Lost Sparrows Trauma Conference 2024

Our 4th annual Trauma Conference September 6-7
Warsaw Community Church
Warsaw, Indiana

This conference is for anyone wanting to learn more about developmental trauma and the impact of early childhood adversity. We hope you will join us as we learn from leading experts more about the human experience, the impact of traumatic experiences, and how to better help those in pain.
EDUCATION

“Education is the key that unlocks the golden door to freedom.”
-George Washington Carver

Our approach to trauma education is twofold. First, we want to empower those with trauma to recover and to understand the impact their trauma has had on them. Second, we want to equip everyone with the knowledge and tools to help others that are hurting. All of us endure hardship and adversity on some level, and the more we understand its impact, the better we all will be able to support each other.

COMMUNITY

“A healthy community is a healing community, and a healing community is full of hope” - Dr. Bruce Perry

The impact of broken relationships and childhood adversity is felt by all of us. Now more than ever, we need meaningful relationships with people that provide support. At this conference you will have the opportunity to grow your community
and experience the amazing feeling of being surrounded by others with similar challenging life situations.

CONNECTION

"Connectedness has the power to counterbalance adversity”
- Dr. Bruce Perry

A sense of interconnectedness and belonging are vital to the resilience of any person, family or community. We want our attendees to connect with each other in a meaningful way. We believe we’re all stronger when we are not isolated, but connected and sharing the experience of life together.

2024 TraumaCon Theme

“There is a direct relationship between a person’s degree of social isolation and their risk for physical and mental health problems…But when you have connectedness - your “church home” - you have built-in buffers for whatever stress or distress you experience.” - Dr. Bruce Perry - What Happened to You?

Ticket Types

GENERAL

$189

1 Conference Ticket

PURCHASE NOW

1 In-Person Conference Ticket

1 month access to Conference Sessions

on Thinkific

Certificates for Continuing Education hours

SAVE $10

FOSTER

$179

Discounted Price for Foster & Adoptive Parents

PURCHASE NOW

1 In-Person Conference Ticket

1 month access to Conference Sessions

on Thinkific

Certificates for Continuing Education hours

COLLEGE

$159

Discounted Price for College Students

PURCHASE NOW

2 In-Person Conference Tickets

1 month access to Conference Sessions

on Thinkific

Certificates for Continuing Education hours

GA + NASW

$289

For those looking to receive NASW certificates

PURCHASE NOW

1 In-Person Conference Ticket

NASW Approved Certificates

1 month Access to Conference Sessions

Following Conference

GENERAL

$139

1 Single-day ticket

PURCHASE NOW

1 In-Person Conference Ticket (Single Day)

1 month access to Conference Sessions

on Thinkific

Certificates for Continuing Education hours

FOSTER

$129

Discounted Price for Foster and Adoptive Parents

PURCHASE NOW

1 In-Person Conference Ticket (Single-Day)

1 month access to Conference Sessions

on Thinkific

Certificates for Continuing Education hours

COLLEGE

$119

Discounted Price for College Students

PURCHASE NOW

1 In-Person Conference Ticket (Single-Day)

1 month access to Conference Sessions

on Thinkific

Certificates for Continuing Education hours

SOCIAL WORKER CERTIFICATES

GA + NASW

$229

For those looking to receive NASW certificates

PURCHASE NOW

1 In-Person Conference Ticket (Single Day)

NASW Approved Certificates

1 month Access to Conference Sessions

Following Conference

Which ticket should you purchase?
Standard Tickets vs. NASW tickets

All Lost Sparrows Conference attendees will receive certificates for each session they attend. All our sessions are approved by Indiana Department of Child Services for licensed foster family training hours.

However, if you are a professional needing CE certificates approved by National Association of Social Workers, you should purchase an NASW ticket rather than a standard General Admission ticket. NASW certificates will be provided only for the sessions that are approved by the National Association of Social Workers Indiana Chapter, which will be clearly designated on the schedule.

Currently waiting for our list of approved sessions from IN NASW.

2024 Speakers

Learn more about this year's speakers

Friday

September 6

  • 8:00 - 9:00 am | Registration / Check-in / Breakfast

  • 9:00 - 10:00 am | Keynote Session #1

  • 10:15 - 11:30 am | Breakout Session #1

  • 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Lunch

  • 1:00 - 2:15 pm | Breakout Session #2

  • 2:35 - 3:50 pm | Breakout Session #3

  • 4:00 - 4:45 pm | Keynote Session #2

Saturday

September 7

  • 8:00 - 9:00 am | Registration / Check-In / Breakfast

  • 9:00 - 10:00 am | Keynote Session #3

  • 10:15 - 11:30 am | Breakout Session #4

  • 11:30 am - 12:30 pm | Lunch

  • 12:40 - 1:55 pm | Breakout Session #5

  • 2:15 - 3:00 pm | Closing Session

Frequently Asked Questions

Don't see your question here? Email us at [email protected]

Our annual Trauma Conference is being held at Warsaw Community Church, 1855 S County Farm Rd, in Warsaw, Indiana. WCC is a terrific venue, with beautiful accommodations. All our sessions and lunch will be held within the building. If weather cooperates, we will be able to utilize some outside space as well. We will use all 3 floors of the building, which fortunately has an elevator. 

General Admission

  • These tickets are for anyone who does not qualify for our other pricing options and would like to attend the Lost Sparrows Trauma Conference in 2024, and does not need NASW CEH certificates.

