VOTER newsletter
January 2019-Volume 71, Issue No.1

In This Issue
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League of Women Voters

San Jose / Santa Clara

P. O. Box 5374
San Jose, California 95150 

President's Message

Mary Collins
 Mary Collins  President,  LWV SJ/SC
Happy 2019! While making your New Year's resolutions, join our League's actions to make democracy work for all by making your participation as one of your resolutions. 

This quarter we have several opportunities:  Each year our members interview California legislators on issues of concern for League of Women Voters California (LWVC) as well as local issues. This is a joint effort with other Leagues, and we participate in seven interviews. Whether an experienced interviewer or new to this action, contact Gloria Chun Hoo to volunteer.

Our Program Planning meeting is this Saturday, January 26. As mentioned in last month's Voter, this opportunity informs the LWVC and our local league on priorities and areas to study. Come and shape next year's agenda.

Bay Area League Day is Saturday, February 9 in San Francisco. This year we are addressing the important issue of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. There is still time to enroll or you can come on the day.

Looking back over last year and this month, I thank you for all your contributions to our League. Looking forward, I thank you for your continued support.

 



Membership
Thank you to the following members 
for  contributions for our League:

Louise Detwiler,  Susan McKuhen

Welcome to New Members
Elaisa Acosta Mendez, Leanne Rzepiela-Weatherly

Lunch with League - February 21, 11:00am
Clean Energy is Coming to San  José!
Speaker: Lori Mitchell, Director of Community Energy,  San José Clean Energy

Lori Mitchell
Lori Mitchell
Lori Mitchell has worked in the renewable energy and utility industry for over 20 years. She is currently the Director of Community Energy for San José Clean Energy (SJCE). The City of San José is the 10 th  largest city in the United States and will be the largest single jurisdiction to operate a community energy program. SJCE will serve over 5,000 GWh of load and 350,000 customers.

Lori spent the last 10 years working for the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC). At the SFPUC, she held several progressively responsible management positions. Prior to the joining the SFPUC, Lori held senior engineering positions at PowerLight and SunPower Corporation; she also held positions at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and the California Energy Commission. Lori has a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Resources Engineering and is a licensed Mechanical Engineer.

Lori Mitchell
Director of Community Energy 
San  José Clean Energy
T opic: Clean Energy is Coming to San José!

Thursday, February 21, 11:00am to 1pm
PALERMO's (new location)
791 Auzerais Ave, San José, CA 95126 

Free Parking is across the street from the restaurant.

Please RSVP by Tuesday, February 19th by going to  https://lwvsjsc.org/lwl-registration and filling out the form, including your choice of entree. Beverages include coffee, ice tea, and soda. Select entree: Grilled Chicken Salad; Sausage, Mushroom, and Peppers Sandwich; Minestrone Soup and half Italian Combo on Roll (Capicollo, provolone, vinaigrette, lettuce and tomatoes); Siciliana Salad (Mixed Green Salad, Oranges, Tomatoes, Onion, Anchovies, Olives); Burger (w/cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, with fries); Penne Palermo. You may also RSVP by sending an email with your choice of entree  to  lwl@lwvsjsc.org or call Marie Arnold,  629-5340.

We meet at 11:00am and are served lunch at 11:30am. The guest speaker begins her talk at noon for 15-20 minutes and then invites attendees to ask questions and give comments. LwL ends at 1pm. 

The price of lunch is $20 payable in cash at the door or, if you don't want to worry about having cash, you can prepay just after you register by using PayPal which will take a credit card or a personal PayPal account. 

LEAGUE MEETINGS AND OUTREACH

Program Planning Meeting, Saturday, January 26, 10am
Members Recommend Issues for Emphasis and Decide Two Concurrence Items
Concurrence Items Added to Program Planning
Agenda
Recommendations for Issues for Emphasis
Saturday, January 26, 2019
Home of Alice Thorn
1711 Harte Drive
10:00 am - 1:00 pm

Once a year we meet to review our local League's priorities for education and advocacy and prioritize activities for the following year. Our annual program planning meeting also is an opportunity for feedback to County, League Bay Area, state and national League boards regarding their respective policies and positions. This year's focus is on League of Women Voters California. Our task is to select three priorities - Issues for Emphasis - where we think the LWVC board should concentrate. We are asked to be specific and state what we want the State board to do. The response form requires submission of names willing to work on the Issues for Emphasis we select. Note that these Issues are in addition to our Campaign for Making Democracy Work.
 
