September 2019 Newsletter
In this Issue
League in the News






Local Politics


LoWV Social Media

Co-President's Message 
by Fran Kapinos and Judy Lotas




It has been wonderful to have a break with the cooler weather this past week and we look forward to a storm-free fall! By now most of you have probably seen "The Peanut Butter Falcon", co-written and produced by local Tyler Nilson, and set on the Outer Banks (filmed in Savannah, GA ). If you haven't, go see it. It is a heart warming story of friendship.

Many of you have signed up for our Fall Kick-Off Dinner on Thursday, Sept. 5th at Duck Woods Country Club. If you find you can attend, we can add you, but please inform Nancy of your meal choice. Meet your board members, learn about our League history from member Lin Logan, PhD, and plans for our 100th Anniversary Celebration.  It is also an opportunity for you to sign up to assist and share ideas on your committee of interest, as well as Voter Registration and Town Candidate Forums. 

Our First Hot Topic Lunch is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 27 th at  Roosters at Noon. Topic is focused on Elder Care Issues, Programs and  Services with Gail Sonnesso, Director of GEM Day Services, and Mary  Pendill, member on the Older Adult Services Advisory Council.

Jessica Loose is chair of Voter Registration Week (Sept. 23-26) jessicaloose.obx@gmail.com. If you can help cover at Wave Riders, Front Porch Café in Nags Head or Kill Devil Hills, Hotline in Nags Head, or Manteo and First Flight High Schools, please let Jessica know and she will schedule you. Information packets will be gathered and distributed for Voter Registration on Friday, Sept. 13 at 2 PM at the KDH library.

Lorelei DiBernardo is chair of the 6 Municipal Voter Forums. If you can help with Q and A cards, greeters, screeners, etc. please contact her at ltd32@charter.net These are being scheduled during the 1st two weeks of October.

Remember to Vote on Sept. 10 or Vote Early at KDH Town Hall between 11 and 4, Monday-Friday of Sept. 6. If you haven't renewed your membership for this year, you can do it easily by going to our web site at lwvdarenc.org and click on the membership section at the top.

SAVE THE DATE

Mark your calendars!

Sept. 5th - Fall Kick-Off Dinner at Duck Woods Country Club 5:30

Sept. 10th - Election Day for Special District to replace Rep Walter   Jones-  www.vote411.org  has candidate info

Sept. 24th - National Voter Registration Day

Sept. 27th - Hot Topic Lunch with Gail Sonnesso on Elder Care Issues, programs and services in Dare Co. at Roosters at Noon

Oct. 1-14th  - Voter Forums for 6 Town Elections

Nov. 5th - Municipal Election Day

Dec. 6th - Holiday Lunch with Silent Auction 11:30 DWCC

Stay tuned for a variety of activities and programs throughout this year. Plans are in the works!  100th Anniversary Celebrations, Natural Resources, Health, Education, Redistricting Updates, Census Concerns, Voter Services, and the list goes on---
 
Enjoy the rest of your summer with family and friends!  
 
Fran Kapinos and Judy Lotas
Co-Presidents, LWV Dare

Welcome Back Dinner


Dear Members and Guests,  Please plan on attending our first function of this  new year.  Meet your board members, learn about our League history from member Lin Logan, PhD, and plans for our 100th Anniversary Celebration.  It is also an opportunity for you to sign up to assist and share ideas on your committee of interest, as well as Voter Registration and Town Candidate Forums.  Please reply to Treasurer, Nancy Birindelli, with your meal choice. 


LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS - DARE
ANNUAL FALL KICK-OFF DINNER
 
SEPTEMBER 5, 2019
5:30 PM
DUCK WOODS COUNTRY CLUB
$25.00 per person Please pay in advance if possible! 
IF YOU PLAN ON PAYING AT THE DOOR, PLEASE REMEMBER TO RSVP TO NANCY BIRINDILLI YOUR DINNER SELECTION!

MENU
House Salad
 
3 CHEESE CHICKEN ROULADE
White Rice & Roasted Butternut Squash
 
SHRIMP SCAMPI
Rice & Asparagus
 
PORTABELLA MUSHROOM
Stuffed with Onions, Zucchini, Roasted Red Pepper, Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Spinach & Parmesan Cheese
Served with Quinoa
 
Chefs Dessert
Mini Snowballs
 
RSVP BY AUGUST 29TH!!!

Please contact Nancy at 261-3915 or  bbirindelli@aol.com with your reservation & dinner selection. Mail check to  LWV Dare PO Box 689, Kitty Hawk, NC 27949  Any change to your plans or dinner selection needs to be made by Sept 3

Election News
by Lorelei Anthony DiBernardo
 
ELECTION NEWS!
   
