Women looking for renaissance of values

PHILADELPHIA - In the midst of gala events at the Philadelphia Marriott Tuesday, attracting big-name speakers and crowds numbering in the thousands, a more intimate meeting took place on the third floor of the downtown hub, and it didn't showcase famous politicians or push an organizational agenda.

The gathering consisted of members of the

Renaissance Foundation, a 17-year-old group that "challenges women to speak for themselves, and not be co-opted by self-proclaimed spokesmen for women," according to a statement by the group. Members of the loosely knit organization were there to answer the question, "What do women want?" - not just from a Republican administration, but from America as a nation.

Nina May

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"You all have something to say that is very important that the country needs to hear and that I feel resonates with the hearts and minds of American women," said chairman Nina May, encouraging members. "They feel like they have been co-opted by a leftist agenda, by the radical feminists who have claimed to speak for them through all of these years."

The overriding theme of the "Renaissance Women" is to "usher in a cultural renewal, a revival of excellence that challenges mediocrity and complacency in our nation," says May. "A true renaissance needs to occur that will encompass a philosophy that surpasses political arguments and embodies the spirit of who we were created to be, with inalienable rights, with uncompromised responsibilities, and with a knowledge emblazoned on our hearts of right and wrong."

So what do women want? Several Renaissance Women discussed the issues near and dear to their hearts, ranging from education to foreign aid to spiritual revival.

Linda Pirozzoli, who is now the owner and manager of a bed and breakfast in Virginia, decried the burdens of government regulation on business, saying there needs to be greater "balance" between business and regulation.

"I worked in the mining industry for 18 years, and I can attest to the fact that we are so totally over-regulated that we really need to make some changes ... if we expect to continue having a basic industry in our country anymore," she said. "The last project that I worked on was in California in the Mojave Desert. We spent three years and $30 million, and we were issued about 52 different permits, all with multiple conditions -- probably totaling over 100 conditions in each permit."

But Renaissance Women are not limited to experienced business professionals. They are high school and college students who tackle controversial issues of their generation.

"A persistent question in my life is, 'What is wrong with prayer out of schools?'" shared Jessica Pisani, a high school sophomore. "If I were having sex out of marriage, I would openly be offered contraceptives. If I were pregnant out of marriage, help to have an abortion is available for me. What if I choose to lead a moral life? If I choose to lead and walk in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, and I ask for help in the form of prayer, it is denied," she explained.

Drugs abuse is another issue of concern to young Renaissance Woman Jessica Henwood, also a high school student.

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"The catchy phrases such as DARE and the classes that we're required to take in school are not doing their job," Henwood boldly announced. "We need to get to the heart of the matter - we need to get to the homes of these children."

Henwood articulated what most members of the group appeared to embrace - that America's character as a nation is defined by its families.

"I think real women ... had a belly full these last eight years trying to explain to their children what was going on in the nation and on Pennsylvania Avenue," said speaker Claudia Barlow. "Real women want change for the better, and we are responsible for our own backyards, but we're also responsible for our larger villages, as someone once said. But the real buck starts not at the White House, but in our own homes."

"I have great hope and great expectations for our youth," added Nancy Coen, a minister, businesswoman and international humanitarian, "and I believe we're going to see many changes in [the Bush] administration, mainly in the area of education, to bring them back again to an understanding of who they are."

"I remember the days when I was growing up, that every day in our school started with prayer, that every day in our school we started with the 10 Commandments, that every day in our school we had the opportunity to say the Pledge of Allegiance. There was not much lack of understanding of who we were or what our roots were or where we came from," she continued.

Political strategist Judy Haynes agreed with Coen, noting that many school children do not know who America's founders were.

"One of the things I want is to be able to walk down Pennsylvania Avenue and look into the Capitol and then turn around and look at the White House and see a government that understands the price of freedom that was paid. We take that so lightly in our society," she said. "I also want to be able to walk into a seventh grade classroom and ask Johnny what his forefathers mean to him and not have him think it's a rock group."

Though Renaissance Women all "proclaim the right of every woman to make responsible choices for her life based upon traditional family values," they do not all agree on every issue.

Lynn Sauls is a member of the group and has been an international humanitarian for the last two decades and is advocating a doubling of federal foreign aid to two percent of the budget.

However, Becky Norton-Dunlop, a former Reagan official who ran the president's cabinet office, passionately argued that private organizations could do a better job than government.

Becky Norton Dunlop

"I believe people are our most important natural resource. God placed within each of us the desire to do things for each other, and I'm one of those people that believes government gets in the way too often of us doing for each other," Norton-Dunlop explained. "So I stand before you as a Renaissance Woman who's for less government -- I think there's too much in this country. I think that Renaissance Women should be able to keep all of the money they earn, except for the small portion that we need to send to Washington to do the things that the Constitution says the federal government should do.

"I think that each of us who work hard for a living and earn dollars would be more than happy to give larger amounts to ministries," she continued. "I know my husband and I consider it not only a privilege, but a responsibility to give to private organizations, because we know every dollar they get from us they're using more wisely to help more people than any government in the world will do."

Even in their differences, Renaissance Women reject the established feminist movement, supporting the right of women to stay home to raise children, if they choose to do so, without ridicule. Likewise, they support women who choose careers, and they embrace academics as well as the arts.

They also support George W. Bush, not as a collective, but as individuals. Many members enthusiastically cling to the Republican Party and its nominee, participating in the festivities of the convention.

So what do women want? As May is fond of saying, "You'll just have to ask one, but remember, she will only be speaking for herself."