We want this website to be the "go-to" resource for CWL Councils (and their members) in the Diocese of Calgary. It is intended to:
- Give CWL members the resources to be successful
- Help others understand what CWL is about
- Be easy to use and to find things.
Following are some of the ways we are working toward that:
If you want to change the size of the font on a website, you can hold down the CTRL key and then tap the - key (minus key) to make it smaller or the + key to make it bigger. CTRL and 0 returns it to the original size. If you forget that, on our website there is a Text Size feature in the blue area between the menu and the content. Just click on the - sign to reduce or the + sign to enlarge.
On the right hand side of that same area, there is a Search box. Use it to find all articles that include specific words.
In the center of that section is the word Subscribe. Click on it to register with us if you want to be emailed when new information is added to the website.
Throughout the website, words that are in blue are links that open a document, take you to a different page or website, or open an email to the person named.
When you open an article, you will see small blue icons in the upper right corner of the article. Click on the "printer" to print a paper copy. Click on the envelop to email someone a link to the article.
When you scroll down on a page, you may see a yellow box with an inverted v in the bottom right corner of your screen. Clicking on that will take you back to the top of the page.
Home Page:
At the top of the left column on the is a "What's New" section that lists the articles published in the last month. You can click on the titles there to go directly to the article.
Also in the left hand column are
- articles about CWL,
- information about our Diocesan Executive,
- and a list of events that are soon taking place.
These items are repeated for your convenience on every page except the Calendar.
For CWL Members:
This is the area specifically intended to support our Councils. The main page has the list of all CWL Councils in the Calgary Diocese, organized according to the geographical Region to which they belong. Where possible, they are linked to the Council's own webpage or their information on the parish's website. Please send any corrections / updates to our webmaster.
There are also sub-menus for the Executive Officers and Standing Committees. Some of those have further sub-menus for articles about relevant issues and responsibilities.
There is also a section for forms and other resources that are commonly needed by Councils.
The Registration option leads you to the same form as the Subscribe link so you can sign up to be emailed when significant new information is added to the website. There is a sub-menu that lets you edit your profile if you need to update your contact information.
Calendar:
Our calendar is a bit more complicated to use, but it can be very versatile to meet your specific needs. 
The calendar is actually a composite of 7 contributing calendars - one for Diocesan (and provincial / national events that affect us), one for each region in the Diocese, and one for general special days that you may need to consider when you are planning events. You can choose which of these calendars you want to see by clicking on the arrow above the month. This opens the list of sub-calendars that shows their color-coding and description. Check (or un-check) the options to get the events you want to see.
To the left of the month header is a legend that helps you navigate.
- The < takes you back one month
- The > moves you ahead one month
- The box with the miniature calendar icon opens up to left you ore rapidly move through the months. When you reach the month you want, click on the date you want to open the calendar there.
To the right of the month header are options that let you choose how to view events.
- Month is the default setting.
- Week shows an hourly schedule of activities during the week. You may find this useful during Convention time.
- Day shows the hourly schedule for the specific day you choose..
- List shows the events starting from the day you chose and for the next several day. Click on any event in the list to get the details on it.
Maps:
At the bottom of the calendar is a map showing the various locations where the events displayed on that page are taking place.
- You can place your cursor on the "pin" to see the name of the event.
- Tapping on the "pin" will open a "tool tip" window with the introductory information about the event.
- In the tool tip you will see the name of the event in blue. That is a link to the full information about the event.
The maps are Google maps and you can use them the same way you would any other Google map to move around.
Events:
The events on the calendar are shown as blocks (color coded according to the region, etc.) showing the time and name of the event, and some introductory information. Tap on the event to open up the full information.
When you open an event, you will see some icons on the page.
- Click on the envelop to email someone the link to the event.
- Click on the printer to print a hard copy of the event information.
To go back to the calendar, you can click on the link beside the "Calendar" that says which region the event is in, or you can scroll up to the menu and select the calendar tab.
Add your event:
All CWL Councils in the Diocese are welcome to forward any events / activities to which they are inviting their League sisters and the public - anniversary celebrations, fundraisers, retreats, regional meetings, etc. Email the details to the Diocesan Communications Chair or the Webmaster. If you wish, you can use the Event Submission form. We would love to see a full and color-filled calendar!
