This African American Catholic Evangelization Conference (IAACEC), was not a mere accident. Seeds for this event were planted 15 years ago in the Archdiocese of Louisville with the Roots of It All Conference. M. Annette Mandley-Turner convened in Baton Rouge, Louisiana to share the Roots of It All model and to discuss how it was a response to the National Black Catholic Congress’ agenda. Participants from Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee joined the state of Louisiana in drafting goals that would shape their vision of collaborative ministry in addressing the evangelization of African Americans with the Roots of It All model.

The participants of Region V left Louisiana with the vision of planting seeds for the empowerment of their people.

The regional group convened a year later to:

• Provide support and create a network system
• Review the status of implementing the National Black Catholic Congress Pastoral Plan, (NBCCPP), at the local level
• Reviewed the collaborative regional plan for evangelization that would be independent of other conferences and organizations

Fall of 1991, after many telephone conversations, the Offices of Black Catholic Ministries (OBCM), in Region V shared the collaborative vision with the National Association of Black Catholic Administrators (NABCA). The charge was given to M. Annette Mandley-Turner to act on NABACA’s behalf concerning the evangelization project.

October 1993, NABCA’s membership met in Jacksonville, Florida and was presented with the draft of the Region V Evangelization Planning Conference. NABCA affirmed the effort and voted to be an intricate part of the conference.

November 1993, under the leadership of M. Annette Mandley-Turner, 59 people convened in Louisville, Kentucky and laid the foundation for the 1995 African American Catholic Evangelization Conference. NABCA’s presidents, Jacqueline Wilson, and Treasurer, George Findley, agreed to serve on the Coordinating Committee along with Sophie Aramburo, Deacon Curtis Talley and Rev. William Norvel, S.S.J.

M. Annette Mandley-Turner, founding member of the IAACEC, assumed the role as conference coordinator. The Coordinating Committee gave the approval for Jacqueline Wilson to draft a proposal for a grant to serve as seed money. Archbishop Thomas C. Kelly, O.P, Louisville, Bishop James Terry Steib, S.V.D., D.D., Memphis, and Cardinal Archbishop James Aloysius Hickey of Washington, DC signed and endorsed the proposal.

March 1994, the grant was approved and the Coordinating Committee met to finalize the site and outline for the conference with the anticipation of attracting 300-400 people.

May 1994, the dream became a reality as brochures were printed. Five weeks later, fifty people from Florida registered and by January 1995, 600 people were pre-registered.

March 1995, the Diocese of Memphis hosted the 1st gathering where 1,040 participants attended. The theme was “Planting, Cultivating, and Harvesting.” The experience was enriching and put participants in touch with their roles as evangelizers. The enthusiasm felt by all attending and presenting set the bar for the future.

February 1997, the Diocese of Birmingham hosted our second gathering. The focus was "Cultivating Our Gifts". We were blessed to have a group of leaders to make the experiences life giving. M. Annette Mandley-Turner served as the Coordinator and Dr. Hilbert Stanley provided excellent support on Congress’ behalf. We had 750 participants to attend.

November 2000, the Diocese of Memphis invited the Conference back for the third gathering. The Diocese of Cleveland collaborated in our efforts which grew to become an interregional endeavor. The focus was "Harvesting Our Gifts". M. Annette Mandley-Turner continued to provide leadership as the Conference Coordinator. There were 600 attending participants.

October 2003, the Archdiocese of Louisville hosted the fourth IAACEC. The focus was “Renewing the Face of the Earth.” The participants came from 32 dioceses. Many directors and coordinators of evangelization attended the gathering which had 500 attendees.

June 2005, the Diocese of Memphis waved their welcome flag to invite IAACEC for a third time for the fifth Conference. Their hospitality was second to none. We were honored to have Bishop James Terry Steib, S.V.D., D.D. to be with us all three days. Bishop Martin D. Holley, D.D. also joined the gathering and energized the participants in his workshop with his strong message. The Diocese of Charleston joined in our initiative as one of the sponsors. Again we were blessed and 400 participants registered.

August 2006, the Archdiocese of Atlanta opened their doors to extend an invitation to M. Annette Mandley-Turner to host the sixth IAACEC. We were joined by NBCC’s Youth and Young Adult Commission and the Diocese of Raleigh as part of our conference Committtee. The Executive Committee consisted of Martha Bailey-Raleigh, Rev. Edward Branch-Archdiocese of Louisville, Rev. Anthony Clark-Diocese of Memphis, Vanessa Griffin- Campbell-Diocese of Cleveland, J. Vincent Johnson-Diocese of Memphis, Kathleen Merritt-Diocese of Charleston, John Phillips-Archdiocese of Atlanta/NBCC, Charles Prejean–Archdiocese of Atlanta, M. Annette Mandley-Turner-Archdiocese of Louisville/NBCC, Christina Weathers–Diocese of Lexington, Bertharene Young–Diocese of Memphis, and Deacon Roy Winters-Archdiocese of Cincinnati.

Presently, in 2009, the IAACEC invites your participation in the 7th Interregional African American Catholic Evangelization Conference. This conference offers you new ideas, relationships and fosters collaboration and networking.

The overall goal of the conference is to be one of evangelization that strives to achieve the National Black Catholic Congress’ Youth and Young Adult principles, while at the same time prepare all participants for and promote the 2012 National Black Catholic Congress.