THE LONE STAR MESSENGER
Texas State Court
“We must not only give what we have; we must also give what we are.” Joseph Cardinal Mercier
SEPTEMBER 2006 www.cdatexas.org
27
Olga Samaniego
State Regent
1801 Billy Casper
El Paso, TX 79936
915-593-6653
Carolyn Bachmann
First Vice State Regent
19417 FM 172
Scotland, TX 76379-6500
940-541-2569
Sheila Martinka
Second Vice State Regent
2401 Primrose
Pasadena, TX 77502
713-946-5847
Carolyn Malik
State Secretary
P.O. Box 243
Shiner, TX 77984
361-594-3170
Peggy Rosales
State Treasurer
8003 Doe Meadow Dr.
Austin, TX 78749
512-288-2877
Loraine Hilscher
State Parliamentarian
2404 San Medina
Dallas, TX 75228-3112
214-327-6708
Most Rev. Armando Ochoa
State Chaplain
Office of the Bishop
499 Saint Matthews St.
El Paso, TX 79907
915-872-8426
Rev. Donald Ruppert
State Clergy Consultant
P.O. Box 1325
East Bernard, TX 77435-1325
MISSION STATEMENT: Catholic Daughters of the Americas strive to embrace the principle of faith working through love in the promotion of justice, equality, and the advancement of human rights and human dignity for all.
MESSAGE FROM THE STATE REGENT
My Dear Sisters in Christ,
Welcome to an exciting, new CDA year; and are we ever starting the year off with a bang! Eighty-seven delegates and thirty-one alternates and non-delegates attended the National Convention held in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in July. It was truly an amazing experience filled with equal parts of hard work, learning, and great fun. As most of you know, we now have a new National Regent, Claudia Bosch, from North Dakota. She is a vibrant leader, and I know she will do a terrific job of continuing to move our organization forward. We wish our out-going National Regent all the best. M. Joan McKenna is a hard-working, dedicated woman; and it was a pleasure to work with and for her.
I am proud to announce that Texas supported two candidates at the convention, and both were elected. Libby Ramirez from Victoria is the first ever to hold the office of National Regent Elect! She will work closely with Claudia, and I know the two will be a great team. CDA will be in great hands for the next four years! We also have a new National Director from Texas: Duchess Collins from Sugar Land. We don’t know what her assignments are yet; however, we do know that she will work hard and represent Texas well.
I have one more bit of exciting news! Contracts have just been signed, and Texas is going to undertake a second Habitat for Humanity build! This build will be a joint project of this administration and the next, and the home will be built in Wichita Falls, Texas, in October 2007. We are venturing into new territory with this build. First of all, the State and Local Courts of Texas will provide all the funding for this home. It will be a challenge to do this without the support of the National Office, but we know that the members of Texas are up to this challenge. I am happy to announce that Susan Walton of Wichita Falls has accepted the chairmanship of this project, and I know that she is raring to go! Susan will be contacting you with more information soon, but as your court sets up its budget for this new term, please consider making a donation to this new Habitat House. We are asking that each court in Texas contribute at least $100.00 toward making this home a reality. Send your checks made out to the Texas State Court to Susan Walton, Habitat for Humanity Build 2007 Chairman, at 305 Galleon Drive, Lakeside City, Texas, 76308, and write Habitat for Humanity on the notation line. Together we can truly make a difference in a family’s life.
Members across the state have been asking God to show us what He would have us do, and boy is He ever putting us to work! Roll up your sleeves, and do not be afraid. Whatever He calls us to do, He will empower us and equip us to do.
Olga Samaniego
27
Catholic Daughters of the Americas
Texas State Court
Mission Statement
The members of the Texas State Court love Christ and His Church and are dedicated to leading others to Christ and to His service through Catholic Daughters of the Americas.
Goals
1. To be women of faith and prayer.
2. To bear witness to our faith through our actions and interactions.
3. To support our clergy and women religious and to foster vocations.
4. To promote the fact that CDA is a relevant, vibrant organization for today’s church.
5. To increase membership.
Activities
Ø Emphasize that all courts are to implement the Spiritual Enhancement portion of the Circle of Love Program.
Ø Encourage courts to undertake all other aspects of the Circle of Love prayerfully.
Ø Provide two state-wide retreats to foster a deeper understanding of the Eucharist.
Ø Be highly visible in the state to encourage prayer and service.
Ø Encourage and suggest new area of service that are relevant to today’s women and that meet the needs of a changing world.
Ø Institute more Missions of Mercy projects in different parts of the state.
Ø Provide more training and time for discussion at district and multi-district meetings.
Ø Provide more support for courts that are struggling through the Court Outreach Program.
Ø Encourage the study of the bylaws, parliamentary procedure, and protocol.
Ø Develop more women to undertake leadership roles in their courts.
Ø Encourage more courts to become more actively involved with our youth.
Ø Encourage more participation in our Circle of Love, newsletter, scrapbook, and membership contests.
Ø Encourage courts to become more visible and active in their churches and communities and to publicize their activities.
Ø Develop innovative ways to encourage women to join us in our work.
Ø Develop court incentives for increasing membership.
Ø Continue to work with technology so that it enhances the efficiency of each officer.
27
Letter from the State Clergy Consultant
My Dear Catholic Daughters,
Summer vacations are over. School bells ring once again; and it is time for CDA to get back into the “groove.”
