Help Introduce Future Voters to the Importance of Voting!
Join the Sonoma LWV Youth Program
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THE YOUTH PROGRAM NEEDS Y-O-U!!!
The League Youth Program will be expanding the High School In-Classroom Voter Registration and Education Program in 2022. Our current trainers Elaine Covell and Nancy Lewis have agreed to offer ”Trainer training” in February (thank you Elaine and Nancy!). We’ll be presenting the program in classrooms beginning in March.
If you are comfortable speaking in front of a group and you are passionate about giving Sonoma County youth a voice in the upcoming elections, this is for you! Come to our next meeting on Tuesday, January 11th at 4pmto learn more! Zoom link is in the website calendar at Events |
DO YOU HAVE CONNECTIONS WITH ANY COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL FACULTY???
Please help the League Youth Program meet our goal of presenting the High School In-Classroom Voter Registration and Education Program in every high school in the county. If you are a current or former teacher or know anyone on a county high school faculty we’d love an introduction. For more details contact Lynn Dooley at lasdooley@comcast.net. Or, come to our next meeting on Tuesday, January 11th at 4pm. Look for the zoom link at Events.
Because democracy is not a spectator sport!! | | Voter Service Committee
Karen Weeks, Chair | | | HELP WANTED!!!!!
2022 is fast approaching and with the new year comes new opportunities. In April for the town of Windsor will be holding a council election and in June the State of California primaries will be held. The League will be hosting election forums for both of these. And with these forums come volunteer opportunities. If you are interested in helping out in one of the following roles – timekeeper, moderator, question sorter, Zoom host and co-host we sure can use you! If you are new to this, we will pair you with an experienced volunteer, as well as providing training. Please contact me at elections@lwvsonoma.org if you are interested. | |
Message from Our President
Donna Roper | | |
Often, at this time of year, one hears complaints about diluting the meaning of Christmas by saying “Happy Holidays”, so I looked up the First amendment to remind myself what the authors had in mind. This amendment is one of the most important principles of democracy.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
But what happens when members of Congress promote the idea that the United States should have only one religion? Or that the press is the enemy of the people? Or protests are illegal? Those members espousing those views were voted into office by constituents. Rights are threatened every day in our country. Democracy is messy. There have been many moments in the past when our leaders have made huge mistakes (the Japanese internment) and we the people have not been able to stop them.
What can we, as members of the League, do about that?
- We can be knowledgeable about the current issues
- We can write letters of complaint or support
- We can protest in the streets or at meetings
- We can vote
- We can stay hopeful – no matter your religion
This is what the League of Women Voters Sonoma County is doing every day. I am always amazed at the depth of knowledge and research at Advocacy meetings. There are fabulous discussions at the book club on relevant topics. I am thrilled by the thoughtful letters to the editor in our local paper. I am encouraged to see people of all ages at rallies, and I especially like to see the percentage of voter’s tally after each election. Volunteers have often complained at our tabling events that “everyone is already registered!” I think that’s wonderful.
So, let’s keep it up Sonoma County. Show up, stand up, and speak up!
HAPPY HOLIDAYS |
Investment Policy Committee
The League is organizing an Investment Policy Committee and are looking for volunteers from our membership to serve. This is a short-term commitment to establish policies for the League to follow in investing money and other assets. Contact our Treasurer, Linda Rosen at treasurer@lwvsonoma.org. | Volunteers for District Election Outreach
Petaluma
The City of Petaluma is looking for volunteers to help us educate our residents about our transition to District Elections.
We are especially interested in bilingual volunteers.
If you are can help, contact
Nancy Sands
Management Analyst II
City of Petaluma | Economic Development & Open Government
Office. 707-778-4484 | NSands@cityofpetaluma.org |
LWVSC Calendar
and
Coming Events
| | | Check the Online Calendar for the latest schedule
and for location or links to virtual meetings.
Link to Calendar
- January 11, Youth Program - 4:00pm
- January 22, 2022 New Year Celebration - 2pm - 5pm
We are looking to the new year with possibility! Let's get together IN PERSON! If you are fully vaccinated please come join us for light snacks and refreshment at the home of Gayle Peterson. This will be an indoor/outdoor event and pre-registration will be required.
As with most events in the age of COVID-19, we will be monitoring our community and make adjustments accordingly.
- February 5, 2022 Annual Program Planning - 10:30-12:00 Zoom
This general membership meeting is where all members have the opportunity to decide the areas of emphasis our local league will work on in the coming year. Last year we voted to work on the following:
- Continue the "Making Democracy Work" emphasis adopted by the National League locally by learning about and promoting ranked choice voting and engaging young voters through voter registration and classroom presentations.
- Have a presence on the sheriff oversite IOLERO committee and work toward Criminal Justice reform.
- Climate Change
- Homelessness and Housing
- Continue to have a presence on the Sonoma County Transportation Citizens Advisory Committee
Standing Meetings
Check the online calendar, as some meetings change around the holidays.
