Good morning everyone!  I would like to share some good news with you. Last year our province increased its membership by 113 members! We were one in only four provinces in the country to have a membership increase, and that’s something to be proud of!

Although, having said that, our membership total at the end of 2009 was 9,549 members and my goal for 2010 has been to increase our provincial membership to 10,000, so this year we all must work together as women of peace and hope to increase our membership by 451 members. It can be done! Between our 131 parish councils, each council only needs to invite 3 new members and we will have reached the 10,000 membership goal. As an incentive national has introduced a competition for this year, called The 2010 Membership Incentive Program. The per capita fees for 2011 will be waived for all members in two councils – first: the one with the highest absolute increase in members and second: the one with the highest percentage increase in members from the 2010 membership drive. So, who have you asked to join the League lately?

Now I have another question for you. What does it take to be the organization standing committee chairperson? Does it take incredible organizational skills? I hope not completely, because if it did I have a feeling my husband might say I need another two years at this job to try and get it right! Being organized definitely helps, but it is not the sole criteria. So, is the duty of the organization chairperson to recruit and gather memberships? Well, yes it is, but if that was all the position entailed I, on the provincial level would have a wonderfully easy job, since membership is taken at the parish level and our provincial numbers are sent with the per capita from national to our provincial treasurer and she informs me of our membership stats.

So, what else is involved in the organization standing committee? Well, there’s leadership development. This means the chairperson should promote and encourage attendance at League functions, development days, workshops, training days and conventions. She should also promote long range planning for all standing committees. To do all this she needs to understand the League and its immense potential to be Gods hands of love in society and to have enthusiasm for all that the League is and does.

Organization chairs should also be aware of life members in their council and make use of their knowledge and wisdom of the League to help her in developing leadership skills in all members. To encourage growth in the League we need to promote leadership and true leadership comes through service and love.

The organization chairperson is responsible for ensuring her council has copies and promotes the use of all League publications and resource materials. And for annually reviewing and updating the council’s policy and procedure manual.

Lastly, she is responsible for circulating and ensuring the completion of annual reports. I know many of us look at annual reports as a pain in the side, waste of time, paperwork, but if you understand how each council’s annual reports complete a section of a beautiful tapestry that exhibits the wonderful works of the League as a whole and how without those reports the tapestry is incomplete and loses some of it’s beauty, then annual reports become a joy to complete! And we can go with confidence to government knowing that they have a clear vision of the works the League does throughout the world.

So, what does it take to be the organization standing committee chairperson? It takes enthusiasm, a willingness to serve and love lots of love. Can any member hold this position? Yes! All it takes is saying yes to God and He will give back riches to your life a 100 fold. He has in my life. Thank you to each of you as you have journeyed with me this past two years. I love you all.

I pray everyone had a blessed Christmas with family and friends and are now rejuvenated once again to continue in our work for God and Canada.

Membership

January is officially membership month, although we should be welcoming members throughout the entire year. For 2009 our provincial membership was 9,525. My challenge for our province is to reach 10,000 members in 2010. That’s only 475 new members throughout the province and less than 4 members for each of our 131 parish councils. I know we can do it!! (Over 10,000 would be awesome !)

National Membership Incentive Plan

This new incentive is so exciting I decided I should quote directly from our national organization chairperson, Velma Harasen’s communiqué #5. “The 2010 membership incentive program: the per capita fees for 2011 will be waived for all members in two councils – the one with the highest absolute increase in members and the one with the highest percentage increase in members from the 2010 membership drive. Diocesan and provincial per capita fees will be paid from the national treasury so that councils at those levels will not be out of pocket. More information on the plan will be included in the winter edition of The Canadian League.” WOW!! So if your council wins, the more members you get the more money your council will have share in God’s wonderful works!

Lapsed Members

Velma has given a suggestion that possibly a parish council could offer for any member who did not renew in 2009 to pay the 2009 membership fee if the member pays her 2010 membership, or pay for 2010 if she pays for 2009! If any council has other suggestions for creative ways to bring back members that did not renew in the last year please let me know and I will pass along these ideas to Velma.

New Recruitment Material

National office has mailed some new recruitment material to parish councils. Please share with me how your parish councils are utilizing these items and how effective have they been. I will pass along any feedback you may have to Velma.

Development Funds

There are Provincial and National Development Funds available for both members and councils.

Provincial Development Funds

Development Fund #1 – This subsidy is available for 2/3 of the bus fare from home to the site of the Provincial convention, regardless of how the applicant travels. All members needing assistance can apply. Encourage your members to apply and attend this year’s provincial convention in Richmond!

Development Fund #2 – $1,000 is available once in a two year term for a Diocesan President to attend the National Convention.

Both application forms can be found on the BC CWL website. The deadlines for both applications are March 15, 2010 and are to be returned to me.

National Development Fund

National funds are available from National office to promote League leadership training and League development workshops. Councils may apply twice in a given year; for the period of January to June and from July to December. The guidelines and application form are in the National Policy & Procedure Manual, pages A3 20 – A3 25 and can be downloaded on the CWL website. A great way to host a provincial leadership development part 2 workshop in your area!

Annual Reports

I pray all diocesan chairpersons have received annual reports from all their counterparts in parish councils within their diocese, and if you have not that you are working to contact these councils to receive their reports, even if only through a phone conversation. Remind councils that have not submitted a report that the CWL is like a fine tapestry and if they do not submit the awesome works within their council large pieces of the tapestry will be missing. I have enclosed a scan of the revised annual report guidelines from national which should help clarify the process of developing your diocesan report. The deadline for diocesan to submit your reports to provincial is February 15, 2010. I look forward to receiving 100% reporting from throughout the province this year as we develop a beautiful tapestry together!

May Our Lady of Good Counsel continue to bless us in our work for God and Canada.

Report Forms

Due dates for annual reports are:

• Parish report to Diocesan – December 15th
• Diocesan report to Provincial – February 15th
• Provincial report to National – March 15th

If you have not received reports from your parish counterparts by December 15th don’t give up on them. Try calling them and asking the questions over the phone. What a wonderful way to make new friends while working towards 100% of councils reporting!

Membership

How successful were parish councils with the “Membership Challenge” put forward by Velma Harasen? I have enclosed both provincial and national membership stats for your perusal and as you can see BC & Yukon have a lot to be proud of, we have the highest percentage of increase in all of Canada! Let’s keep the enthusiasm alive and reach our provincial goal of 10,000 members for the year 2010!!

Remember, personal contact still remains the number one means of recruiting and retaining members.

Leadership Training and Workshops

To date the new provincial leadership development workshop has been facilitated seven times throughout the province. This workshop has informed and encouraged members on what the League has to offer and what they have to offer the League. When asked on the evaluation forms if members would recommend the workshop to others there has been a resounding 100% “Yes” with a desire for all members to attend. So what are we waiting for? Talk to your diocesan president and let’s book more workshops! For more information you can contact me.

There is also a new Leadership Development workshop developed by Velma Harasen that can be located in the programs section in the National League website. This workshop can be used at any level of the League and can be adapted to whatever the needs within your councils.

CWL Day of Peace & Hope Activities Kit

PDF copies of the cards for this kit are now available on the national website. What activities has your council undertaken? Share your stories in the provincial newsletter and/or the national e-newsletter.

Communiqués

A big thank you to all Diocesan Organization Chairpersons for all the work you do for God and Canada. Please remember to continue sending me a copy of all your communiqués. And if at any time you have any questions or concerns regarding one of my communiqués, or regarding the duties of the Organization Standing Committee do not hesitate to contact me, I would love to hear from you!

This will be my last communiqué to you before Christmas; I therefore would like to wish all of you a very blessed Christmas Season with the joy of Christ overflowing in your hearts!

May Our Lady of Good Counsel continue to bless our work for God and Canada.

Dear Sisters in the League and Fr. Tran,

A warm welcome to our newest diocesan organization chairpersons, Lucille Wallace (Kamloops), Lorraine Thibeault (Prince George), and Jenny Shaw (Vancouver). And a special welcome back to a new fall season of The Catholic Women’s League to both Rose Sehn (Nelsen) and Daisy Mah (Victoria).

MEMBERSHIP

Last September I explained that my goal for our province was to increase our membership to 10,000 by the year 2010. For 2008 we reached 9,436 members which was a 4% increase from 2007! Thank you to all the parish councils that successfully increased their membership. As our national organization chairperson, Velma Harasen states, “You’ve proven that it can be done!”

The most recent figures I have for 2009 is for the end of July, which places us at a provincial membership of 8,284. For your information I have enclosed a spread sheet on the breakdown of membership in each diocese throughout the province. Also our national total membership as of August 26th was 93,170 and national’s goal is to reach 100,000 members by October 31st of this year.

Velma Harasen has issued a challenge for every parish council throughout Canada and I encourage all of us to take on this challenge and illuminate our enthusiasm for the League to the world! Her challenge is: “If a council’s current membership is…

• 25 or less, recruit ONE new member,
• Between 26 and 60 members, recruit TWO new members
• Between 61 and 100 members, recruit THREE new members
• Over 100 members, recruit FOUR new members.

Of course, MORE would be even better!”

Velma also asks that “When submitting the names of those new members to national office, please note that these are the “CHALLENGE” members.” A tally will be kept and after the deadline of October 31st 2009 there will be prizes! ~ Remember, most women don’t sign up as members on their own, they are waiting to be asked, so let’s step forward and ask! The more members we have, the stronger a voice we have in our work for God and Canada.

