The 19th annual Central Maine Ladies Retreat will begin at 9 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 29, at Kennebec Valley Baptist Church, 91 Marston Road, in Waterville.

Carol Kent, of Florida, a best-selling author and a international public speaker, will be the guest speaker. Best known for being dynamic, humorous, encouraging and Biblical, Kent is a former radio show co-host, and her messages have been broadcasted on Focus on the Family.

Kent has spoken internationally in South Africa, Germany, Bulgaria, China, Korea, Hong Kong, Guatemala, Mexico and Canada. She regularly appears on a variety of nationally syndicated radio and television broadcasts. Past appearances have included the Billy Graham Prime Time TV Special, Dateline NBC, CNN LIVE, The Harvest Show, Aspiring Women, Significant Living, In Touch with Charles Stanley, Focus on the Family, On Main Street, LIFE Today with James Robison, Prime Time America, Midday Connection, Family Life Today, HomeWord with Jim Burns, Key Life Network with Steve Brown, and 100 Huntley Street TV.

Kent is the president of Speak Up Speaker Services, a Christian speakers’ bureau committed to helping Christians develop their speaking, writing, and leadership skills. She and her husband, Gene, founded the nonprofit organization, Speak Up for Hope, which benefits inmates and their families. This ministry began when their only son was sentenced at a young age to life in prison for murder without the possibility of parole.

She is on the advisory boards of Advanced Writers and Speakers Association and MOPS International.

Kent has written 10 books and was co-author and general editor of five others. Her articles have been published in many magazines.

The retreat will include four sessions: Session one is Living in A New Kind of Normal; Session two: Developing Spiritual Authenticity; Session three: Turning Fear into Faith; and Session four: Becoming a Woman of Influence.

Registration will begin at 8 a.m. and the first session is set for 9 a.m. The registration deadline is Sept. 26.

The cost is $15. For more information, call the church at 872-7021 or visit kvbc.org.