- Board of Directors, 1st Saturday of the month from 10:30 AM to Noon
- Advocacy Committee- 1stTuesday of the month from 10:30 AM to Noon
- Voter Service Committee- 1st Thursday of the month from 2:00 to Noon
- Book Group: 3rd Thursday of the month from 10:30 AM to Noon. No December Meeting
| | Advocacy
Committee
Happenings
Leona Judson, VP | | |
We had our annual Kickoff virtual gathering, which was also our first public one November 18th. It was all about water conservation: Tips and Tricks for the Drought. Representatives from the cities of Petaluma, Rohnert Park and Santa Rosa all described how their cities are dealing with the drought and what resources are available to their water customers. Also, Sonoma Water, the county’s regional water agency, also described the extreme state of our water storage capacity. In addition, they also described a relatively new website to help us all learn about water saving information. It’s the Sonoma-Marin Saving Water Partnership. It’s a great resource to learn about rebates, water saving gardening tips and other drought related information. https://www.savingwaterpartnership.org If you missed this event, we recorded it, and is now on our website YouTube channel.
Our December Advocacy meeting was a bit different. It was a planning session to map out what our goals for the next year will be. We reviewed our areas of emphasis, and all agreed that our current ones are still very relevant. We also added one more: child-care. During the pandemic the lack of affordable quality child-care was very much in evidence. The need for early childhood education and help for working families is a critical need both locally and beyond. We will confirm these areas of emphasis at our annual membership meeting in February.
We identified the various commissions & committees we want to follow. We will have a training session soon for all who signed up, to decide how best to utilize this information for our advocacy work. We also decided to expand our public forum outreach. We hope to put on four in the coming year starting in April with the first being about the role of the District Attorney office ahead of the election. We will work with the Program Committee to organize these.
| January 21, Moderated by Mary Virdeh
Owls of the Eastern Ice, by Jonathan C Slaght, 370 pages, 2020.
This is a story about a graduate student who goes to the Russian province of Primorye. This is a remote corner of the world, not far from where Russia, China, and North Korea meet. He goes there to try to find an owl called Blakison’s Fish Owl in an effort to craft a conservation plan to ensure the species survival. This is an enormous owl described as looking like a small bear with decorative feathers.
The book introduces us to characters, living conditions and weather that are very difficult to imagine but make us feel like we are there experiencing them. I found it very gratifying that enormous efforts like this are made to ensure the survival of a species. The author has an excellent writing style that engulfs our imagination.
February 18, Moderated by Judie Coleman
Mindf*ck: Cambridge Analytica and the Plot to Break America. by Christopher Wylie, 270 pages, 2019.
This book will blow your mind. It details how the power of social media manipulation has been used to topple government, to be the deciding influence for Brexit, to help Trump get elected, and to destroy America's democracy. Data manipulation in social media can result in the bloodless takeover of governments. The author, Wylie, is one of the founding fathers of this new style of mind manipulation and walked away when he realized that he had helped to open Pandora’s box upon the world. He educates us on how it works and concludes with some concrete and realistic suggestions for how social media can be regulated. It’s well written and will hold your interest all the through. Even if we don't pick it for the book club, this should be required reading for everyone.
| Connect with the League
We want to hear from you! | | LWVSC Board of Directors
Contact Us
Donna Roper, President
Lee Lipinski, VP Administration
Leona Judson, VP Advocacy
Debbie McKay, Secretary
Linda Rosen, Treasurer
Judie Coleman, Membership
Open, Community Outreach
Karen Weeks, Voter Service
Gayle Peterson, Programs
Juanita Roland, Iris Levitis, Web, Communications
Jim Masters, Member at Large
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Become a Member
of the LWV of Sonoma County
League of Women Voters Sonoma County
555 5th St, Suite 300O
Santa Rosa, CA 95401
We'd love to have you join us. The most direct way to join is to go to our web site https://www.lwvsonoma.org and click on the Join Us button to fill in your contact information, preferences, and even pay your dues online, or you can print out your invoice and send it along with your dues to our office. If that does not work for you, you can fill out the information below and send it to us. Judie Coleman, membership@lwvsonoma.org is always available to answer your questions.
MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION FORM
Individual Membership $75
Household Membership $110
Elizabeth Cady Stanton Membership $100
Carrie Chapman Catt Membership $200 or more
Name
Address
City Zip
Phone: Email:
Additional Household Member: ____________________________________
Email: ________________________________________
Please circle any topics you are interested in knowing more about:
Voter Registration Candidate Forums Transportation Housing/Homelessness Climate Change Immigration Newsletter Website Management Local Governance
Membership dues and donations are tax deductible to the full extent allowed by law
| Here are some links of interest. | 555 Fifth Street, Suite 300O
Santa Rosa, CA 95401-8301
(707) 545-5943
www.lwvsonoma.org
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