RECRUITMENT POSTCARDS

Hopefully everyone is now familiar with these postcards as a means of inviting women into the League and addressing some women’s concerns, such as, “But I Work Full Time” or “Meetings are Boring” or “But I Don’t Bake”. You can find them on the national CWL website under ‘Supplies & Forms’ – ‘Organization’ and then click on ‘CWL Invitation Cards’. They are a wonderful tool for recruitment!

PARISH COUNCIL MAILING

Parish councils will soon be receiving a mailing that will include four older brochures free-of-charge. PLEASE use these for recruitment of members and for our membership challenge! Also national is currently working on new promotional material to attract new members, help current members speak positively about the benefits of being a member, and enhance the League’s overall image. If you have any concrete, workable suggestions please let me know and I will pass them on to Velma.

BELLELLE GUERIN AWARD

I have enclosed the Bellelle Guerin criteria and nomination form. These forms are also available on the CWL website. Please note two minor changes; that the deadline has been removed and that “Life members are not eligible for the award.”

ANNUAL REPORTS

Enclosed are the annual report forms for parish councils and a suggested process sheet to assist in councils. Please destroy any report forms from previous years and use only the enclosed forms. Note that the due date for parish councils to have their reports completed and into diocesan is December 15th. If you as a diocesan chairperson have not received your report by this date contact your parish counterpart and go through the report with them getting as much info as possible. Let’s work together and get 100% reporting for our province so that the good works of the League can shine through!

LEADERSHIP TRAINING AND WORKSHOPS

Our provincial council has developed a new Leadership Development workshop and would love to present it in a parish near you!! Contact your diocesan president and find out if she has booked a workshop and encourage as many members as you can to attend. If you invite us we will be there!

May Our Lady of Good Counsel continue to bless us in our work for God and Canada.

Meeting With Government: March 25, 2009

Four members of the BC & Yukon Provincial Council of The Catholic Women’s League of Canada met with Liberal and New Democratic party MLA’s to present and discuss CWL resolutions. The delegation consisted of Marianna Caldwell, president, Nancy Simms, president-elect, Sheila Quinn, Legislation chairperson, and myself, Sandra Stajduhar, Resolutions chairperson. A report has been sent to and printed in some newspapers – this report has more detail.

Information on the CWL and the resolutions was prepared and given to the MLA’s beforehand, and while the information and the oral presentation were the same in both cases, the two meetings varied. MLA Randy Hawes, Government Whip, introduced us and chaired the meeting with the Liberal caucus. There were about sixteen members present, with others joining us as other meetings concluded – followed by a photo shoot. The meeting with the NDP was an informal table discussion with three MLA’s – Claire Trevena (North Island) critic for women‘s issues, Leonard Krog (Nanaimo) critic for the Attorney General, and Harry Bains (Surrey-Newton), Olympics critic. In both cases, our presentation was received with interest, and questions, comments and suggestions were offered in return. We attended the afternoon question period in the legislature and were introduced and thanked by both parties.

The information package prepared for the MLA’s included all 2008 resolutions as well as two past resolutions still of interest. Briefs, bibliographies and action plans were included. In the oral presentation, specific items of concern, particularly in B.C., were highlighted as we asked for ongoing support in resolving issues.

The resolution directed to the B.C. government was “Ban the Use of Cell Phones While Driving”. Some provinces have already enacted legislation, and 46 countries have such a ban in place. Studies show that cell phone use impairs driving in simulated environments to a degree similar to a blood alcohol level of .08%. Government members seemed to be in agreement with this resolution. We were asked if we had considered expanding the resolution to include other communication devices, and it was pointed out that eating while driving is also a dangerous distraction. The problem of enforcing a ban on hand held cell phones was asked. Our reply was that it would begin slowly but over time would be accepted similar to the seat belt law. NDP MLA Claire Trevena stated that the BCAA was also addressing this issue.

With the Olympics being hosted in Vancouver next year, Resolution 2008.01 Preventing Human Trafficking at 2010 Olympics was well received. The correlation between international sporting events and increased human trafficking is well documented. The BC government was commended for establishing the Office to Combat Trafficking in Persons and MLA Colin Hansen (Minister for the Olympics) noted that a higher level of watch is needed and that hotels and restaurants have been approached to help in relation to this. One minister commented that she is concerned about the 2 – 3000 international exchange students in Vancouver. It was stated that there is a need to educate people and create awareness, and the NDP stated that an integrated approach is needed – to educate men on this issue and cut off the demand. It is encouraging to note that several MLA’s have spoken in the legislature on trafficking.

An overview was given of several resolutions. This was informative and received with interest. Regarding products containing triclosan, it was suggested that we work with the Canadian Cancer Society; regarding toxic substances in household products, it was agreed that dumping in the environment is a cause for concern; and accurate food labelling was deemed a federal issue. Resolution 2008.05 Transportation Tax Credit for Post Secondary Students was also presented briefly. Comments were made that it is not the best policy to single out one area (i.e. rural)

Information on hospice palliative care, a focus for CWL this year, was presented. While there has been improvement in this area, there is still a need for a system where quality of care does not depend on ability to pay and where hospice palliative care is designated as a core service and accessible across the province. Funding issues were raised, as well as the question of whether palliative care should be community rather than government driven. It was agreed that volunteers are necessary to provide adequate care. Hospice makes an annual presentation to the government, and MLA’s have made presentations on end of life care to caucus.

The final issue addressed was poverty, in particular child poverty. Statistics show that BC has a very poor record, and that poverty costs all of us. There is a need for improved income for both the employed and unemployed; better, affordable housing; improved childcare; and training and education. The statistics were questioned by some MLA’s (particularly whether rent subsidies were taken into account) and the Liberals stressed that improving the economy in general would show improvement in child poverty statistics. The NDP stressed that poverty in B.C. is a shameful situation – both morally and economically – and that a national policy and national housing strategy is needed. The challenge is for all of us to work together for a minimum 25% reduction in child poverty by the year 2012.

The national theme is “Women of Peace and Hope”, while our provincial theme is “Serving With Faith and Joy”. We tried to exemplify both in our presentation and in our manner, and the meetings with both parties were interesting, informative and productive to both the MLA‘s and our delegation. We were commended for our presentation – that it was well thought out and researched – and for the presentations by the BC & Yukon executive over the past 13 years.

Good morning, I have wonderful news! For the past two years we in BC/Yukon increased our membership by 7%! And that is all due to your unceasing hard work and dedication to the League! So congratulations everyone!

But, now what I see as the challenge that lies before us is not only to continue increasing in membership, but to also retain the members we have. How do we do this? Well, there are a few things we as can do; the first would be hosting workshops. Workshops are an inspirational way to educate members about the League and help them understand all that they personally have to offer in their service to God and Canada. In this past year we as a provincial council travelled throughout the province facilitating workshops for members to become more comfortable with public speaking, conducting meetings and with their overall understanding of the League. Members took away from these workshops a confidence to accept positions within the League and not only willingness, but a desire to stand up and tell their stories to all of us. We are still offering this workshop to any councils that would like to host it for their surrounding area. We have also developed another day long workshop that we would love to facilitate throughout the province. This workshop will help members realize their beauty within, discuss maintaining peace and will challenge members to be leaders. So please contact me and we will set up at date for either of these workshops to be presented. I would also recommend for diocesan executives to facilitate your own workshops within your diocese as a way to grow together in confidence and knowledge of the League.

How else can we not only retain members, but develop members with a desire to be involved? I believe the answer is in our themes. We must continue to be women of peace and hope serving with faith and joy! We must have peace within our personal beings, and this can only be accomplished through spiritual growth, then peace amongst ourselves, within our meetings, while we work side by side in the kitchen, or visiting the sick and shut-ins, or sitting together discussing and developing resolutions, there must be peace amongst us. If we are truly seen as women of peace, members will want to continue being a part of us and we will achieve at promoting peace in a world so extremely hungry for it!

Then by attaining true peace we will emanate hope. Hope for the League, hope for the future, hope for the world. Let us always be women of hope. But that’s not always easy, is it? When we watch the news and hear about so many dark and terrible things happening all around us how can we be hopeful? We can because we have faith, faith in a loving God who will overcome all darkness by using us as his gentle hands of caring. Our unwavering faith allows us to be women of hope who want to serve all God’s people. And serve we do, in so many ways! Yet, when we serve we must do it with joy, for who would be around us if we all were miserable and cantankerous! As Mother Teresa reminded us “Joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls. A joyful heart is the inevitable result of a heart burning with love.”

So let us love with burning hearts and continue on growing in our work for God and Canada!

Dear Sisters in the League and Fr. Tran,

Membership

January is membership month. However, the recruiting process should continue throughout the entire year! What is your parish council doing to invite new ladies to join the League? Many women are just waiting to be asked. I challenge every League member to step out of their comfort zone and ask someone in their parish to join the CWL. As our national organization chairperson, Velma Harasen states, “Every woman in the parish community deserves to belong to The Catholic Women’s League of Canada, and it’s our responsibility to make sure that happens!”

The latest figures I have from December 15th is that our membership for BC/Yukon was at 9,263 for 2008. So far this is an 81 member increase from 2007 with a possible few more coming in before the year end. Let’s keep up the incredible effort and before you know it we will have surpassed our goal of 10,000 by 2010!!

Our very own BC/Yukon webmaster Rebecca Gebeshuber from the Vancouver Arch-diocese developed recruitment postcards that national office has now approved and will be distributing with the second membership remittance package in sufficient quantities for each unpaid member. Each parish council will receive a new remittance form, list of unpaid members and recruitment postcards, list of paid members and permanent membership cards for each.

