WCA newsletter: A gift to our membership

By Susan Pittelman, WCA Publicity Coordinator

December is often associated with giving (and receiving!) presents. However, every Thursday morning throughout the year, WCA members receive a “gift” from WCA – its weekly newsletter. They can open it from the inbox on their computer, iPad and even from their cellphone. The newsletter announces upcoming programs and events and enables members to register for them by simply clicking on a button! Because both our newsletter and website are linked to our membership management system, after registering, you automatically receive a confirmation of your registration. As newsletter editor Carol Sherman says, “It is easy peasy!”

At the top of the newsletter, under the WCA banner, is the link to the WCA website, wcanaples.org. With simply another click, women can go directly to the website and view the WCA calendar, the list of interest groups and their liaisons, WCA publications, and more. In addition, many of the newsletter articles contain links to the website, such as to the publication WCA Words. The WCA newsletter is most certainly a “gift” to our members.

Newsletter editor Carol Sherman works on an issue of the WCA weekly newsletter.

The wizard behind the newsletter is its talented editor, Carol Sherman, who created the new look for it using the newsletter feature of the membership management system WCA began using in March 2021. While the system has limitations, such as having only six available fonts, it offers many features that enable Sherman to compose, design and edit the newsletter. She uses a dark background color for the entire newsletter, then places a white box on top of the background so that the content is easy to read.

“When there is a special announcement that needs attention, I change the white background to a bright color and use white for the text,” explains Sherman. “I insert colored lines between articles to keep information clear, and I change text color to highlight dates and times in red. This way, women can quickly check their calendars, as they don’t have to reread an entire article to find the date.”

The newsletter feature makes it easy for Sherman to import graphics and photos, both of which greatly enhance the appearance of the newsletter. “Sometimes it is the picture that drives people to register for a program!” confides Sherman.

“I introduced several new features this year,” she reports. “The first is a list of members’ birthdays for the current month. As long as a member includes her birthday in her profile, it will appear on the monthly birthday list. Many times, a member is motivated to update her profile because her birthday didn’t appear in the newsletter!”

COVID sparked Sherman to create yet another feature. She found that when small groups met for dinner, the entire conversation revolved around good books, TV series and movies. “People would get out their phones and write down the suggestions. So, I started a ‘What Have You Been Doing?’ column,” said Sherman. “Members send me the names of books, TV series and movies to pass along to others. Since I started this column, there has not been a single week that I haven’t received recommendations. Some of the best books I have read came from this column. I even sent a screenshot of the page to my daughter.

“Not only is the list helpful but an added bonus is that it also offers our entire membership an opportunity to take part in creating our newsletter. Along this same line, whenever I can, I include stories submitted by members, such as our ‘friendship stories’ as well as photos of members at programs.”

The bottom of the newsletter includes the popular “Buy/Sell” section that enables members to sell tickets they have for performances they are not able to attend or to buy tickets for events they would like to attend.

The last section of the newsletter publicizes programs/activities offered by organizations other than WCA. These often include Federation programs, such as the Jewish Book Festival, community speakers and celebrations, and MCA activities that women may attend.

When I asked Sherman what she likes best about being the newsletter editor, she responded, “It’s the women! I started working on the newsletter at the height of COVID. I answered an ad in the WCA e-blast asking for someone who could type and would like to help. I spoke with Ann Cowen and, before I knew it, I was the editor! Ann and I still have a close relationship. Patti Boochever was my master guide, Elaine Soffer and Emily Berkowitz submitted articles, and my computer guru, Hannah Goodman, was my angel. They are each a major piece of my puzzle. I wouldn’t be successful if it weren’t for these women. Now, when we meet in person, it’s like I have long-lost friends whom I haven’t seen in years.”

Thanks to Sherman’s creativity, talent and hard work, the WCA newsletter helps to keep us all connected and up to date on WCA happenings.

Please be aware that the weekly newsletter is sent only to WCA members, so if you are not already a member of WCA, you will need to join to receive this very special gift each week.