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All Things Forum 2020

By Aly Tugaoen, Director of Forum

Aloha from beautiful Hawaii!

The MCCW board and the Forum planning team have been prayerfully planning Forum 2020 and are so excited to share our plans with you in this special issue of The Well!  

Our mission has been to create an experience that will connect you to the resources that MCCW offers; to unite you with new friends while reuniting you with friends from the past; and to inspire you to fully live your Catholic faith no matter your duty location or place within your personal faith journey.  

We look forward to leaving behind the distractions of our everyday lives, if only for a short time, to renew our FIAT to Christ’s Church.  While we modeled the theme of this year’s event on Mary’s Fiat to the Angel Gabriel in Luke 1:38, the church is filled with countless examples of saints who repeatedly said “yes” to the Lord, apostles who were martyred for their faith, and the inspirational causes for the canonization of everyday military servants of the Lord in Chaplain Emil Kapaun and Chaplain Vincent Capodanno. 

Our FIAT to Christ is not a “one and done.”   It is a choice we make each day, sometimes each hour, to live our lives as Catholic women in this world but not of this world.  I sincerely hope that this time with your fellow Sisters in Christ, our keynote speakers, and with our beloved AMS priests and seminarians will leave you refreshed and eager to continue serving in your vocation as wives, mothers and/or service members, and as members of your chapel groups worldwide. 

Read on for highlights about the Forum location, schedule, registration, and more. 

See you in San Antonio!

Location Highlights

Forum 2020 will be held at the beautiful Marriott Riverwalk in San Antonio, Texas, a city rich in military and Catholic history. Located at 889 E. Market St., the hotel is steps from the famed Riverwalk, where attendees will have opportunities for dining and shopping. During the weekend, we will worship in two historic churches in downtown San Antonio — St. Joseph’s Catholic Church and St. Mary’s Catholic Church. We will also have a front-row seat for San Antonio’s biggest annual celebration, Fiesta.

Schedule Highlights*

Here’s a sneak peek at what we have in store for you at Forum 2020:

Thursday, April 23
Friday, April 24
  • Daily Mass at St. Joseph’s
  • Special guest speaker: AMS co-sponsored seminarian
  • Two exciting keynote addresses 
  • Regional breakout sessions
  • MCCW signature program: Illuminated Rosary
  • Dinner on your own at San Antonio’s Riverwalk 
Saturday, April 25
Sunday, April 26
  • Closing Mass at St. Mary’s 
  • Installation of new MCCW board members
  • Forum will close at 10 a.m. 

We don’t want you to miss even one minute of the fun, formation, and fellowship. For departing air travel we recommend not booking flights before 1 p.m. on Sunday.

*Schedule subject to minor changes

Meals  

Here’s the scoop on meals during Forum:

Breakfast

With the exception of Sunday morning, all breakfast times are on your own.  We know some love a good hearty breakfast, while some just prefer a cup of coffee to get the day going.  Breakfast times are meant for you to do what works best for you and there are several dining options in and around the hotel that will accommodate all breakfast tastes. On Sunday morning, we will have a hearty sack breakfast option, complete with hot breakfast sandwiches. 

Lunch

All lunchtimes are also on your own. To allow you time to enjoy all that the Riverwalk has to offer and not feel rushed by Fiesta visitors, we have allotted extra time for lunch each day. Upon checking-in at Forum, you will receive a list of dining options in the vicinity that range from sit-down restaurants to quick self-service/fast food locations. The delicious hotel restaurant offers you one more convenient option. 

Snacks and Coffee Break

 On the opening night of Forum, light refreshments will be served prior to our first keynote address.  During the course of the weekend, coffee and tea breaks will also be provided. 

Dinner

Thursday and Friday night dinners will be a great opportunity for you to explore the many dining options available on the Riverwalk and in downtown San Antonio. Because it is Fiesta time, we encourage you to gather up your friends and make advance dining reservations. We will also have opportunities to sign up for group meals (pay-as-you-go) pre-reserved by MCCW. On Saturday night, we will provide our traditional three-course banquet dinner on our final night together.  

Registration

The two-step Forum registration process will open September 16. To begin registration, visit www.mccw.org/forum2020 and follow the links to EventBrite. You will use EventBrite to purchase your Forum tickets. Be sure to know if you will be paying or if your chapel will be subsidizing your Forum attendance before you begin registration and be careful to read all the online information for further instructions. 

Hotel reservations for Forum are separate from the purchase of your Forum tickets.  All attendees must make their reservations directly with the San Antonio Marriott Riverwalk.  

Reservations can be made by phone under the room block “MCCW Forum.” An even easier way to reserve your room for Forum is to visit https://book.passkey.com/go/MCCW2020 to be taken directly to our event page on the hotel’s website.  

The room block includes rooms with double beds. The room rate for all room types is $179.00 per night plus all applicable room fees and taxes. This rate is available for three nights before and after Forum. The cutoff for booking under the room block is April 1, 2020. 

Internet Access

The Marriott Riverwalk has complimentary internet available to  Marriott Bonvoy members. Bonvoy is a free rewards program, so don’t forget to sign up and bring your number to Forum.

The MCCW board looks forward to welcoming all of you to San Antonio in April 2020.

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