Contact Us:
Select this tab from the menu to contact any member of the Calgary Diocesan Executive.
- Click on the small arrow at the end of the box to select the position you want to contact. "Meet Our Officers" is in the column to the left so you can check that information as well.
- The name of the person holding that position will show so you can verify that that is who you want.
- Fill in each of the fields in the Contact Form (an * beside the title of any field indicates that it is required.)
- Where it says "Name", put your name.
- Where it says "Email", put your email address (where you want the officer to send her reply.)
- When you have finished, click on the "Send Email" button.
If you have any suggestions for improving this Help page (or any other on the website) please send them to the webmaster through the process described above. Thanks!
How to Subscribe
Every page on the Diocesan website includes a Subscribe for Updates link that allows you to sign up for automatic emails to keep informed of new events, articles, etc. as they are added.
To subscribe, click on the link and
- choose your own user name and password
- select what type of information you want to receive
- If you are a CWL member, include the name of your Council (or some other indication that you are a CWL member), and identify which region you are in.
After you complete and submit the form, the system will send an automated email to the email address you provided. In it is a link that you click on to verify your account. This is a standard online registration process designed to ensure that the subscription is legitimate and that your email address is correct.
When you click on the link in that email, an approval note is sent to the webmaster who checks the registration to make sure that it is valid. This step may make you impatient because it is not automatic and may take a while. Please be assured that it is needed because we have a significant number of scammers from around the world who try to register, and we want to be as certain as possible that our subscribers are CWL members or people who are supportive of us. Once your subscription is approved, you will get another automated email telling you that you have been accepted.
After that, you will receive emails whenever there is new information that is relevant to the areas for which you subscribed. What more could you want? Well… Once you have "subscribed for updates", you cab log in to see additional information.
How to Log In
To login:
1. Go to any page on the website and click on the Log In/Out link below the menu (between the "Subscribe for Updates" and the "Search" feature.
2. This will open a new area on the page:
3. If you remember your user name and password, enter them in the appropriate boxes.
If you do not remember them, scroll down a bit further and use the "Forgot" feature to have the system email them to you.
4. When you have entered your user name and password, click the gold colored Log in button.
5. When you are finished, click again on the Log in/out link and then on the gold Log out button.
6. That's it! You have successfully logged in and logged out :)
You must be logged in in order to use the Forum.
As I was traveling to our 2019 Provincial Convention, another delegate commented to me that she wished there had been a way for members to post on our website that they were going to convention and needed a ride, or had space to bring someone.
At the convention, I overheard another member bemoaning the fact that her roommate had cancelled out at the last minute and now she was bearing the total cost of the hotel room.
Later, another woman said she thought that younger members might be more attracted to participate if we had a more interactive site.
The fact that I heard these related thoughts from very separate individuals in just two days seemed to be a pretty clear message - especially since 2 of them didn't even know that the webmaster was hearing the comment!
You may have heard the terms “message board, discussion group, bulletin board, or web forum”. These are all different names for the same thing. And that is our latest addition to the website: the CWL Forum.
WiseGeek (https://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-an-internet-forum.htm) explains: “An Internet forum is a discussion area on a website. Website members can post discussions and read and respond to posts by other forum members. A forum can be focused on nearly any subject and a sense of community tends to develop among forum members.” Doesn’t that sound like CWL?
WiseGeek adds “Before a prospective member joins a group and makes posts to others, he or she is usually required to register. The prospective member must usually agree to follow certain online rules, sometimes called netiquette, such as to respect other members and refrain from using profanity. When a member is approved by the administrator or moderator, the member usually chooses his or her own user name and password…” Duh! If you have subscribed for updates, you already have your user name and password. If you are a CWL member, you already agreed to the rules when you made The League Promise, and agreed to follow the League’s policies. We are ahead of the game!
So...
How to Use the Forum
To access the Forum,
- go to the website and click on the Forum tab in the top menu.
- Enter your User name and Password, and you are in.
If you login and can’t access the Forum, just email so we can get that fixed.