The Dare LWV encourages you to vote in the Special U.S. Congressional District 3 election on Tuesday, September 10.  Early Voting sites are open now through September 6.  Please see the 'Fall 2019 Election Snapshot' for more details, or call the Dare Co Board of Elections at (252) 475 5630.  This election will fill the seat left vacant due to Rep. Walter Jones' untimely death in February.  All 4 candidates - Tim Harris (L), Greg Holt (C), Greg Murphy (R), Allen Thomas (D) -- were invited to participate in our On-Line Voter Guide - VOTE411.org.  So check it out to see which ones responded!
 
Later this Fall, we are working hard in support of our local Municipal Elections.  All 6 incorporated towns, have an election on November 5 to fill seats in their town governments.   We will conduct a Candidate Forum in all towns with contested races.  For the first time, we will also invite the candidates to participate in our On-Line Voter Guide - VOTE411.org.   We are still in the planning stages, but you can look forward to Candidate Forums in Duck, Kill Devil Hills, Nags Head, Manteo, and Southern Shores and to reading the candidates' s responses to issues that affect the Outer Banks.   The Forums are targeted for the first 2 weeks in October, right before Early Voting begins on October 16th.  All the details will be forthcoming as soon as they are finalized.
 
If you are interested in volunteering for a role at one (or all!) of the Candidate Forums, send an email to Lorelei DiBernardo, Voter Services Chair, at  ltd32@charter.net.  We need lots of help and this is definitely one of the most satisfying parts of LWV membership!
 
VOTE411 is a one-stop-shop for all your voting needs.  Just access the site on your PC or phone, enter your address and your Ballot will appear along with information and responses from the candidates!


Education Report
by Marion Midgett
 
Education Report


During March, April, May, and June this year, the Dare Board of Education continued to be busy revising personnel policies and student policies regarding testing, graduation requirements, and student promotion. They continued as they always do at meetings to recognize staff and students for professional, academic, athletic, and innovative accomplishments. Big projects were the development of the Capital Improvement Plan and the overall 2019-2020 Dare Schools Budget. The Board approved the Dare Schools Strategic Plan for 2019-2023 in June. More about that plan in the next report.

Bits and Pieces: The following is a sampling of interesting information on the
local, state, and national scene.

Local
Following the racist graffiti incident at First Flight High in March, some local
community and school leaders are taking steps to raise awareness around
racism and the celebration of racial diversity. Involved is Manteo Mount Olivet
Methodist Church's youth minister and Mighty Wind United Methodist pastor,
Michelle Lewis. She taught classes in the spring focusing on combating racism,
homophobia, and sexism, as well as anti-immigrant sentiments and xenophobia.
Her repeat classes in this series for youth and adults will start on Friday,
September 27, 2019 at 6:00 pm at Mount Olivet United Methodist Church in
Manteo. This series will also be presented at the KDH Library later in the fall.

In June the Board passed a resolution requesting that the Dare County Board of
Education be removed from NC legislation requiring partisan elections, primary
and fall general [SL 2017-78 (SB 253)]. This legislation applied to the local BOE
election in 2018. The resolution passed by a vote of 6 to 1.

Superintendent Farrelly announced in August that a national report listed Dare
County as the sixth best school district of 115 districts in North Carolina.

State
The State does not have a budget yet. Governor Cooper vetoed the General
Assembly's budget and offered an alternative. No action has followed.

A 15-point scale for determining school performance grades is now law. House
Bill 362 stipulates: A at least 85; B at least 70; C at least 55; D at least 40; F less
than 40.

An amendment to change the percentage of achievement scores and growth
scores, which make up the performance grades, was tabled in the NC Senate.
Currently, achievement is counted at 80% and growth at 20%. The amendment
would have changed achievement to 51% and growth to 49%. Dr. Farrelly has
argued for an even split.

National
Education for all: The New York Times Magazine has launched The 1619 Project observing the 400th anniversary of American slavery. Look for it.

Reminder - Membership Renewal

If you haven't renewed your membership yet, now is the time to do so! We need you! 

$55 individual,  $80 family 

Checks payable to: LWV Dare, PO Box 689, Kitty Hawk, 27949

You can pay online through PayPal  HERE. Follow the link to the page then scroll to the bottom. 

One Stop Voting
by Craig Merrill

The Board of Elections submitted a "plan for implementation" for one-stop voting sites and hours for the special election in September. The board unanimously approved, and the state board of elections concurred, reducing one-stop voting hours to 11am to 4 pm, with no weekend voting. That is a done deal.
 
