Tomorrow is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. It is the only federal holiday designated as a national day of service to encourage all Americans to volunteer and improve their communities. Click the Newsblast! header to read about how this holiday came to be.

AAUW member Dr. Marion Jacobs will give us a closer look at the practice of mindfulness—how it relates to meditation, its role in stress reduction, and some striking research findings.

Meeting ID: xxx xxxx xxx

Passcode: xxxxxx

or join the meeting by clicking on this link: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Tech Trek Logo Contest

"We" Won!

Tech Trek celebrates its 25th anniversary this year! A state-wide contest was held to design the new Tech Trek logo, and our very own 2022 camper Keira, who attended the first week of 2022's Virtual Camp, designed the winning logo!

Fall Fundraiser Brings in $16,000

Thanks to all of you who donated and especially those who reached out to family and friends to support our branch and our programs! The 55th Anniversary fundraiser brought in over $16,000 this fall to fund tutoring, STEM programs for middle schoolers, college scholarships, and more!

The fundraiser is over, but our anniversary year continues! Don't forget to send in your Celebratory Selfie! Put on your party hat (if you can't find the one we sent you, use one of your own) and take a selfie! Send it to aauwlbemails@gmail.com to be part of the official 55th Anniversary poster at the Literary Luncheon in March!

Literary Luncheon

Online Ticket Sales

Start Today!

Invitations will be mailed later this month—so watch your mailbox—but you can purchase your tickets online starting today!

Silent Auction

Focusing on Experiences!

The silent auction at this year's Literary Luncheon is all about experiences. Share the experiences that you enjoy with others! Offer your own time and talent (prepare a special dinner in someone's home or host your own garden tour or tea party); purchase gift certificates or gift cards; or request donations from merchants (donation receipt letters will be provided). Popular items in the past have included wellness experiences, massages, manicures, vacation packages, hotel vouchers, show tickets, and more. If you have ideas, questions, or donations, please contact: Venita DeSouza or Joyce Bartlett

Interest Group News:

Poetry

The Poetry interest group has several published poets as well as those of us who appreciate poetry but are not writers. A new member, Patty Truman, submitted a touching original poem on our “Holiday Memories” theme, and we would like to share! Visit the Poetry Interest Group page to read this poem and others. Our group welcomes new members at any time. Please contact xxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx for the Zoom link.

~Karen Dennis

Poetry Interest Group Chair

Book Review:

Cradles of the Reich

by Jennifer Coburn

—a 2023 Literary Luncheon

featured author

This chilling historical novel explores the Lebensborn project, a Nazi breeding program designed to create a so-called master race. The story goes inside Heim Hochland maternity home in Bavaria–one of the Lebensborn maternity homes where thousands of "racially valuable" babies were bred and taken from their mothers to be raised as part of the new Germany. Here, three women's lives converage as they find themselves there under very different circumstances. Gundi is a pregnant university student from Berlin who secretly belongs to a resistance group. And that's not her only secret. Eighteen-year-old Hilde is a true believer in the cause–thrilled to carry a Nazi official's child. And Irma is a 44-year-old nurse, desperate to build a new life for herself after personal devastation. Despite their opposing beliefs, all three come to realize they are trapped within Hitler's terrifying scheme to build an Aryan nation. A cautionary tale for modern times told in stunning detail, Cradles of the Reich exposes a Nazi atrocity yet it also provides an uplifting reminder of the power of women to set aside differences and work together in solidarity in the face of oppression.