"Keepers of His Light" YWIE 2012

The mutual theme for 2012 was "Arise & Shine Forth."

So for our Young Women in Excellence program this year, we chose the theme to be

"Keepers of His Light."

 The whole evening was based around the girls individual testimonies. We wanted to spend the evening talking about the girls testimonies as their 'LIGHT.' How Personal Progress has helped strengthen that 'LIGHT.' How they can that light with others.

Naturally, we chose yellow to decorate in. I added grey & white (who doesn't LOVE grey & white?)

We also decorated with black lanterns & battery operated candles all over the room that were paired with pictures of Christ.

We held it in our RS room. Here is a look at the front of the room. The backdrops on either side of the large projection screen are just rolling chalk boards that we covered in white fabric. One of my Beehive advisers has boatloads of white fabric because her hubby is a photographer. I borrowed the chair covers from my friend who decorates for weddings. The yellow chair ties were from my secretary. :)

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the yellow and grey together.

 Down each side of the room, we set up narrow seminary tables so the girls could display their PP items. We asked the YW to display an experience/project they had done during the year that had strengthened their testimony...strengthened their 'LIGHT."
We also had each YW write down her testimony for us prior to YWIE.
That evening, we had a wood block with each girls testimony typed up on one side & The Living Christ on the other side. These blocks served as a sort of name plate for their display, as well as their hand out. I can't take credit for these blocks at all. My adorable secretary made ALL 25-30 of them for the girls.

"The Living Christ"                                          Testimony            

As the centerpieces on these LONG display tables, we grouped large frames filled scriptures that had to do with light. I made these & just printed them on card stock.We grouped lanterns and pictures of Christ around them and a few votive candles.

Even with 6-8 those narrow seminary tables down both sides of the room, We needed more space for YW displays. One of my AWESOME advisers has the idea to put another table in front of the piano to camouflage it. I LOVE the way it turned out. It hid the piano perfectly & gave us the extra space we needed for the girls displays.

 

In the back of the room we  had the dessert table, a small table for programs & a wall of pinwheels that we made to cover up the seminary display on the wall.

For the dessert table, we hung a painters tarp up behind it, to cover up a seminary display. We added the cute (and oh so easy to make) yellow Polk-a-dot garland & the Shine Forth Sign.

For the centerpiece, we just filled up frames with pictures of various activities that we'd done during the year. I WISH I had a picture of the DELICIOUS DESSERT that my first councilor made for that night. We wanted something "yellow." She make the BEST vanilla pudding parfaits that I have EVER tasted!!

Here was our small table with the programs on it. By the way, the program was fantastic. I really brought in the spirit to the evening. It went like this...

~OPENING REMARKS: by me :) based on Pres. Monson's talk "Believe, Obey, Endure." from the YW General Broadcast back in April of 2012. The prophet stated & I emphasised

"Is there a way to safety? Is there an escape from threatened destruction? The answer is a resounding yes! I counsel you to look to the lighthouse of the Lord. I have said it before; I will say it again: there is no fog so dense, no night so dark, no gale so strong, no mariner so lost but what the lighthouse of the Lord can rescue. It beckons through the storms of life. It calls, “This way to safety. This way to home.” It sends forth signals of light easily seen and never failing. If followed, those signals will guide you back to your heavenly home.

I wish to talk with you tonight about three essential signals from the Lord’s lighthouse which will help you to return to that Father who eagerly awaits your triumphant homecoming. Those three signals are believe, obey, and endure."

 It fit PERFECTLY with our theme of LIGHT & TESTIMONIES.

~TESTIMONIES OF VALUES: We then had 6 YW & 2 leaders bear their testimony on how a specific value strengthened their testimony.

~VIDEO PRESENTATION: One of my advisers had put together a video of all our YW bearing testimony on specific questions we asked them. This way EACH one of our YW were represented, but they didn't all have to get up & talk in front of everyone. It turned out GREAT!!

~CONCLUDING REMARKS: Our Bishop spoke about lightness & darkness. He based his remarks on the series of videos that Elder Bednar put out on that subject.

~CLOSING SONG: "Light on a Hill" by Jenny Phillips

For this song, we had our YW form a HUGE circle around the seats where everyone was sitting. We gave each girls a battery operated taper candle and turned off the lights before the music started.

The song started out as a solo for the first verse with only the soloist candle on. The rest of the room was dark. Then at the 1st chorus, we had a few more YW join in singing. As each girl joined, she would turn on her candle.

A few more started singing at the second verse until by the time we got to the second chorus ALL our girls were singing and all the candles were lit. Filling the room with light. It was BEAUTIFUL!! The girls did an absolutely AMAZING job with the song and the spirit was defiantly felt. At the end of the song I think the entire group of parents & leaders sitting in the middle were crying.

Here is our Pinwheel wall that we made to camouflage another seminary display. I can't take any credit for this either! My AWESOME second councilor made ALL THOSE PINWHEELS & I think they turned out DARLING.

The whole night was just PERFECT! It couldn't have turned out any better. I have to give credit to all my amazing YW leaders! They are the best & there is no way the evening would've been that great without their help.

I LOVE my calling! And my YW! I am SO blessed.
UPDATE: I've had lots of emails asking for the artwork that I used at this event. I have added it below. Feel free to download for your personal use. However, if you post it online, please link it back to my blog.

Thanks!!!