Since 1996, Barbara Barrington-Jones has been bringing her annual women's retreatto Laie, Hawaii. "A New You" has been a staple on campus, attractingwomen from all over the world to this, the most internationally diverse campusin the nation.
"We've had women come from everywhere," explained Barrington-Jones, creatorand director of the conference. Germany, Switzerland, Australia, England,Mongolia; this is a multi-cultural group coming to the multi-cultural campus.
This is the 10th year that A New You" has been on campus. The ideaof the conference began as a prayer back in 1980. At that time, Barrington-Joneswas not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. She recalls, "I was praying, andI asked the Lord for the desires of my heart. I wanted to have a program justforwomen. Women who were depressed, weighed down by their responsibilities, orjust burnt out. A type of program where we could help them look beyond theirtrials...kind of like an Especially for Youth for moms."
The week-long conference offers attendees a wide variety of courses and workshops.Topics include stress management, weight loss and fitness, personal instructionon hair and makeup, fashion tips for individual skin and body types, and a rangeof other features.
Each course is taught by one of the seven staff members who are all professionalsin their trade. For example, Cindy Wakefield, who teaches the fashion workshops,was the #2 salesperson in the world for Mary Kay cosmetics. She is also a memberof BYU-Hawaii President's Advisory Council.
Barrington-Jones developed a relationship with BYU-Hawaii when she beganlecturing here in 1985. She has spent her last 30 years devoted to improvingthe livesof women. In the late 90s, she founded the HBJ Foundation -- an organizationcommitted to enhancing the quality of life for women of all ages. She has alsoassisted countless young women in preparing for national beauty pageants, including6 Miss USA winners and 5 winners of America's Junior Miss.
She became heavily involved with the campus under the presidency of Dr. AltonWade. By 1994, Dr. Wade asked her to be one of the first members of the President'sRound Table, known today as the President's Leadership Council.
After President Shumway was inaugurated, both he and Barrington-Jones startedthe groundwork for hosting the type of program the latter had envisioned morethan 15 years earlier. A program that could be both "an internal and externalrejuvenation for these women."
Lisa Roubicek, from Clovis, CA, first came as a participant in 2003. She hasreturned every year and is now a counselor for the conference. "Womencome here for different reasons. They come in the midst of their trials lookingfor hope and strength to make positive changes. You can't take the trials away,but you can teach them what they need to make it through them."
Roubicek remembers one particular woman from 2004 that was going through manytrials. This woman, Roubicek said, had lost all self-confidence. "Shecame to the conference very depressed she had no joy. After the program,she believed in herself again. She regained her confidence, laughter, poiseand she was a totally different woman. You could see the joy in her face."
Jamie Radcliffe, Assistant Director of the conference, notes the benefit ofhaving the conference in La'ie. "Each woman that comes to this campuscomments on the special spirit they feel here. It is hallowed ground; and theyleave renewed taking the things they've learned with them andspreading the love of BYU-Hawaii."
Radcliffe continued, "In this Jubilee year, it's comforting to know thatthese women are doing exactly what President David O. McKay prophesied: "establishingpeace internationally."
The crowd favorite comes at the culmination of the conference, in the formof a fashion show. It enthusiastically closes the conference on an upbeat andentertaining note. One anonymous cat-walker emphasized, "Once the fashionshow is over, these women have a new light in their eyes. They look like newwomen...so happy. It is easy to tell when they've gotten what they were supposedto out of the conference.
Each participant is given a letter from President Shumway, calling them an "extraordinarygroup of alumni" and inviting them to go back to their part of the worldand "establish peace."
This year, more than 100 women came and left with a new understanding of theconference theme: "Spirit of Aloha; Spirit of Polynesia; Spirit of God."