Identity area
Type of entity
Authorized form of name
Parallel form(s) of name
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
History
Women's missionary societies developed regionally, with the Maritimes forming organizations independent from those in central Canada.
The Women's Missionary Society Western Division, formed in 1914, was a union of the Woman's Missionary Society (Home, French and Foreign); the Woman's Foreign Missionary Society Western Division; and the Women's Home Missionary Society. The Basis of Union stipulated that all obligations of the existing Societies be assumed by the united Society; that the work of the united Society be distinctly to meet the special needs of women and children at home and abroad; that the budget of the united Society be separate from the budget of the Church, but that it be submitted to the Boards of Home and Foreign Missions for approval. The Society's General Council, composed of Officers and representatives from Provincial Societies, was responsible for deciding on matters of general policy and overall administration of the work. The Executive Board managed operations between meetings of the General Council. Within the Society, work was carried on by Provincial Societies each directed by a Board of Management. The Provincial Societies were made up of Presbyterial Societies, which, in turn, consisted of Auxiliaries and Mission Bands. The stated purpose of the W.M.S. (W.D.) was "to unite the women and children of the Church in prayer and service for the advancement of the Kingdom of Christ; to develop a missionary spirit; and effectively to aid the Home and Foreign Mission Boards by supporting women's work at home and abroad." In the course of its existence, the Society consolidated and expanded the mission work begun by its predecessor bodies.