Foster/Adopt

  • We want to love our foster and adoptive families well which is why we offer a discount for these two groups of parents. If you are trauma parenting a child in care, have a kinship placement, or adopted children, we really want you to come to this conference. 

College

  • For college students wanting to attend Lost Sparrows Trauma Conference. Must present valid college ID at check-in.

NASW

  • These tickets are for those looking to get certificates that have been approved by the National Association of Social Workers Indiana Chapter. Not every session will be approved, and those approved will be clearly designated on the schedule. In 2023 we were approved for 15 hours. 

After you purchase your ticket(s) you should be directed to a jotform to select what sessions you would like to attend. 

If you purchased more than one ticket, you should submit the jotform for each ticket purchased.

If you did not get redirected to the jotform after purchase, navigate to your dashboard on parentingchildrenwithtrauma.org and complete the Pre-Conference Checklist course. 

If you need additional assistance contact [email protected] 

After purchasing your tickets, you will be directed to a thank you page that provides additional seat management options.

To grant access to additional attendees for whom you purchased tickets:

  • Share the invite link provided on the post-checkout thank you page with the additional attendee(s).
  • The additional attendee(s) will be directed to the checkout page for the ticket type that was purchased.
  • The additional attendee(s) must create their own account on parentingchildrenwithtrauma.org prior to the in-person conference in order to receive certificates and access breakout recordings following the in-person conference.
  • Once their account is set up, the additional attendee(s) can register for their chosen breakout sessions.

Example: Jane Doe purchases 2 Foster tickets for herself and her husband, John. Jane shares the invite link with John, who then creates an account on parentingchildrenwithtrauma.org. After setting up his account, John can register for his preferred breakout sessions and will be able to access his certificates at the conference. 

This year's conference has a total of 5 different sessions over 2 days. There are 3 on Friday and 2 on Saturday. At each time slot there are 4 breakout choices, and 2 workshop choices. Attendees should select their  breakouts or workshop choices prior to the conference, as some will reach capacity quickly. 

Yes! We will have a variety of boxed lunches available from local restaurants such as Jimmy Johns, McAllisters, Subway, or other similar locations. 

Lost Sparrows Conference is not just for foster and adoptive parents looking to learn how to better serve their children. We have a variety of breakout sessions centered around helping children with trauma in the school setting as well. If you are a teacher, educator, or administrator looking to learn about trauma, its effect on children, and how you can cater to students with trauma, this conference is for you too!

All of us will be impacted by some form of trauma in our lifetime. If you are interested in learning more about the impact of trauma for yourself, or others, there will be many beneficial sessions. 

Some of the topics covered will be addiction & enabling, trauma parenting, guilt & shame, identity formation, relational difficulties, communication, attachment disorders, ACEs, and more. 

All attendees are welcome to show up early for a light breakfast with pastries, fresh fruit, and coffee or tea. 


As a faith based organization, our conference has an important faith component, with many faith based sessions. But we also have many academic sessions that will not have a faith focus. We will do our best to communicate well regarding each session so that attendees will be able to choose which sessions they feel will serve their needs best. If you have any reservations, please do not hesitate to ask conference staff before signing up. 

There may be limited scholarships available for this year's conference. Submit the form below or email [email protected] if you have any questions. Scholarships will be awarded at the discretion of Lost Sparrows based on quantity available and need.  Also, if you are a member of a faith community, we encourage you to ask your church to help cover expenses related to coming to the conference. 

Scholarship Application

Tickets are fully refundable by August 30th. If you have purchased a ticket, but are unable to attend, email [email protected] to request a refund. We will do our best to process any request as quickly as possible, but they may take up to 2 weeks. 

Breakout Sessions - lecture-style classes with minimal student involvement & larger class size

Workshop - smaller class size, more hands-on and skill-based or experiential classes


example: Vanessa Pohl's Resilience Building Through The Arts Workshop will involve students creating watercolor paintings

You do not have to pre-register. For whatever reason, if you are unable to pre-register, you may register in the morning between 8-9am on either Friday or Saturday morning. The main draw-back to registering on the day of the event is that some of the breakout sessions may be full. 

Yes, you may pay with a check at any point. If you would like paper copies of registration forms, please email [email protected] and we will send those to you. You may return the paper registration form, along with a check by mail to the address listed below. You may also wait to register and pay with a check on the morning of the conference. 

Lost Sparrows

PO Box 751

Winona Lake, IN 46590

Here is our letter of approval from the Indiana Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers. It includes information on which sessions are eligible for social workers to received category 1 CEHs. 


The following are hotels that we are working with this year, along with their information if you’d like to make a reservation.  Please book no later than August 5th and ask for the Lost Sparrows Group block in order to take advantage of the discounted rates. 


  • Comfort Inn and Suites - $95/room

Address: 3328 E Center St, Warsaw, IN 46582 

Phone: (574) 310-8669


  • Fairfield Inn - $102/room

Address: 54 Petro Dr, Warsaw, IN 46582 

Phone: (574) 385-2700


  • Hampton Inn - $119/room

Address: 115 Robmar Dr, Warsaw, IN 46580 

Phone: (574) 268-2600


  • Best Western - $80/room 

Address: 3825 Lake City Hwy, Warsaw, IN 46580 

Phone: (800) 780-7234

Countdown to #LSTC24

Don't wait, secure your spot at Lost Sparrows' Trauma Conference today!

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