In the forum, the conversations are organized in categories under a title or topic. The conversations are called “threads”, and they are made up of member-written posts. You can use the forum to post your comments and questions on any CWL topic and to follow up on other members’ postings. You can edit your own posts, start new topics, reply to others’ comments. Not sure how? Click on the Help button.
As with other parts of our website, any text in blue is a link that you can click on for more information about that item.
When you login to the Forum, you automatically start at the Recent Topics area which shows you only messages that have been added since the last time you visited the forum. However, the Menu at the top of the Forum gives you several options:
- Index is the outline of the whole Forum
- Recent Topics shows you only things that have been posted since the last time you visited the forum.
- Unread includes topics you have not yet read
- New Topic lets you create a new subject for members to read and post their comments or questions.
- Profile shows you your own information such as messages you have posted, categories or topics to which you have subscribed, etc.
- Help brings you to this article
- Search lets you look for information posted anywhere in the Forum
Index
Below the menu is a “breadcrumb” (trail) which shows you where you are in the forum.
Categories
Under Index, the Forum is divided into categories. There are two main categories: “Welcome to our Forum” and “Conventions”.
Each of the main categories has subcategories.
Click on the subcategory to open it.
If a particular subcategory is of special interest to you, you can subscribe to it. This means that you will automatically get an email anytime someone creates a new topic in that subcategory. You will not receive updates to those topics unless you subscribe to the topics individually.
Topics
Within the subcategories are “Topics”. Topics are the messages that someone has posted. When you open a subcategory you will see the posts that are already there or you can make a new one.
To read a post, click on the subject to open it.
- Use the buttons to reply (or ask a question), or even to record a thank you to the poster.
- Click on the Action button for further options. If you are interested in this topic, you can subscribe to the topic and be automatically emailed with any new comments that are added to it.
When a topic is finished, it will be locked. You can still read what is there but you cannot add anything to it.
To create a new topic, click on the New Topic button and fill in the form.
- At the bottom is a box you can check to be automatically emailed when someone replies to your message.
- When you are finished, click the green Submit button to post your message.
You can edit or delete your own message until someone replies to it.
Recent Topics
This item shows you only things that have been posted since the last time you visited the forum. If there is nothing new since the last time you were in the forum, it will say "No Topics". You can still check the other menu items to see older messages.
If, when you were on the forum before, you left without reading all the messages, you can see those by clicking on the Unread tab.
You can see all the posted messages (organized by category) by clicking on the Index.
New Topic
Use this to create a new post.
Click on the down arrow at the end of the Category field (box) to select the correct category.
The Subject will be the title of your message (and of any replies). Try to make sure that it is unique from the others that already exist and than it describes what you are writing about so that others know to look at it.
When you post a message (either a topic you create or a reply to someone else's message) you are automatically subscribed to be notified of replies to that topic. If you do not want that, click on the Subscribe box to unsubscribe.
Then click the green submit button and your message will be posted. You can edit (or even delete) it until someone replies to it.
Profile
Under Profile, you can
- edit your name and email address,
- add a signature and picture (avatar),
- check your own posts, subscriptions and favorite topics
- create your preferred settings for the forums.
Since the Forum started just before the 2019 National Convention, the main focus was pretty much the same as what the ladies above wanted for the Provincial Convention. And the feedback given was that it was helpful to people looking for roommates and learning how to get to the hotel.
But there is much more to CWL.
I love learning from other Councils about what they do. Some are successful at recruiting new members. Some have great FUN(d)raising ideas. Our Council adopted the Cookie Walk after it was mentioned in St Cecilia’s report at a regional meeting. At National Convention I learned of Councils that have monthly CWL masses where all positions are filled by CWL members. Those are all great topics for the forum. What does your Council do well that you can share with the rest of us? And what would you like to learn from others? Rose Kastelic told me about the experience her Council gained in serving at Ordinations. Would you like their tips? She also suggested that a Council that is considering a resolution could use the forum to get input (and perhaps another Council to work with them).
God and Our Lady of Good Counsel have blessed us with creative and passionate members and Spiritual Advisors. Let’s use the forum to “share with others at home… the good things (they) have given us”.
If you have any suggestions on how this article can be improved, please email. Thanks.
