Florida Council of Catholic Women/Province of Miami at P. O. Box 1811, Labelle, FL 33975 US - Ingredients for a Great Casserole

In today's fast paced world, organizations are having difficulty finding members. They are searching for people willing to give of their time and talents. If there are no new members, they are in danger of extinction.

Our organization is no different. We must re-evaluate and focus on what we want to accomplish. We must encourage more women to participate.

One could think of the Catholic Woman's Club as a casserole. It consists of a variety of ingredients. As you may recall, our mothers could be very creative by starting a casserole with leftover meat. Then, maybe she would add some brightly colored vegetables to make it look appealing. Next, she would add potatoes to give it more substance. Finally, spices would help to create a mouth-watering sensation.

The Catholic Woman's Club casserole consists of women who have donated their time and talents for many years. These women are the backbone or the `meat' of the organization. They have completed many projects, helped many families, and raised huge amounts of money. They are tired.

We must add some `vegetables' to our organizations. Mothers who work outside the home, should be asked to participate. We cannot assume that they do not have the time. Some mothers may not be able to attend a lot of meetings or work every project, but they might be willing to bake for a bake sale once in awhile. Perhaps they could encourage their teenage children to baby-sit for an hour so another mother could participate in a Church activity. Or maybe they would be willing to work on one project a year. We will never know if we don't ask.

The potatoes' in our organizations must be new, active members. These are women who are waiting to be asked to participate. Maybe they are new to the parish or our faith. (What ever happened to those calling committees?) They probably have new ideas or creative ways of accomplishing things that we haven't tried. They could be women who were leaders in parishes that have closed and feel uncomfortable or unwelcome in their new parish. We'll never know until we ask.

Finally, to add `spice' to our casserole, we need to encourage young people to participate. We must show them the good work that the Council of Catholic Woman's Club does and help them discover that pleasure can be found in giving of their time and their talents for others. Again, we'll never know until we invite them to participate.

When you mix them all together, a wonderful casserole is created. The Catholic Woman's Club can thrive! However, no ingredient can be left out. If we are to grow, we have to keep an open mind, an open heart, and an open hand. We must let all women in our parishes know that they are welcome!