At the  July 8th meeting the board "passed" a motion  (4 in favor, 1 abstained) to have a single one-stop site at KDH Town Hall (Hatteras has no elections), in addition to early voting at the Board of Elections office, for the November municipal elections. The hours at the Board of Elections must be the office's normal working hours, but the Board voted to reduce one-stop hours at KDH to 11 am - 4 pm during the week and a single Saturday. The only reason given for their decision is that "no one votes" before 11 am or after 4 pm. However, the data provided by the state for the 2018 election shows that over 40% of one-stop voters voted outside this time window.
 
Two things to note:
  • First, there were no fiscal constraints imposed on the Board; i.e., the Board of Commissioners did not ask them to keep election costs down or reduce their budget.
  • Second, NC statute for one-stop voting sites requires unanimous approval of one-stop voting, so this plan for implementation will not be accepted by the state; and, unless a board member petitions the state, one-stop voting will only occur at the Board of Elections office in Manteo.
 
Our objective with this position is to convince the board to rescind the approved motion for one-stop voting in November, and consider a motion that maximizes one-stop voting hours outside the normal workday and on weekends.

Please follow the link below for a more detailed Power Point presentation about the implications for the 2019 elections.


Treasurer's Report
by  Nancy Birindelli 
As the new year for LWV activity approaches, one important outreach to the community is the annual Fundraising Drive.  The monies that are contributed by members, businesses, the towns and the county are used to fund the annual Citizens Guide, pay for half of the state and national dues, some expenses for voter services and other League initiatives.  In order the increase our out reach in this year of celebration with the 100th anniversary commemorations, I would like to ask members to give me the names and addresses of businesses that you think would be interested in supporting our efforts.  The mailings will be send during the month of September.  Many thanks!
Call to Action - LWV State
by Susan and Craig Merrill
Regarding the voting machine that was just approved by the state BOE.   (I am attaching a paper Craig wrote and presented to the state board that lists the state laws and why this barcode machine is breaking with statute.)  The LWV call to action advises that we contact our local BOE members to let them know how we feel about this particular issue.  Unfortunately, the board members don't have email addresses that are "professional" to their role so the best we can do is contact Michele Barnes and her to pass along our discontent.  Her email address is  Michele.Barnes@darenc.com.

In addition, if you are interested, Michele can get you put on a distro that she has for the meeting agendas (although this process of agenda following is not always strictly followed as there is "new business" that allows other, sometimes controversial issues to be addressed.) 

Please click on the link below to read Craig's paper:

Voting System Certification Considerations

League Members: in Memoriam
by Fran Kapinos
Your League is saddened by the passing of three long-time members over the past year.  Most recently, on July 11th  Pat Storey, our very active and involved member from the beginning of Dare LWV until she moved out of the area to Westminster Canterbury in Virginia Beach, passed away at the age of 93.

"In the League she never wanted to hold office or be in the limelight, so mainly she played supportive roles. For the Citizens Guide she solicited donors, was a proofreader and a faithful deliverer (she's the one who would make the run to Salvo, Hatteras, etc.) She did publicity, posters, name cards etc. for many events.  She could fill any job involved in Candidates Nights, and often participated in several in a given season.  For years she observed and reported on the County Commissioners meetings, always with her wry spin.  I think her most unique contribution to the League was gathering and organizing all the publicity and publications from the start of the Dare League to be archived at the History Center in Manteo.  She was a longtime board member;  I think she was publicity chair at one time and I suppose she wore other hats as well during her tenure on the board. She was always the go to person whenever a forgotten date or detail was needed.   In Southern Shores she served a couple of terms on the  Zoning Board, and attended and took copious notes at every Town Council meeting, often challenging its members or offering her opinion as she saw fit."

---Mimi Iacone, friend of Pat's and also fellow League member for many years.

Rose Deacon died following a long illness. She was 89.  Rose had a career as a nurse receiving her bachelor's and master's degrees as a pioneer in the field.  Upon retirement to the Outer Banks she devoted hours of dedicated service to volunteer activities most importantly the Community Care Clinic of Dare and Home Health and Hospice.  Rose served on the League Board for many years in the capacity of Health Chair and continually advised members of issues in her field.  She received the Governor's Award for Volunteer Service in 1993.  

Carole Burchett and Shirley Fischer are the two other members who we had remembered over the past several months.


League of Women Voters of Dare County | | lwvdare@gmail.com | http://lwvdarenc.org/



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