Speakers
Dr. Terryl Givens
Saturday Keynote Speaker
To date, Dr. Givens has written and edited over 20 books, and has many more on the horizon. Some of his favorite include his collaborations with his wife, Fiona. He has spent much of the last 20 years tracing the history and theology of the Latter-day Saints, but for most of his career, he taught Romantic literature (think more Shelley than Sparks). Dr. Givens is a senior research fellow at the Neal A. Maxwell Institute of Religious Scholarship at Brigham Young University (BYU). Whether its hosting insightful podcasts on Faith Matters or speaking to Saints the world over at intimate firesides, Terryl’s mission is to help everyone–no matter where they are in their journey of faith–come closer to Jesus Christ.
Traci Hunter Abramson
Saturday Session Speaker
Traci Hunter Abramson is an American mystery and suspense novelist. She has written forty-five best-selling novels and is an eight-time Whitney Award winner, including 2017 and 2019 Best Novel of the Year. After graduating from Brigham Young University, she worked for the Central Intelligence Agency, eventually resigning in order to raise her family. She credits the CIA with giving her a wealth of ideas as well as the skills needed to survive her children’s teenage years. She loves to travel and recently retired after twenty-six years coaching her local high school swim team.
McKay Coppins
Saturday Session Speaker
McKay Coppins is a staff writer at The Atlantic, where he covers politics, religion, and national affairs. He is the author, most recently, of Romney: A Reckoning, a New York Timesbestselling biography of Mitt Romney. A former visiting fellow at the University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics who studied journalism at Brigham Young University, Coppins has won the Aldo Beckman Award from the White House Correspondents Association for his coverage of the Trump presidency and the Wilbur Award for religion journalism. He lives with wife and four kids in Vienna, Virginia, where he teaches Sunday School.
Kelly Walker, LMFT
Saturday Session Speaker
Kelly Walker graduated from Brigham Young University with an undergraduate degree in psychology as the department valedictorian. She also received a graduate degree in Marriage and Family Therapy From BYU. She has taught psychology courses at Northern Virginia Community College, and ran a small business at a local farmer's market. She currently works as a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with couples, families, and individuals at the Well Marriage Center and The Gil Institute for Trauma, Recovery and Education. She loves teaching the 4-5 year olds in the Vienna Ward Primary. Kelly has been married to Lance Walker for 27 years. She has 4 children, and is learning to be a new mother-in-law.
Mark Thomas
Saturday Session Speaker
Mark Thomas has worked with Single Adults for the past 25 years in capacities such as bishop, stake presidency, and high council. He is the father of two Single Adults and cares deeply about helping everyone feel the love of their Savior in their lives which will bring a better understanding of the grace and peace available to all. Originally from the UK, he emigrated as a child to Canada and then Utah. He served as a Spanish-speaking missionary in California and is currently serving on the High Council in the DC South YSA Stake and as a Bilingual Stake Missionary in the Oakton Stake.
Michael Cottle
Saturday Session Speaker
After serving a mission in California Fresno, Brother Michael Cottle attended BYU where he obtained a B.A. degree in History and Family Sciences and an M.Ed. in Educational Leadership Foundation. He then earned an Ed.D in Education Curriculum and Instruction from Utah State University. He has been an Seminary instructor in Utah, S&I Curriculum Writer at the Church Office Building in SLC, UT, and Region Director in the NANE Area. Currently, he is the Washington DC Metro coordinator for S&I, and Institute instructor. Michael Cottle is married to the most wonderful woman of the world, Jennifer and they have five beautiful children.
Senator Gordon H. Smith
Sunday Devotional Speaker
Former Senator Gordon H. Smith represented the State of Oregon as a US Senator from 1997 to 2009 and previously served as President of the Oregon State Senate, as well as being a practicing attorney and directing the family-owned Smith Frozen Foods business. After leaving Congress, Senator Smith worked as senior advisor at Covington & Burling, LLP, and in 2009 he was appointed President & CEO of the National Association of Broadcasters until his retirement in 2022. For a decade, he served as an Area Seventy in the North America Northeast Area. He and his wife Sharon are the parents of three children and five grandchildren.
Darren Gardner
Saturday Session Dance Instructor
Darren works as a federal criminal prosecutor in the DMV area, and moonlights as a country swing dance instructor, something he picked up in his home state of Utah and is working to bring to D.C. He teaches for Inspira Dance, a non-profit organization that uses proceeds from social dancing events to fund after-school dance programs in low-income schools. Darren has also served in the U.S. Army for over 15 years, and has backpacked through 75 countries and counting.
Saturday Afternoon Sessions
Explore the exciting lineup of Saturday morning sessions listed below, complete with times and locations. Be sure to arrive promptly for your chosen sessions and make the most of your conference experience!
Finding joy through Integrity, Creativity, Dance, Healthy Relationships, and Scriptures!
Finding Joy through...
Room | 9:30-10:10 | 10:20-11:00 | 11:10-11:50 |
|---|---|---|---|
Chapel | McKay Coppins Integrity | McKay Coppins Integrity | Traci Hunter Abramson Creativity |
Cultural Hall (gym) | Darren Gardner Dance | Darren Gardner Dance | |
Relief Society (upstairs) | Kelly Walker, Mark Thomas Relationships | Traci Hunter Abramson Creativity | Kelly Walker, Mark Thomas Relationships |
Primary (upstairs) | Michael Cottle Scriptures | Michael Cottle Scriptures |