CWL

CWL – Corpus Christi

In 1949, on organization called the Catholic Women’s League was introduced to our parish ladies by Fr. Felix Kwiatkowski who was then our parish priest.

The first meeting was held at the home of Anges Gusnoski. Approximately twelve ladies attended this meeting.

The C.W.L. began meeting every month, usually at the beginning of the month. Each member would take a turn hosting the meeting in her home. The meetings would be followed by a delicious lunch prepared by the hostess for the ladies to enjoy. The meeting provided the time to discuss the needs of Corpus Christi and the role of the Catholic woman in the church as well as providing an enjoyable evening of fellowship for the ladies of the community.

The meetings were held in the home because of the lack of facilities in the church basement; no washrooms or water. The league still persevered and put on the traditional Easter lunch, Corpus Christi Day Tea, other special functions and many funeral luncheons.

Without most of the equipment needed to make a banquet, such as dishes, cutlery, coffee urns, etc., the league welcomed the contributions made by one of the families of the parish. Stan and Rose Ludwick (Ludwick Catering Ltd.) would lend the church any equipment they needed for the various dinners and teas. Many a time, Mr. Ludwick delivered a van full of equipment to Corpus Christi Church.

In the early 1970’s, washroom facilities were installed in our church. This was very much appreciated by all parishioners, but especially by the ladies of the league. That project was undertaken and paid for by the Knights of Columbus. The renovations also included a small kitchen with counters and cupboards built by Walter and Joseph Natuik who donated their time to the majority of the work done for the church. With a fresh coat of paint on the walls and ceiling, new curtains on the windows, and hot water, our new kitchen looked even better.

Over time, dinner plates, cups and saucers, and various pots and pans were purchased by the C.W.L. and donated by various members of the league.

The hard work by the C.W.L. encouraged other parish ladies to volunteer for projects such as making perogies. The C.W.L. organized bake sale where all the ladies of the parish donated baking which was sold in various malls. The ladies incorporated the sale of their perogies with these bake sales. The perogy making was a great success with four to five league members organizing a group of 15 to 18 ladies, some of whom came from neighboring churches to help.

This committee would make 150 to 200 dozen at a time. In 1998, the perogies were sold for $2.50 per dozen. This price realized a significant amount towards projects planned by the league.

Each and every year, the C.W.L. worked very hard at various projects. The monies generated went not only to Corpus Christi Church, but also to many Christian charities; donations to the poor, League for Life, etc.
The C.W.L. of Corpus Christi organized a fund to send monies to Equador to help finance the education of three seminarians. With the help of Fr. John Sajiewicz, correspondence with the seminarian was an interesting part of the league meeting.

In 1971, the C.W.L. of Corpus Christi celebrated its 25th Anniversary with Fr. John Sajiewicz as our spiritual director and parish priest. After a special mass, a banquet was held at the Narol Community Center where seven league members received their 25-year pins.

By 1990, our beloved church of Corpus Christi was rapidly deteriorating. After much consultation, we realized the church was beyond repair. Water would seep onto the basement floor; two to three inches in some places. Conditions in our kitchen made it almost impossible to work there. With many meetings and much discussion between the Church and Diocese over a period of many years, a new church finally came to light. The plans for the new Corpus Christi Church and Hall Complex became a reality with the official Mass celebrated by Bishop Antoine Hacault on November 11th, 1997. This new complex was achieved by the dreams and hard work of the entire parish headed by the Parish Priest, Father Jerry Talarski, and his Parish Council, Building Committee, and Fund-Raising Committee, with full support of the C.W.L., the Knights of Columbus as well as Mr. Thomas Cropo and the Cropo Funeral Chapel.

The kitchen design was supervised by one of the league members, Carole Aitkenhead (nee Ludwick). The C.W.L. monies were extended towards a new electric commercial stove (6 burner, 2 oven), plus electric grill and two door commercial cooler as well as sink, taps, etc. The ladies contributed monies in the vicinity of $15,000 towards this project. The league could now carry on their work in grand style and were very proud of their accomplishments. 

The membership of the Corpus Christi Catholic Women’s League was as high as 35 members which is a good percentage considering the church was made up of approximately 100 families.

Our C.W.L. celebrated their 50th Anniversary with six original members receiving their pins. Although the ladies had hosted many teas at the downtown “Eaton’s “ facilities, their newest project is their 1rst Annual Corpus Christi Crocus Tea which was hosted on Sunday, April 25, 1999 in their new hall. As well, the league held a celebration mass and catered dinner to honor their 50-year members; an invitation was extended to all to join in their celebration.

May God bless all our C.W.L. members for their love, faith and dedication.

LEAGUE PRAYER
We humbly pray you, O God our Father
To bless The Catholic Women’s League of
Canada. Bless our country, our homes
And families. Send your Holy Spirit upon us
To give light to our minds and strength to our
Wills that we may know and fulfill your
Great law of charity. Teach us to share with
Others at home and abroad the good things
You have given us. This we ask through Our
Lord Jesus Christ and the intercession of our
Patroness “Our Lady of Good Counsel”.
Amen

Submitted by Rose Ludwick and Rose Stemken January 1999