Joint Spouses Conference a Success

  • Published
  • By Jeff Nicolay
  • 15 AW/PA
HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE --  More than 300 spouses from all branches of the military attended the 2007 Joint Spouses Conference (JSC) at the officers' club here.

The conference kicked off on Oct. 19 with an introduction by Irene Torres, 2007 JSC director Torres, followed by a prayer delivered in both Hawaiian and English by 15th Operations Group's Carol Kawai and Col. JJ Torres, 15th Airlift Wing commander, who also took to the podium to welcome attendees. Gen. Paul V. Hester, Pacific Air Forces commander also attended and was joined by his wife, Lynda, the event's honorary director. 

According to Mrs. Torres, the annual conference went off without a hitch. "It was a huge success," she said. "As we were finishing up on Saturday, I heard from a number of women who attended asking me why we couldn't do it twice a year."

During the two-day conference spouses had the opportunity to attend a variety of workshops with various topics including holiday table decorating, lei making, resume writing, basic car care, women's health issues, nutrition, and personal finance. The annual conference is hosted by a different military branch each year.

The workshops were well attended, as registration for the conference soared beyond sold-out status, according to Mrs. Torres. 

"We had planned for a maximum of 300 registrants," she said. "But we kept getting phone calls after we hit that number and decided we just had to share the aloha."
Mrs. Torres credited the success of the event to the "amazing, extraordinary women" who served on the 2007 JSC committee.

"Our theme was 'journey together,' and we did just that," she said. "They made it all happen ... I was just being a cheerleader." She said the Navy will host the 2008 JSC and will need the help of spouses from all service branches. For more information, visit the JSC Web site at www.jschawaii.com.