5 minute read
Behind the scenes at Women’s Cultural Alliance
By Susan Pittelman, WCA Publicity Coordinator
Last season, WCA members had the opportunity to participate in more than 600 programs, interest groups, summer branch activities and special events. We anticipate that the number will be even higher this year. Each Thursday morning, WCA emails a newsletter brimming with information about upcoming WCA events and some community activities. Did you ever wonder how those events get planned and how the information gets into the newsletter and onto the website? WCA members enjoy using the online Member Directory. How does everyone’s information get into the directory?
How does all of this happen?
Answer: The WCA Board of Directors, with help from the magic of technology. The information below describes some of what each WCA Board member contributes. (Board members’ names are in bold.)
The WCA Board of Directors is comprised of 24 dedicated WCA members who work together under the leadership of WCA President Patti Boochever Each board member has a role and uses the magic of our membership management system (Wild Apricot) to implement, manage and publicize our programs, membership, registrations, renewals, Member Directory and website.
After you fill out your profile when joining or renewing your membership, Hannah Goodman checks the data, which then is used to create our Member Directory. Goodman monitors the database for our 1,600+ members, often using it to create member searches.
When an event is scheduled, the event organizer sends the information to Ann Cowen and Carol Sherman, and either they or another board member or volunteer create the publicity announcement. Harriet Schweitzer writes the publicity for each speaker in our signature Speaker Series. Sherman puts the event announcements in the newsletter with a registration link, while Cowen, assisted by new board member Rita Silverstein , creates and monitors the event registration pages.
Cowen and Silverstein also send out notices for interest groups as well as invitations and reminders for other events. Sherman organizes the publicity announcements, then adds book and movie recommendations, photos and information about some MCA and community events. She searches the membership database so she can also include birthdays and a listing of new members. She then edits the entire newsletter and sends it to our membership.
As we look ahead to this season, we are all eagerly anticipating some wonderful programs and special events. Susan Koeppel has already scheduled a spectacular line-up of speakers for WCA’s Thursday Speaker Series, which kicks off Oct. 10 with Sandy Parker presenting pre-election information.
Debbie Lurie and Darlene Muller oversee the WCA Welcome Back Luncheon (Nov. 15) and WCA’s Fashion Show (Feb. 26).
Linda Hyde has begun to contact nonprofit organizations for this season’s WCA Community Volunteer Expo (Feb. 11). This event is a significant part of WCA’s community outreach.
Robin Mintz creates the eye-catching invitations and program booklets for these and other key events. Mintz also provides the graphics for WCA ads and promotional items.
To accommodate women who live north or south of Naples, WCA established WCA North and WCA South, both of which provide programming closer to where these members live. Dina Shein organizes and manages all activities for WCA North, while Cathy Lone-Dawson oversees all activities for WCA South.
WCA recently created WCA NextGen to appeal to WCA members 65 years of age and younger. Shelly Bell and new board member Joan Meltzer organize and manage NextGen activities.
Much of the success of WCA North and WCA South, as well as that of NextGen, can be attributed to the wonderful cadre of volunteers who chair the various events.
WCA’s largest interest groups, WCA Foodies and the Couples Group, each has more than 400 participants. Phyllis Strome manages the Couples Group and Lea Bendes heads the WCA Foodies. Bendes also oversees the Café of Life Foodies Volunteer Program and helps to plan the annual WCA Volunteer Appreciation Event. Louise Forman is the contact person for all WCA interest group liaisons. She ensures that interest group lists are kept updated and accurate in the management system.
With all this planning for all these gatherings, how does everyone find a place to hold their events? The answer is Leslie Feldman, who arranges the rooms, including set-up needs, for all WCA activities at the Nina Iser Jewish Cultural Center.
Welcoming new members is a strength of Harriett Kleinman, who organizes the new member coffees and shares information to help new members get acclimated. In addition, Kleinman, along with a committee of 20 volunteers, offered a full complement of summer activities for WCA Year Rounders — women who remain in Greater Naples all year.
Volunteers are key to the success of WCA. Linda Simon focuses on volunteers and membership engagement. She recruits new volunteers, matching their skills and interests to volunteer opportunities. Simon also helps to plan the WCA Volunteer Appreciation event.
Behind the scenes, Treasurer Arlene Sobol oversees and monitors the budget, presents a financial report of revenue and expenses at every board meeting and manages financial transactions. WCA Secretary Susan Pittelman documents the actions taken at each meeting. And Emerita Elaine Soffer, who served as president from 2013 to 2020, acts as an advisor, sharing her rich history with the board.
How did this article find its way into the Federation Star ? Susan Pittelman makes sure that an article about WCA appears in each issue.
So, in brief, that is how board members work to create an organization like no other — one that provides an exciting year of friendship, fun and fabulous social and educational programming for each of you.
Thank you to our WCA Board of Directors and to WCA’s dedicated volunteers. They all work together to make WCA the extraordinary one-of-a-kind organization that it is.
The WCA Board of Directors wishes each of you and your loved ones a Happy New Year filled with the blessings of good health, joy, fulfillment and peace.