Director of Development

A director of development has been hired at national office to develop a marketing strategy to assist in membership recruitment and retention and to enhance the League’s image. We look forward to exciting days ahead!

National & Provincial Themes

Please take notice that both the national and provincial levels have new themes for the next two years. The national theme is Women of Peace and Hope. The national executive has asked us to translate these words into action by focusing on two main areas: palliative care and reaching out to women of other cultures and background. I know we can accomplish this request through our new provincial theme; Serving with Faith and Joy.

The Feast of Our Lady of Good Counsel

April 26th, the Feast of Our Lady of Good Counsel, has been declared as CWL Day of Peace and Hope. All members across Canada are asked to pray and act for peace and hope. A kit with user-friendly ideas for parish councils and members to live out this theme and take concrete action will be available from national office on February 14, 2009. Activities could range anywhere from a prayer service to serving lunch to our homeless, or? I’d love to hear what your parish council did ~ Let me know! Encourage councils to take part in this important day and to use this opportunity to showcase the League.

Process for Recording Deceased Members

Velma Harasen informs us: “The most recent Form for Reporting Deceased Members, dated 2008, requires that parish councils send only one copy; that copy is to be forwarded to national office. One staff member is responsible for inputting these forms into the database and then she will make two copies of each. When a number of forms have accumulated, copies will be sent to the appropriate provincial and diocesan chairpersons for their own Book of Life. Providing that parish councils are diligent in sending in these forms, this system should prove to be more accurate.”

Annual  Reports

Diocesan chairpersons should have by now received all parish annual reports (due date was December 15, 2008). If you are still missing reports from some of your parish councils, or received blank reports stating “No Chairperson”. Please take the time to phone these parishes and explain how important their work in the League is to developing a complete story of The Catholic Women’s League of Canada. If you have to, get the answers to the report over the phone. Let’s work to 100 % reporting throughout our province! I look forward to receiving your diocesan reports by February 15, 2009.

Dates to Remember

• January 1, 2009 – Membership lists with per capita fees are due and payable to national office.
• February 1, 2009 – Completed Life Member Nominee Questionnaire must be forwarded to national office with the $100 fee.
• February 1, 2009 – The completed nomination form for the Belle Guerin Award, submitted by a parish, diocesan and/or provincial council, must be forwarded to national office, along with the $75 fee.
• February 15, 2009 – The deadline for submitting diocesan chairpersons’ annual reports to the provincial chairperson.
• March 15, 2009 – The deadline for submitting provincial chairpersons’ annual reports to the national chairperson.

Dear League Sisters and Father Tran,

Report Forms

Enclosed are the diocesan annual report forms, please distribute the appropriate forms to your corresponding diocesan chairpersons. I pray that you have distributed the parish annual report forms and have encouraged all councils to submit their reports.

Due dates for annual reports are:
Parish report to Diocesan – December 15th
Diocesan report to Provincial – February 15th
Provincial report to National – March 15th

Development Funds

This is just a reminder that there are both Provincial and National Development Funds available.

Provincial Development Funds

• Development Fund #1 (Travel Fund) – An unspecified amount (interest earned) is available to assist delegates with travel expenses to the Provincial Convention.
• Development Fund #2 – $1,000 is available once in a two year term for a Diocesan President to attend the National Convention.

I have scanned these forms and enclosed them. If you are unable to print them out clearly just contact me and I will fax them to you, or your Diocesan President will have them in her BC/Yukon Policy & Procedure Manual. The deadline for both applications is March 31, 2009.

National Development Fund

National funds are available from National office to promote League leadership training and League development workshops. Councils may apply twice in a given year; for the period of January to June and from July to December. The guidelines and application form are in the National Policy & Procedure Manual, pages A3 20 – A3 25 and can be downloaded on the CWL website, www.cwl.ca.

Membership

Annual membership in the League is from January 1st to December 31st; therefore councils are encouraged to start collecting membership fees before January 1st and complete their per capita submission by February 28th. “For enlisting or renewing past memberships, personal contact is the most effective method. ASK THEM – one to one; personally inviting a woman to join the League has been proven to be effective time and time again.” (Handbook for Organization Chairpersons page 8 ).  Also, remember to invite associate members into the League. An associate member is a non-Catholic woman 16 years of age or over, with voting privileges, but without eligibility for office by election or appointment.

TOGETHER LET’S ACHIEVE OUR GOAL OF 10,000 MEMBERS IN BC/YUKON!

Bellelle Guerin Award

This is just a reminder that this award is available through National office for members who do not qualify for life membership, yet demonstrate a love of the League and an availability and willingness to continue to serve. The criteria for this award can be found in the National Policy & Procedure Manual page 29 and the nomination form is on pages A3 8 – A3 9.

Communiqués

Thank you for the communiqués I have received from all Diocesan Organization Chairpersons, each of you is doing a wonderful job in your work for God and Canada! Keep it up and please continue sending me your communiqués. If at any time you have any questions or concerns regarding one of my communiqués, or regarding the duties of the Organization Standing Committee do not hesitate to contact me, I would love to hear from you!

This will be my last communiqué to you before Christmas, I therefore would like to wish all of you a very blessed Christmas Season with the joy of Christ overflowing in your hearts!

WUCWO North American Regional Conference, August 8 – 10, 2008

For me the WUCWO Conference began with Doreen Gowans and myself arriving at the hotel in Winnipeg on August 7th and being asked by Agnes Bedard to help sell WUCWO supplies at a table near the registration, which we happily agreed to do. This gave us an opportunity to meet many wonderful ladies from across North America, including the WUCWO President General, Karen Hurley whom we were trying to sell items to without realizing who she was! The next morning Agnes had Doreen and I assembling the table decorations and a large WUCWO poster for the conference and then we were back to work selling items throughout the conference. Just having the opportunity to do this work for WUCWO was an experience I wouldn’t have missed for the world. Marie Cameron also asked us if we would display handmade outfits that were made by a friend she had met through WUCWO who escaped a war ravished country (the name has escaped my mind) with all of her family murdered except her grandchildren, she is now making and selling these outfits to provide for her grandchildren. We sold all three outfits Marie had brought!

As for the business sessions of the conference we began with a beautiful prayer service where every woman in the room (approx. 700) carried up to the front different stories and pictures of women throughout the world. We were then treated to a very moving introduction of our first guest speaker, Archbishop Richard Smith by his own mother Ann Marie Smith. Archbishop Smith spoke to us on “Peace and love, Gifts to be shared”. He told us that we are in a time of new evangelization where we must go back to the basics of joy and wonder in our relationship with Jesus. And that this is needed because sometimes words are not understood and our relationship with God must speak for us. In scripture (Ephesians 2:13-22) peace is described as having nothing lacking – living in communion with God. Peace is the fruit of reconciliation and the church is to be a sign of the reconciliation of unity (centered around the mass) between God and humanity. We are to be Pillars of Peace. Peace is the fruit of justice and love moves toward justice. Jesus is love; He brings to the world the very love that God the Father gives to Him.

After lunch our own Barb Dowding gave us a presentation regarding her attendance at a conference in Rome earlier this year on the role of women in the Church. Barb explained to us that women must use their “feminine genius” to make a difference in our world and that it is important for women to be the peacemakers of the world.

We were then introduced to Nazanin Afshin-Jam, a human rights activist who shared with us her journey in life and the work she now accomplishes through Stop Child Executions. Nazanin was born in Iran, yet her and her family had to flee from their home country when she was very young. They came to Vancouver, BC where Nazanin was raised and baptized with her family into the Catholic Church. At a very early age Nazanin had a desire to help others and therefore she joined the Red Cross doing missionary work, yet still felt she was not doing enough. She decided that to be able to help more people she needed to become known in society so she entered beauty pageants and became Miss Canada and then went on to become runner-up for Miss. World. These titles allowed her to have a greater outreach for her missionary work. Although, it wasn’t until after she found out, almost accidently, about children that were being placed on death row and were being executed for alleged crimes in Iran that she used her pageant titles in the media, etc. to effect change for these children. Nazanin has now founded the Stop Child Executions organization to be a voice for these voiceless children. She stated that only by empowering the people of Iran will peace happen.

We closed the day with a beautiful mass and thus ended the first day of the WUCWO conference. Sunday morning began with a prayer service then President General, Karen Hurley shared with us that this gathering was the first of 5 regional conferences to be held in the next few months. The other conferences will be held in Verona, Italy; Mexico City, Mexico; Hartbeesport, Johannesburg, South Africa; and Seoul, South Korea. Regional Conferences are held midway between World Assemblies, the next of which will be held in October 2010 in the Holy Land celebrating the 100th anniversary of the founding of the World Union. She stated that WUCWO’s priority for 2006-2010 is “Building a Culture of Peace through education and the alleviation of poverty”. WUCWO has held consultative status at various United Nations bodies since 1947 and with keeping within the mission and teachings of the Catholic Church works toward improving the situations of women and children throughout the world. She told us how “there is a challenge and opportunity to expose ambiguous language which some international institutions favour especially related to such topics as gender, reproductive health, choice, or rights”. Therefore, WUCWO makes certain that any of their documents “exclude the use of words with dubious interpretations based on world views that can be adapted to suit different purposes.” She told us why we as women of faith must offer hope and she thanked the CWL for our foresight to create the Endowment Fund which helps support WUCWO programs that benefit women and children worldwide. WUCWO North American Vice-President Agnes Bedard then presented Karen with a cheque for a little over $19,000 resulting from the interest of the CWL Endowment Fund that is given to WUCWO every six months.

