Late they arrived, but they did make it fine. I picked them up at the bus station around 8 p.m. Vicki didn't teach at this one, but she had people requesting her material in written form that she'd given at other ladies' retreats and had requests for advice throughout the day.
One of two speakers was Marlene, a sister in Christ from Belo Horizonte. She blames me for getting her started with public speaking. She's been a speaker at ladies' events nine times so far this year, with two more commitments already set, and two more invitations came to her today. I'm not sure how I served as an encouragement to her during the time we worked at the congregation where she worshiped, but I'm glad to have been a small cog in her life. She's told me she's writing a book as well.
Vicki also heard that Belo Horizonte missionaries Mike and Melody Ford, with whose lives ours has intertwined at different points, will be returning permanently to the US. They were instrumental in establishing the El Dorado congregation in the city of Contagem.
About 120 participated today in the ladies' day at the Itaquera congregation in the capital. Besides Marlene, a sister from the hosting congregation also spoke. It started, after registration and breakfast, at 9:30 a.m., and finished around 5 p.m.