St. Helen CCW affiliation is not a lone entity. The Diocese of Palm Beach County is divided into the Northern Deanery, Southern Deanery and Central Deanery. We here at St. Helen belong to the Northern Deanery. We are also members of the National Council of Catholic Women (NCCW) and the World Union of Catholic Women's Organization (WUCWO). We are Catholic women united world wide. This year the NCCW celebrates 86 years of history -history rich with spirituality, leadership development, legislative and administrative reform, but above all , passion for following in the steps of Christ as we serve one another. As members of the NCCW we are able to collaborate with over 5,000 affiliated organizations across the country.

     We are recognized by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. We acknowledge Mary as our role model and vow to imitate her by developing a deeper devotion to and a greater reverence for the Eucharist. We uphold the dignity of marriage and defend marriage as defined by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops as being between one man and one woman. Central to all our programs is the sanctity and dignity of human life. From Conception to a natural death, we passionately embrace the precious gift of life. We are committed to solidarity with women and children world-wide, we collaborate with Catholic Relief Services in raising awareness and money for programs to aide women and children in dangerous or desperate circumstances.

     Proudly we have a legislative voice at the Florida Catholic Conference's Catholic Days at the Capital, speaking on issues central to our Catholic belief system, such as affordable health care and housing, worker safety, and bans against human cloning and embryonic stem cell research. We also advocate against child abuse and support local facilities that meet the needs of abused and battered women and children. We are vehemently opposed to the Trafficking of nearly 20,000 human persons in the United States annually, and, so, we work to raise awareness in our membership, our communities, and in our government as to the tragic reality of this modern-day slavery.

     We support vocations through contributions to the burse fund and recognition lucheons for our seminarians and religious. We support the spirituality of our membership through Days of Reflection offered at the parish and diocesan levels, through Memeorial Masses, and through the Living Rosary. Our Patroness is Our Lady of Good Counsel; prayer opens and closes each business meeting. Through workshops, conferences, and conventions offered at the diocesan, state and national levels we are educated on issues of Catholic social justice. We see through direct and measurable results that collectively, as the Council of Catholic Women, we have a powerful voice and we are making a difference.

President:

Barbara Villar 

Vice-President: 

Marilyn Depue

Recording Secretary: 

Jo Ann Slater

Corresponding Secretary:

Lorraine Rego

Treasurer: 

Barbara Rorick

Leadership Co -Chairs: 

Carolyn Robinet & Anne Landry 

Spirituality Chair: 

Marilyn Depue

Service Chair: 

Joanne Pennington 

Legislative Chair: 

Kathleen Muller

Deanery Representative: 

Barbara Lankford

Parliamentarian: 

Karen Egan 

Scholarship & Book Club: 

 Virginia Thorne

Evening Circle Liaison: 

Norma Wolfe

Newsletter: 

Barbara Villar

Publicity: 

 Marilyn Depue

 Web Site: 

 Avalon McGann

PRAYER TO OUR LADY OF GOOD COUNSEL

O Mother of Good Counsel,

patroness of the

Nationial Council of Catholic Women,

intercede for us,

that we may be wise, courageous

and loving leaders of the Church.

Help us dear Mother,

to know the mind of Jesus, your son.

May the Holy Spirit

fill us with reverence for God's creation, and

compassion for all God's children.

May our labors of love on earth

enhance the reign of God and may

God's gifts of faith and living hope

prepare us for the fullness of

the wolrd to come. Amen