Treasurer General, Joann Hillebrand then shared with us that annual expenses for WUCWO are approx. $80,000 and the annual income is approx. $100,000. She informed us that the money from our Endowment Fund funds many countries that do not have the financial means to attend conferences. The Us is presently setting up an Endowment Fund of their own with a goal of raising $5 million which would generate $250,000 in interest annually. The CWL was also commended for their support of MaterCare. She then announced that the collection from the mass the evening before was in the amount of $1,760 that would be given to the Santa Marta Clinic.

International Representative Arlene Barron informed of WUCWO’s work at the United Nations, how difficult, yet also how important it is to remain a voice for truth and dignity for all persons in an environment of hostility towards the Catholic Church. She also shared how help is needed to continue this important work.
The conference then concluded with a prayer service that had each of us come forward to take a paper with the story and picture of a women back home with us to pray for and hold in our hearts every day.

After we were well rested from the WUCWO regional conference, with our hour and half lunch break the 2008 National Convention began in Winnipeg with an invigorating resolutions dialogue meeting. Women from all corners of Canada came together to educate themselves on the resolutions that would be presented to the floor of the convention. Six resolutions were given to us to read through and discuss and it is amazing how fast two and a half hours can go by! We then took a short dinner break before heading across the street to the beautiful St. Mary’s Cathedral for the opening mass where I was honoured to carry up the Yukon flag in the opening ceremonies.

Monday morning began with liturgy of the hours and then a thought provoking presentation by a panel of three keynote speakers. Dr. Moira McQueen, Executive Director of the Canadian Catholic Bioethics Institute spoke to us about decision making at end of life. She told us how “Dying is the most important thing we do.” Therefore, it is extremely important that patients’ rights are honoured and that they are told the truth about what is happening to them. Patients should be involved in decision making, whenever possible, regarding treatment or withdrawal of treatment, ordinary/extraordinary measures and what is proportionate or disproportionate for what the patient and the family can bear. Dr. Moira also educated us on Pope John Paul II’s statement on Artificial Nutrition & Hydration. Summarizing it by explaining that in all that we do for the dying we must remember Veronica whom Jesus met on His way to be crucified, she did not pretend to take away what He had to endure, but only relieved or gave affirmation to the suffering. Veronica reached out in compassion as we all must do.

Alex Schadenberg, Executive Director of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition informed us on the differences between euthanasia and assisted suicide. Euthanasia is the intentional omission to cause death and assisted suicide is when someone kills themselves with another person providing the means. In June 2008 Bill C-562 was introduced to legalize both euthanasia and assisted suicide. This bill is not what we need; we need a society that protects people at the most vulnerable time in their life. “We need to care, not kill.”

Senator Sharon Carstairs spoke to us regarding palliative care or hospice. She informed us how most cities have the availability of palliative care, yet at present rural areas do not. Only 37% of our society has access to quality end of life care. Presently the government only provides six weeks employment insurance to look after a dying family member and in 1995 the average time a medical student learnt about end of life care was one hour in their four years of education. Palliative care is about living well until the end; it attends to the medical, spiritual and emotional needs of the person. It is up to us to communicate to politicians how important hospice, palliative care is and that it must be at the top of their agendas or we will cast our vote to a politician that will place it there!

Dr. Moira and Alex then lead us in an informative and thought provoking exercise within our individual tables to discuss example situations that would require end of life decisions and each table had to come to conclusions on how to answer the questions that were presented with the situations and then share these conclusions on the floor.

After this discussion we broke for lunch and then returned to begin the opening of the business sessions of the convention. Our National President Lorette Noble warmly welcomed us in her friendly, down to earth manner and our National Spiritual Advisor, Archbishop Richard Smith encouraged us and told us how the League must be a forceful voice for life, love and truth! He also announced at that time that Archbishop Martin Curry would be our new National Spiritual Advisor for the next five years.

Donna Prevost, Alberta Mackenzie president reported an increase in membership totalling 9,904 members in five diocese and they have five Catholic Girls Leagues. Their province has been “working together to make changes to society as they come to grips with social issues and, through knowledge, resolve to act.”

Marianna Caldwell, our BC/Yukon president reported that we have increased our membership to over 9,000 and how our provincial executive have been active in our teaching role through our provincial workshops. She also reported on the provincial delegates meeting with government and the new life members book A Journey of Memories as well as many other wonderful works our members have been doing throughout the province.

Suzanne Kiazyk, Manitoba’s president informed us that Manitoba celebrated its 60th anniversary in the League. Manitoba has three dioceses that are strong and dedicated in their work for the League.

Julie LeLievre, president of the Military Ordinariate explained to us that an ordinariate is a diocese with a special jurisdiction and that they are located anywhere in the world where Canadian military personnel are stationed and there are presently 15 active councils. Their members are a large part of chapel life on the bases and serve their churches in any manner that is needed. Please continue to pray for all the military and their families and continue to wear red on Friday’s to show our support of the troops.

Jacqueline Waye, New Brunswick’s president told us that they have been seeing a decline in membership and are now just below 3,000 members with two councils just disbanding. Even with this decline, members still continue to do the many works of the League. They also had a delegation meet with their provincial government and produced a history of their provincial council.

Ellen Kilfoy, president of Newfoundland and Labrador brought greetings from their 950 members in 27 parish councils. Their province is working on developing leadership workshops and finding ways to recruit and maintain members. They are also looking forward to hosting the 2009 National convention.

Nova Scotia’s president, Marian Hepditch-Littlepage gave her report on behalf of their 5,000 plus members. She informed us how successful their annual provincial workshops have been as they have grown and expanded in the five years since they began. Their province also celebrated their 60th anniversary in the League and their members are very active in all aspects of the League.

Margaret Ann Jacobs, Ontario’s president informed us how members of their executive attended various educational events ranging from bioethics to clinical care to poverty reduction and many others. Their council’s presence was noted at the National March for Life in Ottawa and many other public functions. Their 55,000 members from all thirteen diocese are very active in their work for the League and continue in their work with the encouragement of leadership and spiritual workshops.

Marion Marshall, president of Prince Edward Island reported on behalf of the 2,500 plus members in 44 parish councils. She explained to us how new members of the provincial executive have been paired up with life members who will offer their wisdom and support. They have also started a project to study two councils that are doing well and two that are struggling, find out what works and what doesn’t to improve on individual parish councils. PEI’s greatest challenge is the amalgamation of parishes.

Quebec’s president, Ellen Peterkin informed us of the Policy & Procedure workshop that was given at their provincial convention to help their 27 parish councils understand the importance of having a P&P. Their executive council also developed a motion book for themselves this year.

Yvonne Colleaux, Saskatchewan’s president was proud to tell us that their council had purchased a well in a developing country as a means of commemorating their 60th anniversary in the League.

After a short break we were treated to our National President, Lorette Noble’s report. Lorette told us that over the past two years she had attended 28 conventions and that through her travels she has witnessed the many positive effects of mentoring. She suggested other ways to encourage interest in the League is for councils to choose a topic that will touch the hearts of its members and focus their efforts on that project for a year or possibly two. We were also informed that the CCCB has requested our support regarding their resolution on the death penalty as it affects Canadians abroad. She informed us on their delegation that met with the federal government and how government officials were “blown away” by the range of topics and the amount of knowledge the delegation spoke on. Also a letter was sent to the governor general of Canada expressing members’ distress on the awarding of the Order of Canada to Dr. Henry Morgentaler and asking that this award not be presented.

Thus, ended the business sessions for Monday although we still had the pleasure of a spiritually uplifting mass and delicious dinner.

Tuesday morning began with the Eucharistic celebration again in St. Mary’s Cathedral and then we were back down to business.

Peggy Roche our national secretary-treasurer informed us that for the third year in a row the per capita fees were not enough to cover the expenses and this has been caused by the decline in membership.

Kim Scammell, our executive director introduced us to the staff that was present at the convention and informed us on their various jobs. There is one office employee to every 15,000 members!

Next Betty Anne Brown our national resolutions chairperson reviewed the resolutions process before we began with the standing committee chairpersons reports. She reported that 13 resolutions had been submitted to the national council and six were being presented to the floor while two were being forwarded for action.

Spiritual development chairperson, Cecile Miller challenged us to evangelize and share the joy of the Eucharist. She shared with us the wondrous experience of being involved in the 49th International Eucharistic Congress and encouraged each of us in this year of St. Paul to study his teachings and his life.

Organization chairperson, Danielle McNeil-Hessian spoke to us about the new Handbook for Organization Chairpersons and she encouraged councils to use the many workshops available in this handbook. Our national membership for 2007 was 97,472 members in 1,321 parish councils. Five provinces increased membership and one remained the same. In 2008 14 life memberships were awarded and 29 members received the Bellelle Guerin Award.

We then broke from business to listen to a guest speaker on the Buy-A-Net program and the presentation of the new Life Members which unfortunately I was unable to be at due to a small change in plans whereupon I needed to take some time to develop a defence for the resolution from our province that was going to be brought to the floor that afternoon.

After a hasty lunch while developing our resolution defence we were back in business sessions with Archbishop Smith sharing with us the results of the spiritual advisors lunch with 25 in attendance. He expressed the deep appreciation of the spiritual advisors for the work that we do and that growth of the League is vital. He stated that there was a concern that some councils feel a lack of support from their spiritual advisors and stressed that most do support yet, are unable to attend meetings, etc. due to their busy schedules and others may just need to be educated on what the League is really all about.

