Board of Christian Education. Brenda taught classes for Noon Day and Evening Bible Study, new Deacons, new members and Sunday School. Serving in church leadership and ministry is considered a joy and an honor. Retirement in July 2014, from a professional career of 35 years in public education created the opportunity to work full-time toward her goal of becoming a chaplain. From 2015 - 2020, Brenda ministered as a Chaplain Intern, Chaplain Resident and full-time Staff Chaplain at the Central Virginia VA Health Care System. Additional experience in pastoral ministry has included one year of service as a Spiritual Care Partner at Bon Secours St. Mary’s Hospital. Further ministry opportunities consist of spiritual care ministry in her church and the community. Her desire is to foster in others her same passion for spiritual care and pastoral ministry. Currently, Rev. Brenda Walker is a member and an Associate Minister at Chestnut Grove Baptist Church in Charlottesville, Virginia, where Rev. Jeffrey L. Perkinson is the pastor. In this beautiful rural community in Albemarle County, she spends time in ministry with family members, lending assistance to the elders of the community, preaching and teaching Wednesday Evening Bible Study. Brenda recently married and relocated to Charlottesville to be with her new husband, Deacon Clarence Walker, III. Together Brenda and Clarence serve in the church and enjoy their family and friends. Retirement life is busy! Together they have one son, five daughters, five grandchildren, three great-grandchildren. Daily she gives all thanks and praises to God for her awesome life, professional career and call to ministry. This journey would not have been possible without the support and love of compassionate and supportive friends and wonderful family. Brenda’s life is guided by the words of scripture that can be found in Isaiah 40:31, “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” |
Min. Shannan ClarkeMinister Shannan N. Clarke
Minister Shannan N. Clarke was born and raised in the City of Petersburg, Virginia, and was a class of 1999 graduate of Dinwiddie County High School in Dinwiddie County, Virginia. A classically-trained pianist and keyboardist, she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Music Industry Studies with a concentration in Music Engineering and Technology from Elizabeth City State University in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. Throughout her undergraduate studies there, she took a special interest in courses in African American Studies, Political Science, and Social and Behavioral Sciences. After graduating, like many students just completing college, Shannan was unsure of what direction her degree would lead her. She accepted a position as the Minister of Music at the Springfield Baptist Church in Sutherland, Virginia and has served in that capacity for 19 years. She also took a role as a receptionist at an agency that worked with children who were multi-diagnosed with mental and behavioral disorders. Several months later, Shannan took the required courses to obtain teacher licensure according to the Virginia Department of Education, and found purpose in educating children from various school systems across Virginia at the agency. She committed to educating students in grades 7-12, and one sole GED student, for a little over 6 years. Shannan has made part of her purpose, and what she believes to be a ministry, to advocate for those who are unable to advocate for themselves, or who do not know that they can have a voice in the society in which they live, or in the places and spaces where they call home. She has had an opportunity to be on both sides of the fence, as a provider of services to children with mental disabilities and as a receiver of those services, herself, as an adult. Shannan openly advocates for mental health awareness and for increased dialogue about mental illness in the Black community because she has been dual-diagnosed with clinical depression and a generalized anxiety disorder. She is an advocate for addressing trauma head on, but with sensitivity and the assistance of professionals who are trained to help navigate, as she does herself. Shannan completed her Master of Arts in Religious Studies through the Esoteric Interfaith Theological Seminary and was ordained an Interfaith Minister in 2023. Shannan is currently pursuing a Master of Divinity through the Oval Bible College of Lake Charles, Louisiana. She is a world traveler who takes the opportunity to venture to new places on her “NOT-a-bucket” list every chance she gets. Shannan considers herself a realist who believes that while some may choose to argue over whether the glass is half full or half empty, she would rather that you first acknowledge that something is in the glass and then use your discernment to ascertain whether it is poison or nourishment. Her life’s scripture is Galatians 1:10, “Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.” |