Florida Catholic | Council of Catholic Women Gather For 40th Convention

Council of Catholic Women gather for 40th convention

Forty years of growth and social change will mark women’s convention

LAURA DODSON | FLORIDA CATHOLIC CORRESPONDENT

Published: 04.18.08

Contact Gwen Allen at
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ORLANDO | Forty years separates the focus on the explosive growth brought by Mickey Mouse and the present concern for human trafficking in Florida.

When the women of the Orlando Diocese Council of Catholic Women gather for their 40th annual convention April 25-27 at the Ocala Hilton Hotel, they will celebrate the accomplishments of the past and present, and with courage confront the issues looming in the future.

June Sayers of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Daytona Beach was the president of the St. Augustine Diocese CCW when the Orlando Diocese was being formed in 1968.

Until then, Orlando had been part of the St. Augustine Diocese. Bishop William D. Borders, Orlando Diocese’s first bishop, asked Sayers if she “would be so kind as to set up the ODCCW,” Sayers recalled. “I thought I would provide a little organizational help and then step back. Instead, I’ve been going ever since.”

The newly formed diocese was comprised of 50 parishes and 128,000 parishioners in 1968. The population of the state, according to U.S. Census Bureau data, was 6,433,000. Walt Disney World welcomed its first visitors Oct. 1, 1971, and today more than 43 million visitors per year come to the No. 1 tourist destination in the world.

“Women flooded in to join the council,” Sayers explained “and we went to the Legislature in Tallahassee a number of times each year to contribute our voices to whatever the issues were.”

Today, the diocese boasts 73 parishes, 10 missions and more than 350,000 parishioners. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates the population of the state at 18,251,243 people in 2007, and the ODCCW is still actively participating in legislative issues.

Alana Buono, 23, is a recent graduate of the University of Central Florida and the director of recruiting for Northwestern Mutual Investment Services. She has joined her mother, Angela, and the ODCCW at Annunciation Parish in Altamonte Springs. In March, she took time from work to attend “Catholic Days at the Capitol” with the group.

Alana Buono explained, “I was so excited to be able to attend and see how the women are really making a difference. I didn’t realize just how much these women give back until I became involved.”

Human trafficking is one of those issues currently before the Legislature and very much a part of life in the diocese. Thomas Gillan, diocesan director of the Criminal Justice Office, will present Saturday’s luncheon keynote speech on human trafficking in Florida.

“People just aren’t aware of the extent or even that the problem actually exists,” Gillan explained. “Human trafficking is exploitation of persons for sex or forced labor and it’s happening all around us.”

There isn’t documented data for the state as yet, but the U.S. Department of Justice estimates 15,000 to 18,000 people are trafficked in the United States and 500,000 to 2 million people worldwide annually.

Gillan provides examples of the scope of the problem locally: two women rescued in Tallahassee; 13- to 16-year-old girls held against their will and forced into prostitution outside a McDonald’s on Orange Blossom Trail and another site of forced prostitution of teens on International Drive.

“This next example was the most bizarre,” he said. “A young Russian girl who came on a three-month visa to visit a friend in Philadelphia was enticed to see Disney World before returning home. She was held in an upscale neighborhood and forced into prostitution.”

Gillan will provide the women with specific ways they can help and he will also address another crucial topic at a breakout session on Friday: “Keeping Our Kids Safe in an Uncertain World.”

Other sessions on the ODCCW agenda include women’s health, time management, financial strategies and more.

Winkie LeFils, the first affiliate president 40 years ago, summed up the accomplishments of the past and the challenges of the future.

“God has showered blessings on all of us and we can look to the future with renewed faith and hope and love,” she said. “We, the Council of Catholic Women, walk the walk and talk the talk by bringing the ministry of Christ to all of God’s people.”

Bishop Thomas Wenski will celebrate the opening Mass April 25 and priests of the diocese will be present throughout the three days to add their support and contribute to the fun, which of course is planned.

Sayers explained her passion. “It’s a spirituality among women that isn’t existent anywhere else,” she said.

“We have the same goals and through the council, we all work for the same things.”

Alana Buono will join the convention Friday evening after work. She said, “I’m really looking forward to it. I want to help get the ball rolling to bring other young women so they too can become involved.”

Angela Buono said, “Convention is a recharge spiritually and we get empowerment from one another.”

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