Christian Family Life chairperson, Ann Doucet encouraged us with news on how the young people of our society are actively doing and speaking Gods word! She spoke to us on life issues and the work that needs to be done and the work that our members have faithfully been doing. She also informed us on the Catholic Girls League and that there are currently 17 CGL councils operating in Canada. ~ At this time three young girls that are presently members of the CGL were introduced to us!

Community Life chairperson, Dr. Rayleen De Luca congratulated members on all the work accomplished in community life. Child poverty continues to be a focus and she suggested every council “adopt-a-child” and we can fight poverty one child at a time. She announced that every province has developed a plan regarding trafficking of women and children and that the national voluntary fund for Development and Peace raised $77,161.46 in the past year. She reported that when meeting with the federal government they stated our position on elder abuse and homelessness for people with mental illness. She also reminded us to commend the government when they have taken steps to eradicate injustices. ~ We then held a moment of silence for all those in the military.

Resolution 08.01 Preventing Human Trafficking at 2010 Olympics was then presented to the floor upon which I then read the defence. The resolution was discussed, voted on and passed.

Education and Health chairperson, Judy Lewis informed us that in the past year we had raised $36,766 in donations for MaterCare and $28,317.71 for the Coady Institute which presently has 59 participates from all over the world. The total value of national bursaries distributed to 26 recipients was $10,780. ~ Judy then made a motion to extend the MaterCare voluntary fund to 2010. Motion was passed

At this time an announcement was made that the mass collection in the amount of $2,066.05 would be given to the Alpha House in Winnipeg.

Resolution 08.02 Restrictions on the Use of Triclosan was presented and with much discussion and amendments was finally voted on and passed.

Resolution 08.03 Toxic Substances in Household Products was presented and again with numerous amendments voted on and passed.

Resolution 08.04 Accurate Food Labelling was presented and after much discussion ensued on this resolution it was tabled to the next day when everyone was rested and able to think clearer.

Thus ended the business sessions for Tuesday. Although, we still had a wonderful dinner that we enjoyed sharing with all the members from BC/Yukon.

Wednesday morning began with liturgy of the hours then back to resolution 08.04 Accurate Food Labelling. Discussion again ensued the resolution was voted on and passed.

Communications chairperson, Velma Harasen informed us the The League Magazine was first published in the fall of 1920 and in 1958 it was sent to every paid member for a cost of $0.20 a copy. The magazine is still a great bargain at $8.00 per year! The national executive is presently working with a marketing firm that is helping the League look at; where we are, where do we want to go and how do we get there. More details will be coming to us in the future. Velma also informed us that the WRAP campaign would not officially be taking place this year due to staff shortages and therefore kits will not be sent out, yet we are encouraged to still continue on with the ribbons and do what we can within our councils.

Resolutions chairperson, Betty Anne Brown explained to us that as God’s chosen people it is our responsibility to announce the news and be the voice of the many voiceless throughout the world. She informed us that six provinces reported meeting with their provincial governments and encouraged us to support Bill C484 Unborn Victims of Crime. We are women of power through the resolutions process!

Legislation chairperson, Mary Nordick informed us that in the latest session of parliament 463 Bills were introduced although, most will not actually receive Royal Assent. Mary explained that legislation is made up of laughter, laws, letter writing, lobby, learn, link (work with other chairpersons) lead on issues of importance and love.

At this time Mary brought forward a motion that a letter be sent to our Prime Minister with copies to chair of committee and two vice chairs regarding Bill C484 Unborn Victims of Crime. This Bill has passed second reading yet is still not on the agenda of the committee. This letter would urge the committee to place the Bill on their agenda. Motion passed.

Resolution 08.05 Transportation Tax Credit for Rural Post-Secondary Students was presented where at this time I presented a motion to amend this resolution explaining why the tax credit was originally implemented. My motion passed as well as a few more motions. The resolution was voted on and passed.

Resolution 08.06 Revision to the Youth Criminal Justice Act was presented discussion and amendments were made and the resolution was voted on and passed.

Laws chairperson, Agnes Bedard explained to us the importance of our archives and how easily they can become damaged or lost. It is important to review archives and keep them safe. Agnes share with us her personal journey with cancer within this past year and encouraged all within the room that were cancer survivors to stand and be celebrated. It was an amazing moment with many ladies standing. We are an extraordinary organization of women!

International Relations chairperson, Lorette Noble expressed her delight that so many of our members attended the WUCWO regional conference. The total donations of the national voluntary fund to WUCWO for the past year were $8,328 which was presented to the President General of WUCWO at the conference. Lorette shared with us a story of how action that was taken by the League 25 years ago for the people of Argentina is now being share and celebrated in a book entitled Testimonies of the International Solidarity.

After our lunch break we were treated to a wonderful song invitation from the members of Newfoundland to come and join them in St. John’s for the 2009 National convention! I know I will be there. Will you?

Danielle McNeil-Hessian then announced our new national theme for 2009-2011. The theme is; Women of Peace and Hope, this theme also includes a beautiful picture that can be viewed on the CWL website.

We then had the registration report that informed us that there had been 735 people in attendance at the convention. This report was followed by the Rite of Elections which was a prayerful time to reflect on the service these ladies give to the League. The full details of the elections can be again found on the CWL website.

The convention was then adjourned for another year. Yet, we still had the joy of a spiritually uplifting mass at St. Boniface Cathedral where we had the installation of new officers and I again had the honour of carrying out the Yukon flag at the end of the mass. We then enjoyed the marvellous food and company at the gala banquet and said our goodbyes to set out for another year renewed in the spirit of knowledge, love, fellowship and joy! Until we meet again next year!

Welcome to a new season of the CWL! Some of you are into your second term as organization chair and some are new to the position, as I am. If you have any questions or concerns that you may need help with, please do not hesitate to contact me and I will try to help in any way possible.

A suggestion to help us in our work as organization chairpersons is to review both the Handbook for Organization Chairpersons and Leading the League. I have also enclosed Danielle McNeil-Hessians oral report from the National Convention in Winnipeg as it is filled with wonderful ideas and information.

The organization standing committee’s main responsibilities are the recruitment of members, maintaining membership, and leadership development. Our province’s total membership for 2007 was 9094. My goal for my two year term is to increase our membership to 10,000 by 2010. This calculates to 906 new members, which may sound like a large amount, yet when we divide it by our 126 parish councils it breaks down to approximately 7 new members per council which is very attainable. I invite you to encourage each parish council to make this their goal and if they get more then 7 new members wouldn’t that be awesome! Our new National Organization Chairperson, Velma Harasen reminds us of some important points for recruiting members. Velma states, “When recruiting, don’t put the emphasis on the need to attend meetings; some women may only want to help with a single project or not be active at this time. Contact every Catholic woman in your parish community, including those who may not be attending mass. You may be the connection they are looking for! If your first contact is not positive, keep in touch, try again. If health, age, time or any other deterrent prevents active participation, they can pray for the good works of the League. Every member added to the membership roll is powerful for advocacy purposes, when letters are written and government visited.”

To keep track of members I have enclosed a Tracking Form that should be sent to all parish councils with their annual report forms, all parish organization chairpersons need to complete this form, return it with their annual report and in turn, each of you as Diocesan chairpersons need to compile the totals and send your form to me with your annual report.

Attached you will also find the annual report forms for every parish council position and standing committee. The parish president’s report is to include what the parish president has done as president.  The other reports will include all the works of the council broken down by position or standing committee. Also attached is a “suggested process” to assist councils in completing their reports and a report form for council donations to be completed by the treasures.

It would be appreciated if parish councils would destroy any report forms used in previous years and reply using only the enclosed forms for their report. Please note that the date reports are due is December 15th.  This takes the pressure off Presidents over the Christmas season and allows her to report on her term prior to elections.

This process is not intended to be long and arduous.  Encourage councils to have fun with it and enjoy reviewing their achievements.  As you are aware it is very important to report all our successes to the next levels of the League as they eventually make their way to government to let them know of our good works.

Lastly, I would encourage you to remind your members that until recently the Provincial Council was keeping the stories submitted by members over the age of ‘90’.   However, about two years ago, it was decided to return the records to each Diocese so that the information could be more readily enjoyed and shared with their members. Therefore, each Diocesan Organization Chairperson should have a binder with submissions of the stories of your over ‘90’ members that could be displayed at your general meetings and conventions. If your Diocese has not started this binder encourage your councils to submit their stories to you so that you can all share in this wonderful source of our League history!

It is my prayer that each of us joyfully proclaims the wonders of the League with all our Catholic sisters as we continue to Walk Humbly with Our God and Love One Another.

I would like to thank Barb for asking me to represent her at the Vancouver Archdiocesan Convention where I had the privilege of presenting the workshop on Communications. The members really enjoyed the workshop and felt it was very beneficial – especially the section on email etiquette.

There are two Provincial Development Funds. The deadline for submissions for both Development Funds is March 15th. The first is available to all Diocesan and Parish Council delegates who may apply for a subsidy to travel to a Provincial Convention. This year there was $2,066.88 available and only three applications were received for a total of $390.86. I hope that councils are aware that this money is available to help bring their presidents to convention.

Under the second Development Fund, there were three – $1,000 grants award to Diocesan Presidents to help defray travel costs and other expenses to attend the National Convention in Winnipeg. Councils are working hard to reach 10,000 members. We are now over 9,000 strong, an increase of 3 %. If we each increased our own Parish membership by 10%, we would exceed 10,000. We still have a ways to go but we are getting closer. Marilyn has been working with Campus Councils in BC and will be reporting on them in her report.

One thing to remember is although memberships should be sent in by February 28th, keep sending them in, in order to reach our goal.

