The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis hosted the 24th biennial Province Conference on Friday, June 26, 2026, at St. Victoria Church in St. Victoria. One hundred women registered for the conference.
An optional social event on Thursday evening brought about 40 women to the nearby Sovereign Estates Winery. Here they prayed the Rosary in the Mary Garden, and then dined together indoors. You may click on each photo to make it larger.
An optional social event on Thursday evening brought about 40 women to the nearby Sovereign Estates Winery. Here they prayed the Rosary in the Mary Garden, and then dined together indoors. You may click on each photo to make it larger.
The group poses for a photo after the Rosary was prayed.
Our first conference speaker was Melanie Frei. She was raised in the Presbyterian Church, with no sacraments except baptism and communion, "but there was no sacramental part of it." As an adult, she was accepted into the Evangelical Free Church of America mission program. During the mission training, she met and married Tom Frei, and they were sent to serve in Hong Kong. She had a long story about how the Bible led them to seek out the Catholic Church, with its sacraments, leading to beautiful worship, and the Eucharist as the Summit. This was quite a bumpy road for them, financially and relationally. (She wrote a book, "Bridges and Treasure: Walking my Protestant friends through the joys of the Catholic Faith.")
Melanie Frei takes questions from the women
The next speaker was Bishop Daniel Felton (Diocese of Duluth). He said, "Change will not come with 'something', but in Jesus." CCW needs to think about that. With the hurt and despair around them, women look for something that brings hope and joy. Jesus is healing. Jesus is hope. Jesus is joy. How can we make growing in Jesus Christ the core of our mission in CCW? To gain a renewed sense of purpose in CCW, think about how we can be a ministry of Jesus to bring joy to others. Bishop Felton also made us laugh a lot! If we really want to learn more about going from despair to hope, he joked, we should listen to country western music, because every song is about that!
Was this when Bishop Felton rattled off a list of country western songs that begin in despair, but end in hope?
The Mass was beautiful. Archbishop Bernard Hebda gave the homily. He told about Jesus encountering Peter, James, and John when they were out working (fishing). In your work or at home, look for where Jesus is. Jesus brings abundant fruit to their labors. What if you've worked so hard on CCW, and don't see the fruits? (You can't grow the group, church admin is obstructive, etc.) Listen to Jesus to find out where to throw the nets into the deep.
We sang "On the Wings of Change," with the refrain, "We shall be changed!" Carol Shukle heard this theme song at an NCCW Convention years ago, and it inspired our conference theme.
We sang "On the Wings of Change," with the refrain, "We shall be changed!" Carol Shukle heard this theme song at an NCCW Convention years ago, and it inspired our conference theme.
Province Director Dianne Vagness and Province officers Terri Pontious and Carol Shukle bring up the gifts to Archbishop Hebda
We shared a tasty lunch together. No dessert was served, but many women purchased "Cupcakes for a Cause." The proceeds were added to the Mass collection and advance contributions for Catholic Relief Service's "Wheels of Hope." At left is a “Tricycle” ambulance, used to transport the sick and injured where traditional vehicles cannot reach - providing the critically ill and pregnant women access to health centers with advanced care. The cost is $5000, and we raised $6000, so the surplus will go toward community water stations to help increase access to clean water. Thank you, all who contributed!
Doreen and Colleen Hogan are ready to sell cupcakes. Prizes on the left for someone whose cupcake number is drawn!
In another nod to the 250th year of the USA, we prayed an interactive Patriotic Rosary. The "Our Fathers" were prayed for various branches of the government. The 50 Hail Marys were prayed over the 50 states. As each state was named, a star with the state name was posted on the Rosary banner.
Denise Haaland places a state's star on the Rosary board as Terri Pontious leads the Hail Mary.
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Mary Ann and Ken Duppong spoke about their daughter, Michelle, who is a Servant of God, on the path to Sainthood. She was raised on a farm in the Bismarck Diocese of N.D. Her parents believe that the FOCUS program at NDSU increased their kids' faith as they attended college. Michelle became a FOCUS missionary, working at several different colleges, before she began work at the Bismarck Diocese as a director of adult education. She was a very joyful woman. Michelle did a monthly podcast, and held a Thirst Conference -- a weekend event with over 7000 attendees, intending to bring all to an encounter with Jesus. The next year, she began to fall ill. When she underwent abdominal surgery, cancer was found throughout. Michelle believed that Jesus would heal her. She asked everyone to pray to Pier Giorgio Frassati; she wanted to be his miracle that would lead to his canonization. She remained a blessing to those around her, as she was throughout her life.
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Mary Ann and Ken Duppong
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What a spirit-filled day! Our next Province conference will be in 2028.
The New Ulm Diocese attendees gather for a photo (including the baby, who stayed all day!).
The New Ulm Diocese hosted the 23rd biennial Province Conference at St. Mary's in Sleepy Eye on June 25, 2024. The theme for the day was "Lift Up Your Hearts" with 170 women in attendance. Mass was celebrated by Bishop Chad Zielinski, followed by five dynamic speakers: Fr. Tim Tran, Angela Copenhaver, Melissa Kaufenberg, Deacon Mike McKeown and Katie Braulick.
Photos from the conference are below:
Photos from the conference are below:
