virtual prolife convention 2025
welcome to the first of its kind
Our 2025 Keynote Speaker
Heather Lawless, CEO & Founder, Reliance Ministries & Author
Real Solutions to Heal the Culture: How to lead with LOVE in action
Heather Lawless, Founder of Reliance Ministries and Reliance Center, has been a part of the pro-love, pro-life movement for over a decade. She served as the Director of Development at a pregnancy center for almost six years. She always had a love for life, but her time there also grew her passion for helping women and families. She started an Embrace Grace group at her church and found that the need to provide long-term help to women AND men in crisis was real. Her desire to be there for them and then “prove it” became a fire in her heart. She wanted to increase the impact of the pregnancy help movement. In 2017, the Lord gave Heather the vision for Reliance Ministries and the Hope Model.
Presenters and Topics
Real Solutions to Heal the Culture: How to lead with LOVE in action
Keynote Speaker ~ Heather Lawless, CEO & Founder, Reliance Ministries & Author: We do talk about it:
Breaking the Silence on Sex, Shame, and Redemption
Beyond Dobbs: Repairing, Reebuilding, and Advancing a Future Rooted in Life.
A statistical and analytical review of the movement before and after Roe v Wade, and how
to best leverage messaging in this new landscape.
Speaker ~ Amy Baker, Director of Development National Right to Life
How One Truth Can Shatter Strongholds: Disenfranchised Men, Fatherlessness, and
Abortion
Speaker ~ Ron Hauenstein, President & Founder Spokane Fatherhood Initiative
Hidden Wounds, Hidden Choices: The impact of Unresolved Trauma
Speaker ~ Rachel Brenn, Executive Director SRT Services (Sexually-Related Trauma)
Unlocking Opportunities: The Ultimate Key That Opens Doors with Your Pastor
How to bring a Culture of Compassion into Your church Leveraging Miscarriage as a
Gentle Entry Point to the Greater Conversation About LIFE
Speaker ~ Janet Caldon, Pregnancy and Infant Loss Specialist at Care Net Pregnancy and
Family Services of Puget Sound
Pro-Life Basics – Sharing the Truth with Love
From Conflict to Connection: Mastering Difficult Conversations
Speaker ~ Michael Dumais, former Students for Life President, Whitworth University, and former
HLW Outreach Coordinator
Joni Shepherd
Executive Director
Hope and Grace Global
Hidden Wounds, Hidden Choices: The impact of Unresolved Trauma
Joni Shepherd is the Founder and Executive Director of Hope and Grace Global, a speaker, songwriter, entrepreneur, and author. Joni has worked in abortion healing for 35+ years and leads a sexual healing Bible study, Journey to Purity. In 1989, Joni co-founded a pregnancy center in Duncanville, Texas, and has also worked with other pregnancy centers in Dallas, Texas, and Portland, Oregon. In 2020, Joni established the SafeChurch™ Project.
Joni earned a Bachelor of Science in Holistic Nutrition. She has owned four businesses and is co-founder of two non-profits. Joni has authored two books, Why Can’t We Say the “A” Word in Church and Memoirs of a Christian Who Chose Abortion. She also developed and wrote the curriculum for three courses to equip the church to address identity, sexuality, pregnancy, and abortion proactively and redemptively: Get EQUIPPED, Be the SOLUTION, and Breaking TABOOS and Unveiling TRUTH. She is married to John Shepherd. Between them, they have five children, 15 grandchildren, and one great-grandchild so far. Joni lives in Colorado Springs.
Rachel Bren
Executive Director
SRT Services
Hidden Wounds, Hidden Choices: The impact of Unresolved Trauma
Rachel is a survivor of abuse who found her people at SRT Services in 2020 and made it her home. She is the Executive Director at SRT Services and is married with 2 kids. She considers herself a lifelong student and works to understand how trauma affects the mind, body, and soul.
Janet Caldon
Pregnancy and Infant Loss Specialist
Care Net Pregnancy & Family Services of Puget Sound
Unlocking Opportunities: The Ultimate Key That Opens Doors with Your Pastor
Janet Caldon has been helping women heal and grieve after pregnancy and infant loss for over 10 years. Janet is the mother of three children. Her daughter Rachel’s short life and death at only 25 days old marked the beginning of Janet’s ministry helping women who’ve experienced pregnancy and infant loss.
Ron Hauenstein
President & Founder
Spokane Fatherhood Initiative
How One Truth Can Shatter Strongholds: Disenfranchised Men, Fatherlessness, and Abortion
Ron’s passion for the fatherless was birthed in his experience as a volunteer since 2008 at the Union Gospel Mission’s Crisis Shelter for Women and Children. As Ron ministered to moms and kids, he witnessed the family devastation that comes from fatherlessness.
He began to accumulate a library of books and articles and research papers about fatherlessness and visited fatherhood programs in other communities. Through prayer and conversations, he eventually drew together a group of individuals who became a working committee that led to the formation of SpoFI.
Ron is a semi-retired life insurance agent. He was raised in Reardan, WA and began his life insurance career in Fairbanks, Alaska. He and his wife Becky have two grown children. Ron and Becky attend Victory Faith Fellowship in the Spokane Valley and have lived in Spokane since 1993.
Amy Baker
Director of Development
National Right to Life
Beyond Dobbs: Repairing, Reebuilding, and Advancing a Future Rooted in Life
I stepped into this work with a heart shaped by lived experience — and a deep desire to stand for those who cannot stand for themselves.
Today, I serve as Director of Development at National Right to Life, where I help lead donor engagement, strategic messaging, and advocacy efforts that support life at every stage. My background spans media, public policy, and nonprofit development, and I’ve worked at both the state and national levels to build partnerships and communicate with clarity and compassion.
At the core of everything I do is a simple conviction: every life has value. Whether coordinating national campaigns or quietly walking alongside others, I believe in showing up with purpose, humility, and excellence.
I’m always open to connecting with others committed to protecting life and strengthening the next generation.
Michael Dumais
former
Outreach Coordinator
Human Life of Washington
Pro-Life Basics - Sharing the Truth with Love
Michael Dumais became pro-life at an early age when he learned what abortion was. Many of his family have volunteered in compassionate pro-life outreach, including recovery programs for people suffering abortion-related trauma. He was taught to try to understand people on the other side of any issue, and was frustrated to see and to experience how common it is for pro-life and pro-choice people to talk past each other. He has devoted much of his professional career to understanding and teaching effective pro-life apologetics so that pro-lifers can speak the truth with love, respect, and a practical understanding of both sides of the issue.
Michael majored in history, with an emphasis on understanding struggles for human rights throughout history as well as the root causes of war and genocide. His studies have lent a unique perspective in studying the history of the abortion issue as well as other matters of human rights and equality.
You can read his guidebook on Sharing the Truth with Love HERE.