Membership Award/Recognition

We know you have been working hard at this and would like give Honourable Mention to a number of councils that have made a significant increase in their membership. They are:

• Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Kamloops
• Sacred Heart, Williams Lake
• Sacred Heart, Merritt
• St. Martin, Oliver
• Christ the Redeemer, West Vancouver
• Most Precious Blood, Cloverdale
• Our Lady of Mercy, Burnaby
• Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Vancouver
• St. Ann’s, Abbotsford
• St. Anthony, West Vancouver
• St. Matthew, Surrey
• St. Monica, Richmond
• St. Theresa, Burnaby

There is one council that managed to doubled their membership. They are not only to be congratulated for the most new members but also the highest percentage. In acknowledgment of this wonderful achievement, we would like to present a Certificate of Award in recognition of the most new members for 2008 to St. Clare of Assisi, Coquitlam.

Development/Leadership Presentation

In response to the evaluations and your requests for more workshops, the provincial council made available a Leadership Development & Public Speaking Workshop. The workshop was originally set up to be present over six evenings but it was reformatted to be presented in one day. This workshop has already been presented in Nanaimo, Victoria, Vancouver and Kamloops and in every case has had an excellent reception by the participants. It is informative, fast-paced, requires your participation and is fun. Speak to anyone who has already attended one. The program is designed to give participants confidence and the knowledge to take on a position on their Parish Council and succeed.

At the end of the workshop, participants were asked to send in a two minute talk. This is easier than you think. As an example, we have brought a speech submitted from each workshop to give you some encouragement.

We have received invitations from the Prince George and Nelson Dioceses and plan to come to their region in September. Come and join us. You won’t be disappointed.

Encl:  Member Tracking Form

Membership

We have a great organization and with a great deal to offer to all the women in our parishes.   An organization that strives to live out the Catholic ideal in church and family; that recognizes the human dignity of all people; to uphold and defend Christian education and values in this world of ours as well as contributing to the understanding & growth of religious freedom, social justice, peace & harmony.

It is important to be welcoming, to make a place for the ladies who are busy with families or perhaps working by being flexible with meeting times.   Maintain contact and keep members who cannot attend meetings informed by sending/posting the minutes or a newsletter; or with a phone call.  There is a place for women of all ages, working or retired to belong in the League.

Although many councils are still in the middle of their membership drive, parish councils are asked to submit the membership renewals collected so far to National by the deadline date, February 28^th.
 

Tracking Form

Once again, the Provincial Council of the Catholic Women’s League is requesting you use the enclosed form as a method of tracking membership during the year.

This form is a great tool to:

• report to your individual councils monthly how your membership is doing,
• have the information ready to do an interim report April 30^th at Diocesan Conventions
• have all the information necessary to complete the annual report at the end of the year.
• see at a glance how you are doing with the collection of dues as well as how your council is faring with membership.
• can be used as incentive to increase members and collect dues earlier.
• track growth from year to year.

Thank you for your co-operation in using this form.  We came so close to reaching our goal of 10,000 members in BC & Yukon.  See what you can do in 2008!

Reminder:

For all Diocesan Chairpersons to please send a copy of their Diocesan communiqué to their Provincial counterpart.

May Our Lady of Good Counsel recommend us to her Son during this Lenten Season.

Direct our actions, Lord, by your holy inspiration
and carry them forward by your gracious help,
that all our works may begin in you
and by you be happily ended.

Amen.

Greetings and Happy New year to everyone. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas, a white Christmas for many this year, very different from the warm sunny days in Australia.

Provincial Development Fund

Fund #1 – Applications for subsidy to travel to the Provincial Convention in Williams Lake are now being accepted.
Assistance to send Delegates to the Provincial Convention will cover 2/3 maximum of the bus fare to the Convention site. The actual total amount of the grant available will be determined by the funds available this year. Other expenses such as hotel, meals and registration are the responsibility of the individual, the Parish or the Diocese.

Fund #2 – Diocesan Presidents are reminded that $1,000 is available for assistance to attend a National Convention if their Diocese cannot afford to send them. This grant is available once during a Diocesan President’s two year term.

Applications for both subsidies must be received by March 15th. Please send the completed forms to the Provincial Organization Chairperson, address below.

National Development Fund

All levels are encouraged to take advantage of the National funds available for education and training. Please remind parishes that they too can apply. Forms and information are available on the CWL website.

Recruitment & Membership

A new year and membership drives should be well underway. We came very close to reaching our goal of 10,000 members last year – more than last year but still falling short by approximately 900 members. A good try and maybe next year we can make it happen. Did any of the parish councils try something different this year that worked well for them?

Annual Report Forms

Reports from parish council organization chairpersons should all be in by now. In the event some are lacking try to follow up to see if you can assist them in some way. This is a great opportunity to see what is happening in some of the smaller councils, especially the ones that may be struggling.

Reminder: Diocesan annual reports due February 15th to Provincial
Provincial annual reports due March 15th to National

Provincial Development Workshop – “Leadership & Public Speaking”

The workshop is intended to help members, active in their councils, but feel they lack the necessary skills or confidence to take on a leadership role.

It is very important that we as Catholic women and as Canadian women, learn to communicate. We may be intelligent, we may be experienced in many fields, but if we cannot express our thoughts clearly, if we cannot pass our ideas on to others, our talents are wasted. This workshop will give a good working knowledge of the League and teach the skills to stand before a group to express ideas clearly, simply and effectively.

The Provincial Council is prepared to travel to each Diocese and extend an invitation to present a Development Day in their area. To date three dioceses have accepted our invitation and we look forward to hearing from the others.

Service Pins, Awards & Certificates

Councils should encourage their members to wear their League pin to all CWL events, particularly their monthly meeting. They might even consider having a supply of the League Insignia Pin on hand so that they may be purchased by members or, if councils choose, for presentation to new members. The League pin should be worn on the left side as a symbol of service “For God and Canada”.

As stated in the National P&P, “Councils are encouraged to make the presentation of all League pins and awards a special occasion”. There is something very special in being recognized for your contribution to the League and your council in particular.
If you have several pins to choose from, wear the one you select with great pride.

Bellelle Guerin Award

Information on the Bellelle Guerin Award has been sent to all Presidents by National Chairperson of Organization, Danielle McNeil-Hessian. Briefly, the award which was announced at the annual national convention in August is to be given to “an exemplary member of the League, who served at more than one level and does not and will not meet the qualifications for life membership. She can be nominated by her parish, diocesan and/or provincial council. The pin is a pewter stylized Madonna with the League crest overlaid. Nomination form for the Bellelle Guerin Award is available on the National website.

• Life Membership is presented to members who have been nominated by a diocesan and/or provincial council and who meet the established criteria.
• The Maple Leaf Service Pin is available for presentation to members who have served the League in an exceptional or meritorious manner. The member nominated for this award is not required to serve on more than one level of the League.
• Certificate of Merit in recognition to anyone, League member or not, Catholic or non-Catholic, male or female, who has aided the work of the council generally or with a specific project for faithful and exceptional service.

The full criteria for each award listed is outlined in the National Manual of Policy & Procedure, see page 19 and page A3-6.

May Our Lady of Good Counsel bless all your endeavours.

Your Sister in the League,

Marianna

A warm welcome to our new organization chairpersons: Sharon G….. (Kamloops), Linda M…….. (Prince George), Gisela M……. (Vancouver), Edna L……. (Whitehorse) and Alice H……. (Nelson) in her second year of her term.

I’m a little new myself. After one year as Chairperson of Spiritual Development, President, Barbara D……. asked if I would take over the Organization Standing Committee for the remainder of the term.

In most cases the Organization Chair is also President-elect. However, as this position on the Provincial Council is vacant, there will be an election for President at the next Provincial Convention which will be in Williams Lake May 28 – June 1, 2008.

Handbook for Organization Chairpersons
Danielle McNeil Hessian, National Organization Chairperson recently announced that a Handbook for Organization Chairpersons, a supplement to the Executive Handbook presently being drafted, will be provided to organization chairpersons at all levels in the New Year. The handbook is a resource to assist chairpersons with their responsibilities and will include a number of workshops developed throughout the years. This will be a wonderful hands-on resource for all parish councils.

Development Funds
National: This is a reminder that Development Funds are available from National to promote League leadership training and other League development workshops.

Councils may apply for assistance twice in a given year; for the period of January to June and from July to December. Full details, guidelines and application form are in the National Manual of Policy & Procedure, pages: A3-17 to A3-22 and can be downloaded on the CWL website: www.cwl.ca .

Provincial Development Funds:
Development Fund #1(Travel Fund) – An unspecified amount (interest earned) is available to assist Delegates with travel expenses to the Provincial Convention.

Development Fund #2 – $1,000 is available once in a two year term for a Diocesan President to attend the National Convention.

As the criteria for the travel fund was revised last year, I have enclosed copies of the revised application form and criteria. Deadline for both applications is March 31st.

Membership
September and October is the time to begin planning your membership drive for 2008. “Leading the League” contains just what you need: weekly bulletin announcements, intercessory prayers to be included during Sunday Mass, sample bulletin board announcements, a sample speech to parishes on CWL Sunday and much, much more. If parishes don’t already have a copy; urge them to order one from the National office today.

Elaine A…. tells me that our total membership to date is 8870. An increase over last year, though still a fair distance from reaching our goal of 10,000 members. But not so far, it can’t be reached! So, if anyone is hanging on to a paid membership in case one more comes in – send it in.

