The Influence Conference

When I started my Patty's Pretty Things blog almost two years ago, I had no idea of the opportunities that would come my way. Recently I was approached by Christina Berry of The Lazy Pit Bull to join the Indy Social Media Moms. That sounded great to me because I have wanted to meet other Indiana bloggers. First I attended an Indians baseball game on behalf of Indy Social Media Moms and now I had the opportunity to represent them at The Influence Conference.

I knew nothing about The Influence Conference or The Influence Network before receiving the invitation to attend it. This is what I learned about them. This was the second Influence Conference for The Influence Network. It was started by two bright young women, Jessi Connolly of Naptime Diaries and Hayley Morgan of The Tiny Twig, who had the desire to combine a blogging conference with one for gospel-minded women. The word Influence means that everyone has the influence to spread the news and work of the Lord. The conference is just one piece of the Influence Network. According to The Influence Network's website, The Influence Network is for creatively minded women who are looking for an uplifting community where they can be encouraged and also resourced to make their online lives mean something. The Network is available year round offering online classes and many other inspirations.

The conference was held at the Westin, in downtown Indianapolis. It was generally a young crowd, with inspiring women who were very excited to be there, several carrying their newborn babies in slings or in strollers. There were young dads there too, supporting the moms and helping to care for the children. Right off, I met Erin James from California who has a blog called Sweetness Itself. 

One of the requirements of my attending this conference was to send information about it via Twitter and Facebook which meant I had to create a Twitter account and learn how to tweet. My first effort resulted in a photo being sent sidewise, then I asked a couple of the women there to help me. I thought I was pretty good with technology yet I learned a number of new things about social media from my contacts there.

Creativity was everywhere I looked. 

Upon registering, we received gift bags filled with really nice things.

The Sashes Handmade Market offered a fabulous selection of beautiful items. I was impressed with the quality of the products.

Some of the items there came from young entrepreneurs and others were handmade by individuals of helping organizations. There was much love throughout the whole place.

These adorable little purse keychains (for a dollar) were handmade byTavi.com for the Center for Global Impact to support poor families in Cambodia. We received one in our gift bag.

Elephant coin purses made byTavi as well

I love bulletin boards and this one caught my eye in the reception area by SheReadsTruth.

On Thursday evening, a variety of petit fours were served for our enjoyment.

Here's a closer look of some pretty petit fours.

I enjoyed being part of the shoe making party for Sole Hope on Thursday evening. Poor children in Africa do not have shoes and get chiggers in their feet. We saw a video that showed how this organization picks out the chiggers with large safety pins. After the removal, the child's feet are washed in basins, antibiotic ointment is applied, their feet are wrapped in gauze and protected with a new pair of these shoes. The shoes will assist in healing and protect them from further harm. 

Our table traced the pieces onto old pairs of jeans while other tables cut them out. The pieces will be sent to seamstresses who will make them into shoes.

Mother and daughter, Suzanne and Heather, from Texas.

Here are some baby shoes made by Sole Hope that were for sale at the Sashes Market.

Here Hayley opened the conference and was talking about The Freedom of the Greatest News.

There were many fabulous workshops throughout the conference that touched on all aspects of online business and faith. Lara Casey of Lara Casey Media, who created Southern Weddings magazine, was one of the speakers. She didn't have experience in journalism or the magazine trade, but she had a dream that became a reality. She talked about how God changed her life, her marriage and her business.

I was very impressed with these young and dedicated entrepreneurs and am so glad to have had the opportunity to learn about the Influence Network. I felt they were genuine in their commitment and sincerely interested in what I had to say. We exchanged business cards and I look forward to visiting their blogs. I know great things will continue to happen for this organization as it grows. 

These are just a few of the items that were in the swag bag,
plus a pile of business cardsI received at the bottom right.

More information about The Influence Network and Indy Social Media Moms can be found by clicking on the icons below.