Hi Carol,
All cells have protection turned on by default, but the protection is not effective
until the worksheet is protected.
select all cells
format, cells, protection
uncheck the boxes (noting which were checked)
select the column to be protected
check the boxes originally checked for protection if it look right
there are variations depending on version
tools, protection, protect sheet
I believe you will not be permitted to insert rows anywhere,
nor insert columns before the protected column. (didn't bother testing).
To unprotect sheet
tools, protect, unprotect sheet
You can record a macro, turning off protection using a password that you
said would be required, making a change, then protecting one more.
Something to keep in mind is that password protection is designed to
protect data against accidental changes -- it should not be considered
as a reliable security mechanism.