Annual Report Forms
Thank you to those who responded with suggestions to improve the annual report forms. They have been reformatted and some slightly revised. Hopefully they have been received and will shortly be in the hands of the Parish Councils. Please do what you can to encourage the councils to submit their annual report so we can have a good idea of what is happening in each Diocese; to share their ideas, successes and in some case, struggles. It’s their story.

Due dates for the annual reports are:
Parish report to Diocesan – December 15th (new)
Diocesan report to Provincial – February 15th
Provincial report to National – March 15th

I will be on holiday from September 23rd to November 20th. If you require any assistance in acquiring copies of annual report forms, please contact Doreen Gowans, Provincial Secretary.

With Thanksgiving around the corner I pray Our Lady of Good Counsel will grant you and your families many blessings. May your turkey be moist and your pumpkin pie just the way you like it. May you enjoy your Thanksgiving surrounded by family and friends.

Your Sister in the League,
Marianna

Dear League Sisters and Father Terry:

Attached you will find reports for every parish council position and standing committee. The parish president’s report is to include what the parish president has done as president. The other reports will include all the works of the council broken down by position or standing committee.

It would be appreciated if parish councils would depose of any report forms used in previous years and reply using the enclosed forms for your report. They have been amended and reformatted. Please note that the date reports are due has been changed to December 15th.

As you are aware it is very important to report all your council’s successes to the next levels of the League for their reports as they eventually make their way to government to let them know of our good work. We would be interested in hearing your comments on this updated process so we can continue to improve.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me.

God Bless all of you as we work together for God and Canada.

Marianna C…..

Suggested Process:
September: Copy the forms for each position & standing committee to have ready for your October meeting. Two copies per position should be adequate. One copy as a working copy and one for a good copy. Parish President to call a meeting of your executive including your standing committee chairpersons and co-chairs to be held in October. Ask everyone to bring their Constitution & Bylaws (C & B) and have a copy of the Executive Handbook available to review.

October: Start the meeting with a prayer asking Our Lady of Good Counsel to guide you as you complete your Annual Reports. Have each chairperson read their respective roles as noted in the C & B to refresh everyone on the responsibilities in each standing committee. Have the Secretary read the highlights from your parish council’s meeting minutes of everything your council accomplished from Jan. 1, 2007 to the current date. As the secretary is reading each person is asked to write down what applies to their respective standing committee. Keep in mind an item or action may fall under more than one Standing Committee and it is fine to include an item under more than one standing committee. Use the Parish Activities report form to list all the parish based social gatherings and functions such as Funeral Receptions, First Communion etc., your council organized on behalf of your parish family. List ALL the accomplishments and success stories of your council.

November: Update reports with any outstanding items. Type your report using the bullet format similar to a grocery list. Make sure your council name, contact name, address, telephone #, email address and position / standing committee are at the top of the page in the same manner as shown. Attach your completed report sheet to the report form sent to you from your Diocesan Council. Three copies are required of each report. One copy for the diocesan counterpart, one for the parish president, and one for their respective files. All reports must be mailed to the diocesan counterparts by December 15, 2007.
December: Parish President – from all the reports received from your parish council standing committee chairpersons, compile the information on the Parish Council Report Form to be given to your Diocesan Organization Standing Committee Chair to be used for your Diocesan convention book.

Congratulations!!! Your council has completed your annual reports prior to the deadline. As well, it is complete before a new parish president and executive assume their new roles in January in an election year. These reports are a wonderful history of your council and should be kept in your Archives.

I am delighted to speak to you for a few minutes about the Organization Standing Committee. As you know, it is one of those committees with a bad rap so to speak. No one wants to do it, possibly because it often has strings to the presidency attached, or because it deals with leadership development and most of think we aren’t qualified.

What a state of affairs! For today, let’s take a little look and you can tell me what’s to be afraid of.

Each and every one of us is concerned about membership. Just look at the results of the focus group workshops. Sure enough, attracting and maintaining a solid membership base is a huge issue. But it’s not insurmountable! We also heard of many ways to interest women in what we have to offer – from the tried and true to some new ideas. Check out my report in the convention book. I don’t think it’s the ideas that are lacking, but rather enthusiasm. Only when we are truly convinced that the Catholic Women’s League of Canada is the best organization to belong to, will we be successful. Remember the early Church? Having just about completed another Easter season, we cannot help but be touched by the passion and energy of those first disciples. I wonder sometimes if we aren’t too cautious and careful in trying to keep all the good things about our League to ourselves. Unlike the early church where people couldn’t wait to share everything, we might find ourselves more comfortable doing things the way we’ve always done them and then complaining about the poor results. Hoarding the Good News never was an option!

Membership in the CWL is a privilege that carries responsibilities. We are the Catholic Church to the outside world – what do we look like? What do we sound like? If you believe that every Catholic woman should belong to the CWL, we better get busy. How about we start with 10,000? By this time next year, we could achieve this goal – but it starts with each one of us, one at a time beginning with ourselves. Look in the mirror and ask – do I strive to live out our mission statement? Do I know the objects of our League? Am I educated enough about our great organization to sell it to my friends?

You see, we are all involved in membership – so what’s so hard about Organization anyway?

Leadership Development is a priority for most members. They want more workshops and education – at least that’s what I heard loud and clear during the recent workshops. My question is then, why are those development days and training sessions so poorly attended?

Perhaps we want to have our cake and eat it too. As Catholic women we owe it, not only to ourselves, but to our families and our Church to be the best we can be. We all lead in one way or another. It is our role; it is what we are expected to do.

As attested by history past and present, women possess a singular capacity to persevere in adversity, to keep life going in extreme situations, to hold tenaciously to the future and finally to remember with tears the value of every human life.

We all know women like this. Are you one? Of course you, we, are!

Just look around today and see Jackie L………, Margaret B…… and Ann D…., to name only a few. What a journey their faith has, and is, taking them on. See how they love one another and how they lead others by example and with joy. They truly walk humbly with our God.

Yes, there are many parts to this Standing Committee, none of which is particularly scary. I think if more of us were truly inspired to the kind of holiness that comes from the real meaning of service we wouldn’t have to search for or recruit more members. Women would want to be part of what we do and who we are.

Look at your gifts, like the saints who were able to see beyond what human eyes could see, and trust that God has given each of us exactly what we need to do His will here and now. Come on, don’t be afraid, say “Here I am Lord, use me!”

Barb D………

Dear League Sisters,

Happy New Year to you all!

Annual Reports – I trust by now you are working toward collecting the annual reports from your parishes. As the reports filter in you will be amazed at what is going on and has happened. I am confident that the new forms will generate really interesting reports that will enable you to also paint a brilliant picture of the activities and well-being in so many of our parishes.

Please be sure to adhere to the deadlines (parish reports are due to you January 15 and your reports to provincial by February 15). If at all possible contact those parishes from which you don’t hear. While this may be time-consuming and somewhat tedious, it is so very worthwhile – you’ll be amazed what you find out, and the fact that you called will go a long way toward encouraging responses.

Membership drives and February 28 deadline – please continue to focus and assist Organization Chairpersons and Treasurers at this important time. As previously mentioned, membership is going to be a topic for discussion as well as a possible per capita increase over the next months. I look forward to hearing how you are going to react to the challenge of tracking membership in your diocese (see last communique if you’ve forgotten!).

While this is the time to ‘market’ let’s keep in mind our target audience – those dedicated and loyal members we already have who need to be nurtured; those who have left the League and then ALL the rest – Catholic women everywhere who haven’t heard about the League, who deserve to belong. We need to preach the good news of the League – using words only when necessary! It’s up to each one of us.

Associate Membership – don’t forget to tell your members about this and consider offering gift memberships to non-Catholic friends or relatives. The National Manual of Policy and Procedure states that a non-Catholic woman 16 years of age or over may become an associate member, with voting privileges, but without eligibility for office by election or appointment.

Provincial Development Fund – applications for subsidy to travel to the Provincial Convention in Victoria are being accepted now. Please be sure everyone has the new forms – we won’t accept applications on the old ones.

National Development Fund – All levels are encouraged to take advantage of the National funds available for education and training. I trust you all have a copy and will remind parishes that they, too, can apply. Forms and information are available on the CWL website.

Standing Committee Restructuring – this will be the topic of diocesan workshops throughout Canada. More information will be forthcoming after the national midterm meeting March 1. I hope the response to Danielle’s survey was good. Do you have any further thoughts that you want me to take forward?

Pin Protocol – Danielle McN.-H. has asked that parishes talk about pin protocol. She states: The fact that the question of pin protocol on the death of a member was asked indicates that it should be an item on the parish agenda in order to inform members that they should be indicating their wishes to other League and family members.

Provincial Registration Packages and Parish registers – Please encourage Organization Chairpersons to work closely with the Secretary at parish level to ensure that all registers of the elected officers and standing committee chairpersons are mailed to Doreen G. immediately following parish elections or by February 1 at the latest.

You are doing a wonderful job in your dioceses – keep up the great work, excellent communications and lively enthusiasm for our League. I love to get your communiques and hope you are sharing with each other. If there is anything I can do to assist you in any way, please just ask.

If you need anything [while I am away], please contact Pat B.

Teach, Evangelize, Animate and Motivate!
Barb D.

Enclosure: “Stir a new Spirit of Enthusiasm” by Dodie B…, provincial sub chair for membership – enjoy. Thanks Dodie!

Dear League Sisters,

One of the most effective things Organization Chairpersons can do at this time in our League year is generate enthusiasm for membership. Encourage parish councils to do something different in an effort to raise awareness about membership in the most amazing women’s organization in the country (world!). It is so important to find ways to remind Catholic women of the many reasons they should be interested in and part of our League.