I went to the National CDA Convention in Minneapolis looking forward to a respite from the Houston area heat and humidity. A parishioner was visiting friends in St. Paul the week before the convention and called home to say how much she was enjoying the chilly mornings and mild days. When I stepped out of the Minneapolis/St. Paul airport late Saturday night, I thought I never left Houston. What is it about CDA national conventions? We went to Tacoma in 2004 and had people falling over from the heat during the opening Mass. We go to Minneapolis and get into the middle of a “once every 100 years” heat wave. I’m almost afraid to go to Albuquerque in 2008. We’ll probably battle knee-deep snow!
I was proud of the Texas delegation during the national convention. You were assertive, but not too aggressive. Most of you used the right forks at the banquets and came home with your boots fairly clean. The old adage, “It’s hard to be humble when you’re from Texas,” is often true. Congratulations to Libby Ramirez, our new National Regent Elect, and Duchess Collins, National Director. Texas returned home a winner!
You will be in my prayers as you prepare for a new year. I congratulate the newly installed officers and extend my best wishes to you and your courts. May God bless you as you work together for the good of the Church and the Catholic Daughters of the Americas. May Mary, the Mother of Jesus, guide your decisions so that all you do is in accord with the two great commandments: “Love God above all things, and love your neighbor as yourself.” PRAY OFTEN, WORK HARD, HAVE FUN, and be truly UNITED IN CHARITY!
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Father Don Ruppert
State Clergy Consultant
Message from National
Libby Ramirez
National Regent Elect
The excitement of the convention is still in the air. What a wonderful convention. The members of the Minnesota courts did a wonderful job. We all know that hosting a convention is a lot of team work, and we all saw what team work can do. The convention was very well organized.
My first thought is to thank all of you for your support during the convention. I am very proud to serve you in our organization, and I am extremely proud to be a member of CDA in Texas. I will serve you the very best I can. I look forward to serving as National Regent Elect for the next two years. I ask for your prayers for all the members of the board as we enter into a new term.
The essence of the convention is the changes that take place in the governance of our organization. This is done through the changes to the bylaws that rule our order. Many changes were made at this convention. Study them carefully. If you have a doubt about any of the changes, contact your State Regent before you give the information out to the membership. Be sure that your members get the right information. The resolutions passed at this convention were brought to the floor of the convention by our State Regent Olga Samaniego who was, as always, very proficient. Study those carefully and implement them where they apply.
As you read this, the Texas State officers and District Deputies are busy training the new officers in their respective jobs. When the workshop comes to your area, please make an effort to attend the meeting. It is for your benefit and the progress of your court. The program they offer is very important for the growth of your court. It is imperative that you know the programs and the proper procedures for conducting business in your courts. Our State has incorporated Spirituality and Membership into the training also, as they feel that without spiritually you will not have membership.
Membership continues to be a very important aspect of our program. How long has it been since your court held a membership drive? Did you bring in any members in the past six months? How many were deleted from your roster? Were they due to death or did they resign? If they resigned, did the financial secretary make a personal contact or phone call to find out why they were resigning? Is it time for us, the membership, to get more involved in the reasons our members are leaving our courts? We have a wonderful organization. We need to let all our members know how good it is, and we all need to get involved in membership.
We are all looking for the success of our courts and we will achieve it if we have determination and faith. I will close with the following:
Phil. 4:13, I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.
The road to success is not straight. There is a curve called Failure, a loop called Confusion, speed bumps called Friends, red lights called Enemies, caution lights called Family. You will have flats called Jobs. But, if you have a spare called Determination, an engine called Perseverance, insurance called Faith, a driver called Jesus, you will make it to a place called Success. -Anonymous-
MESSAGES FROM YOUR TEXAS STATE OFFICERS
27
27
Court Development/Membership
Carolyn Bachmann- First Vice State Regent
As summer is coming to a close and fall is just around the corner, I hope that all of you had a pleasant summer and came up with some ideas to bring in new members. In the last newsletter, I asked all courts to come up with a membership drive that would suit your court. It is now time to set dates for the membership drive your court has decided upon. If you have not talked it over with your court and membership chairman, you will need to do this soon. New members bring new talents, new ideas and more hands to carry out your court’s projects. I want to make your court a winner of the Membership Contest sponsored by the State. I would like each court to work on bringing in at least five new members by January 1, 2007. I know all of you can accomplish this small task. Go CDA, Go CDA, We are #1.
Court development is coming along. Several District Deputies and their helpers are working on new court prospects across the state. If you hear of any new leads or areas that have an interest in learning more about CDA, please contact me; and I will check into it. We need to share with all women the sisterhood we share with one another as Catholic Daughter members. or 940-541-2569
*******************************************
Officer Training/Leadership Workshops
Sheila Martinka, Second Vice State Regent
The summer is over, and it surely did go by fast! We have almost completed officer training in the state of Texas. Members of the State Board started officer training on June 3rd in San Angelo and continued throughout the summer to New Braunfels, to the “Lights of Marfa,” then Moulton, Columbus, Tyler, Dallas/Irving, Corpus Christi, Deer Park/Houston area, Ganado, and Mission. We will take our “road show” to Amarillo in October. Many of the training sessions were multi-district, and I appreciate all of you “going the distance” to participate in the training.
I want to thank all of the District Deputies who were so helpful and instrumental in bringing it all together. Whatever I asked you to do to help prepare, you were there; and I am most appreciative of your hard work and dedication to CDA! Big thanks to all of the officers and members who gave of yourselves and took time from your busy lives to be with us!
The State Board updated the information and readjusted the format of the presentations; we had nothing but rave reviews from all of you! Thanks so much for your input. All of you make my job as Leadership Chairman so easy. I wish you a joyful, successful, and fun-filled two years in your office; and I leave you with this quote from Frank Outlaw, taken from one of our presentations: