Original Conference 2023

Jen DeWeerdt

Conference Host, Author & Lead Pastor, City First Church

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Jen DeWeerdt serves with her husband, Jeremy, as the Senior Leaders of City First Church, a growing, multi-generational, multi-cultural church in Rockford, IL. She is honored to play a key role in the very church she grew up in. As pastor, communicator, author, and founder of the Original Women's Conference, Jen is passionate about encouraging and empowering women to step into their God-given callings, regardless of their profession. Thousands of women have discovered their destiny and design through these powerful conferences. Jen and Jeremy have been married since 1995 and have three sons: Caden, Connor, and Paxton. When she is not cheering on her boys, you will find her enthusiastically rooting for her Chicago sports teams (White Sox not included).

Lisa Seaton

Senior Executive Pastor, City First Church

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Lisa Seaton is passionate about empowering others to live a life full of God's freedom, truth, and purpose! She serves on the Executive Team at City First Church and is a founding member of the Original Women's Conference. She resides in Rockford, Illinois with her amazing husband, Adam and their two wild boys, Nash and Ryder.

Lisa Harper

Author & Speaker

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Rarely are the terms "hilarious storyteller" and theological scholar" used in the same sentence, much less used to describe the same person but then again, Lisa Harper is anything but stereotypical! She's been lauded as a compelling communicator, whose writing and speaking emphasize that accruing knowledge about God pales next to a real and intimate relationship with Jesus.  Her style combines sound biblical exposition and exegesis with engaging anecdotes and comedic wit. Pastor Max Lucado calls Lisa one of the "best Bible tour guides around," and author/actress Priscilla Evans Shirer adds, "Her God-given ability to not merely teach the Word but package it in a way that stirs the heart and calls to action is incomparable. When she speaks, ears perk up!" Lisa's vocational resume is comprised 0f 30+ years of church and para-church ministry leadership, including 6 years as the director of Focus on the Family's national women's ministry where she created the popular "Renewing the Heart" conferences, which were where she spoke to over a million women about the unconditional love of God. her academic resume includes a Masters of Theology Studies from Covenant Seminary, and she recently completed her doctoral studies at Denver Seminary and is now working on her thesis. She's been featured on numerous television and radio programs and is a regular on TBN's globally syndicated Better Together show. She's spoken at hundreds of national and international women's events, as well as in churches around the world. She's also invested locally and has been leading the same weekly neighborhood Bible study for 15 years. And if you can't find her teaching, studying, hiking, or riding her motorcycle, she's probably in a coffee shop sipping a mocha and typing away on her computer because she's also had 14 books published - including the recent best-selling devotional, Life, and has written and filmed 6 well-received Bible study video curriculums, including Job: A Story of Unlikely Joy and How Much More:  Discovering God's Extravagant Love in Unexpected Places. However, when asked about her credentials, the most noticeable thing about Lisa Harper is her authenticity. During a recent interview, she said, "I'm so grateful for the opportunities God's given me but don't forget, He often uses donkeys and rocks!" She went on to describe her greatest accomplishment to date as getting to become Missy's mom through the miracle of adoption. Because in 2014, after a difficult journey and several adoption losses, she finally got to bring her daughter home from Haiti and she's been smiling even wider ever since!

Donna Pisani

Author, Pastor, and Co-founder of Circle of Twelve

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Donna, the author of "The Power of Not Yet - Living a Life of Endless Possibilities", and her husband Dennis were the founding Pastors of Capital City Church in Washington DC metro area. They have recently transitioned to a new role using their forty years of ministry experience to coach and encourage pastors and leaders. Donna is a dreamer, loves adventure, and lives for date night with Dennis, family time with her kids and grandchildren, and a daily supply of coffee and chocolate. Her greatest passion is to see people empowered to live a life of endless possibilities, connecting with their unique, God-given purpose and living fully in their leadership gifts.