The Rev. Heddie Simmons' mother died when she was 14. She and her siblings suffered physical and mental abuse after their loss. Simmons had one mentor, but she longed for more guidance. Her experience drives her to mentor others.
Simmons will speak at the Titus II Woman's Lunch & Learn gathering at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Bethlehem Center. She wants to help women remember their purpose.
If you go
› What: Titus II Woman Lunch & Learn, featuring “Vision and Purpose” with the Rev. Heddie Simmons› When: 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 15.› Where: Bethlehem Center, 200 W. 38th St.› Admission: Free.› Online: www.rlwchristiancenter.info.
The Rev. Heddie Simmons, above, will speak at the Titus II Woman Lunch & Learn today at the Bethlehem Center. (Photo from Heddie Simmons)"I'll be taking us back to when we were children and how we all had dreams, and then life happened and it kept us from working on our goals," says Simmons.
Simmons is a registered nurse and minister at Redemptive Life Christian Fellowship in Conyers, Georgia.
She is among multiple speakers that the Rev. Cornelia Williams has scheduled for her Titus II Woman Lunch & Learn initiative. It happens at 2 p.m. every third Saturday at the Bethlehem Center.
Linda Bolton, a fitness trainer, certified by eight-time Mr. Olympia winner Lee Haney, will be the Oct. 20 speaker. And Williams is planning a second national Titus II Woman meeting in Chattanooga in August 2019.
"I want the word to get out to the women in Chattanooga about the Titus II Woman," Williams says. "These are free workshops that they can come to. They can gain knowledge on how to manage money, about health and wellness, about emotional things, relationships and soul ties."
The purpose is that every women be made "whole, complete and sound in spirit, soul and body," she says.
Williams grew up in Chattanooga in the now-defunct Spencer J. McCallie Homes before moving to Atlanta. She trained in ministry under the Rev. Creflo Dollar, pastor of World Changers Church International, and started her Titus II Woman meetings there. She returned to Chattanooga in 2016 after the death of her mother. She is founder of Rivers of Living Water Christian Center in Chattanooga and author of "The Titus II Woman Being God's Example."
She is so driven to help women that she funds the Titus II Lunch & Learn gatherings out of pocket.
But even with a free lunch offered, only seven to 10 people attend. Williams wants 50 to 100.
Cornelia Williams, pastor of Rivers of Living Water Christian Center, founded the Titus II Woman initiative to improve the lives of women in her community.The goal is for every woman to know the very essence of her being for the kingdom of God as laid out in Acts 10:28, she says.
She takes the title, Titus II, from verses in the Bible. Titus 2:3-5 talks about teaching older women to be reverent, not slanderous and addicted to wine. It encourages younger women to love their husbands, their children and be self-controlled.
Williams started the Titus II ministry in Chattanooga after meeting with the Bethlehem Center's executive director, Reginald F. Smith.
She visited the center to see what programs it offered that she could implement in her church. He just happened to mention that he was looking for someone to start a "Titus II ministry."
"This came out of his mouth," says Williams. "He said, 'I just wish I could find somebody who could teach women here in the community about being a Titus II woman,' and I fell on the floor. I said, 'You've got to be kidding. That's what I'm here for.'"
She hosted the first Titus II Woman meeting at the Bethlehem Center in June 2017.
The women who come to Saturday's Titus II luncheon will be inspired to dream and develop a plan to achieve it, says Simmons.
Everybody who attends will leave with a vision board, she says.
"I hate seeing people who are striving, and they never get that inspiration," says Simmons. "They don't realize you can use whatever is going on in your life to make it to the next level."
Contact Yolanda Putman at yputman@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6431.