I challenge each of you diocesan organization chairs to find a way to track membership in your diocese. Ask the parish councils to assist and report to you their progress. All councils know how many members they have, how many they had and how many are brand new! Let’s see if each diocese could recognize one parish council for significant growth – either the most lapsed members returning, the highest percentage of new members or whatever you think is interesting and worthy of note. We will recognize these at the Provincial Convention in a special way. I leave it up to you, but now is the time to get thinking as memberships begin to pour in.

On the same note about membership, we all must be aware that our numbers across Canada are not increasing. We are still on target to get our 10,000 members in BC & the Yukon, but if the trend continues, there are consequences. If we are to continue to serve our members properly, we need to find more members or consider a per capita increase. I know everyone flinches at the thought, but it’s been a long time, 1993, in fact since the last increase nationally. Alternatively we can each take on the responsibility to bring one new woman to the League. Why wouldn’t we? It’s the best organization ever – how much do we care?

Don’t forget to share your communiques – I’ve seen awesome work and you will be enlightened and inspired by each other’s great work!

Development Fund:
New application forms will be out to you shortly for travel to conventions. Don’t forget to promote the National Development Fund to members who want to sponsor workshops and leadership days. All the information is available on the CWL website as well as in the National Manual of Policy and Procedure.

Annual Reports:
It’s that time and I know you all know, so I won’t nag. However, I do encourage you to look for the new or unusual, specific examples of success and/or ideas that touch you in some way. Doreen Gowans gave clear information on this in her communique. Again I thank her for that and for her part in getting the new forms to you. Please adhere to the deadlines.

Standing Committee Restructuring:
Every parish council was sent a survey on the Standing Committees and various aspects and circumstances relating to their own parish council. Danielle McNeil-Hessian, National Organization Chairperson says: “The standing committees are being examined in order to determine if the current structure meets the needs of members at the parish level.” She asks further that parish council responses reflect actual practice in the council at the present time. Unfortunately there was no return date – it is imperative that we get as many councils to reply as possible and as soon as possible.

I can’t say often enough that our Organization Standing Committee is much more than membership. Certainly without members we will not exist – but we owe our members so much if we are to be true to our mandate: “Calling our members to holiness through service to the people of God.” As we educate, lead, affirm and pray as one, we are able to recognize and accept the many gifts we’ve been given. Thank you for all you do to empower your League sisters through your dedication, example and love.

And finally, Christmas greetings, blessings and prayers to each of you and your families. I pray that your Advent is special and focused and that Christmas is a time of peace, joy and much happiness.

I look forward to 2007 as we prepare to embrace our new National theme: Love One Another and the Provincial sub theme: Walk Humbly with Our God.

Teach, Evangelize, Animate and Motivate!

Barb D.

Stir a new Spirit of Enthusiasm – from Dodie B. (BC & Yukon Membership sub-chair)

If we could all follow the League Calendar outlined in the “Leading the League Manual” we would all be on the same wavelength at the same time. What would we be doing together? We would be promoting all the things in life that are important; i.e. hospitality, openness, charity, generosity, strengthening our own personal faith both individually and collectively. At the same time we will be helping to make our own church stronger as well as our society.

It is up to each and every one of us to promote the League. Before we can do that, we must know and understand what the League is all about. I suggest that a time be set aside for training of new members. Then they will know what the League is all about. Our aims our purposes.

I have seen over the years members who bring members on board – get their dues – no training no explanation and guess what? We don’t see them again. It is one thing to pass out a welcome kit to the member who is new but I believe that when they get the kit it should go with some form of orientation.

When we buy a house, we look it over and if its what we want we buy it – because the people selling it took the time to find out what we wanted and they went about making it so – and they sold it. Maybe we should change the way we do things – first sell the prospective member by getting the present members to get a program together that is interesting and then rehearse until they know it inside out. Then have a lunch with a program and sell it to prospective new members.

We all have the words and tools at our fingertips. All we need to do is look to our League manuals and then just do it! Baby steps at first. Be excited about the League let the excitement show at what ever you do. This goes for all members, young, recycled, Catholic, Non Catholic. We must be proud members if we plan on attracting new members. We must be proud to belong to an Organization Rooted in Gospel Values.

We are people of faith bound by our faith, to welcome all women into the Catholic Women’s League.

We need to go back to our roots – we need to have present members educated and enthusiastic about the League in order for us to gain new members. The best way of getting new members is personal invitation. I can’t stress that enough. Be excited about sharing our faith.

By doing this we will have created a New Spirit of Enthusiasm!

Dear League Sisters,

Thank you for your patience as we work our way around the unusual situation of working without an Organization Chairperson on the Provincial level. For the time being we are going to share the duties the best we can.

Membership: Dodie B., recently “retired” from the provincial executive has generously agreed to take care of the membership side of this committee. Dodie will be working on a membership initiative and will communicate with you directly. We are grateful to Dodie for her help and look forward to working with her to attain our goal of 10,000 members. Wouldn’t it be awesome to reach that number by our 60th anniversary as a province in Victoria, 2007??? The national goal is 100,000 – we can help!

Dodie will be reminding us of the importance of keeping members up to date with their memberships and getting the fees in well in advance of the February 28 deadline. This is critical as each level depends on its per capita to function. We’re hoping to continue to focus on those members who have not renewed first by identifying who’s missing from our councils and secondly by making a call or a visit to find out why.

Development Fund: Elaine A., provincial treasurer, will look after the Development Fund applications. She works with a committee but ultimately gives out the money, so I am grateful to Elaine for adding this to her already full portfolio.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Development fund money will no longer be available at the provincial level for workshops. It was agreed at the provincial post convention meeting to discontinue this part of the development fund, partly because it was so underused and restrictive, but largely because the National Development Fund is available, easier to access, and offers better funding.

There is good news – more funds will be available for getting our members to provincial conventions. The last two years have seen an amazing increase in the number of applications and we’ve been sorry to have turned some down and in many cases given only a small portion of the costs. An ad hoc committee, struck at the post convention meeting, consisting of Pat B., Carol P., Elaine A. and myself are working on the new application form. It will be presented at the midterm meeting in October for approval with an application deadline of March 15, 2007.

Annual Reports: Doreen G., provincial secretary, has agreed to add this time-consuming duty to her already full list of jobs and will be sending out the annual report forms with instructions and direction. The forms have been revised after much discussion and consternation concerning what is being reported. An ad hoc committee was struck at the provincial post convention meeting to address this issue and find a way to improve. Doreen G., Pat D. and Agnes G. have worked through summer holidays to complete this task. Please do everything in your power to get this message to all your parishes. The suggestions in Doreen’s memo make it realistic to expect 100% reporting with your encouragement and follow up. You will notice more emphasis on success stories and things that are different and make a difference.

Promotional Video: Salt and Light TV were working on a promotional video at the National Convention in Halifax. It will be about 20 minutes, intended for use when giving talks on the CWL at parishes and to groups. Our hope to develop a provincial DVD will go on hold now until we see what this looks like. I’ve pre-ordered some and will keep you up to date on that. The cost will be something like $6.00 so every council should be able to get a copy. If anyone is interested in pre-ordering, go to the Salt and Light website www.saltandlighttv.org.

Over 800 people registered for the National Convention in Halifax. The CWL is alive and very well. We need to get the message out about who we are and what we do. Bishop Smith, national spiritual advisor, reminded us that there are some tough times coming for the Church in Canada and to never underestimate the value of what we do. We ARE the Church. We need to stand tall, reflect our optimism for the truth and be ready to be counted and speak up for what we believe. It’s always easier to do this with support – CWL is that support!

Organization job description: I encourage each of you to review the roles and responsibilities for your level. They can be found on the National CWL website www.cwl.ca. This might assist you in the direction you feel will work best for your diocese.

Welcome back to Lorrilee J. (Kamloops), Susan S. (Prince George), Evelyn R. (Vancouver) and Nicole G. (Whitehorse), who have had a year’s experience already and are doing a terrific job. Congratulations, also, to Alice H. (Nelson) on your new position – thanks for saying “yes”. Victoria doesn’t have anyone for Organization at this time, so please send your copies or information to the president, Agnes G.

I encourage you to share communiques – we can always learn from one another. Keep up to date – check the CWL websites www.cwl.ca and www.cwl.bc.ca for updates and do not hesitate, ever, to call me if there is anything I can do to help you.

Organization is much more than membership. It is education, leadership and opportunities to affirm our League sisters in their overall development and individual growth. As we each seek to find our own place, we must take responsibility for the many gifts we’ve been given. In your efforts to bring out the best in others, you will be amazed at the results in your own life.

The national organization chairperson and president elect is Danielle McNeill-Hessian. Look for lots of great things to come from Danielle. We are all looking forward to the next two years with Lorette Noble, our President, and her new officers. The future is bright indeed. Lorette has chosen for her theme beginning January 2007: Love One Another. How perfect is that?

And lastly, in her final report to the National Convention as Organization Chairperson, Lorette reminded us about the importance of associate members. We often forget that women who are not Catholic are more than welcome to become members of the CWL. Think, too, of the wives of Catholic men in your parish who might share our interests in the world and society, who might find our League the place they can belong and make a difference. As Lorette said, “Ask them to come and see!”

So, September looms! I thank you for your efforts and look forward to a great year of CWL animation and enthusiasm. Use dialogue and workshops, brainstorming and small group discussions to get people talking and thinking out loud. And don’t forget to pray!

Teach, Evangelize, Animate and Motivate!

PS: Watch for more information on a pilot project for a Catholic Girls League coming soon!

Barb D.