The 2019 meeting (scheduled for this Saturday) agenda includes discussion of two positions recommended for adoption by consensus. The LWV Los Angeles Committee on Community Policing is asking delegates to our LWVC State Convention to adopt a "Criminal Justice Reform Position" by concurrence. Those of us that attended the 2017 convention saw considerable interest demonstrated in pursuing a criminal justice position. A great deal of research and networking followed with the formation of an LWVC Task Force on Criminal Justice Reform. The Voter Representation / Election Process submitted by LWV Sacramento County asks for concurrence to "support election methods at each level of government that encourage participation, are verifiable and auditable and enhance representation for all voters."  The position does not support any specific election method. The following is from its Background, "In many jurisdictions, options are needed as remedies to voting rights lawsuits that seek minority representation." If anyone wants to review these two concurrence items in detail and present during our meeting, please contact  Roma Dawson .
 
Read more HERE for links to the proposed positions for concurrence and other background materials.

League Seeking Board Leadership
Virginia Holtz, Chair of the Nominating Committee
League Nominating Committee has begun its work developing a recommended slate of Officers and Directors for the 2019-2020 term. Members can self nominate by contacting Virginia Holtz, Chair of the Nominating Committee, by February 15.  The Committee would consider whether a person's skills and knowledge of League is a fit with rest of recommended slate and whether to move that name forward.
We encourage League members to become actively engaged by taking on leadership roles as a Board member or serving on a committee to get more engaged and involved. These are solid learning opportunities for League members.
If you have been considering stepping up and joining a team, contact the leader of your special interest for meeting dates.
Opportunities :
Advocacy  helping shape league action visiting elected officials, writing letters, or being voice for League, with board approval, contact Gloria Chun Hoo
Attend Climate Change group meetings  to become informed on topic and attend public meetings, contact Rita Norton
Housing team  is mostly following voter approved housing bond measures in San Jose and county, commercial linkage fee issue and annual Housing Element, contact Roma Dawson

Did You Know League Has a Members-Only Page on New Website?
By Patricia Reardon, Director of Communications

Members Site
Members Site

Do you know that our new website has a members-only page? This section of the website is where we archive our important and private League information posted only for our members.

You will find the link to this page under the More tab on the home page. Or go directly to the page at: http://www.lwvsjsc.org/members-only

Take a look. And by the way, the password to the page is: votesforwomen

Join the League Elist for Important Updates for Members
By Patricia Reardon, Director of Communications

Do you want to hear about important events and information from us between your monthly Voter newsletter?  

The League  elist  regularly sends out important messages on activities, happenings and updates that are of importance to our members.
 
 
If you want to use the elist to remind our members about information that is of interest to the group, just send your email to: leagueofwomenvoterssanjosesantaclara@yahoogroups.com
Please keep your updates focused on League topics only.
 
And, don't forget to add this email address to your directory for a fast and easy way to communicate with our League members. We will look forward to hearing from you!

LOCAL CITY/COUNTY/STATE/UNITED STATES ISSUES

League Transformation
P resented by Helen Hutchison, LWVC President

Helen Hutchison

What will the League look like in its next century? What can we do now to assure the continued relevance and visibility of the League of Women Voters? Helen Hutchison, LWVC President, will discuss the actions the League is taking, nationally and statewide, to meet the challenges of the future.

Over the past two years, in anticipation of the 100th anniversary of the League's founding, national and state leaders have engaged in a process of self-reflection, environmental scanning, hard discussions, and tough decisions related to the continued relevance and health of the League network. LWVUS has published a " Transformation Roadmap" that includes specific action steps to be implemented. It is a synthesis of many threads of work, including input from Leagues across the country, interviews with internal and external stakeholders, review of the larger nonprofit environment and the professional expertise of consulting firms.

On January 24th Helen Hutchison, LWVC President, will discuss the actions the League is taking, nationally and statewide, to meet the challenges of the future: What will the League look like in its next century? What can we do now to assure the continued relevance and visibility of the League of Women Voters?

All area Leagues are invited to join us at Cupertino Quinlan Center, 10185 N Stelling Rd, Cupertino, CA 95014 on Jan. 24, 2019, 7 to 9pm.  Register Here

Bay Area League Day  (BALD)
Save the Date - Saturday, February 9th
  Join us for our annual event on
Saturday, February 9th

 Bay Area League Day
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (D. E. & I.)
in the Bay Area
D. E. & I. in Action, D. E. & I. in Practice?
Explore D. E. & I. with key thought leaders

How to make D. E. & I. come alive at our local Leagues

Key Address: Virginia Kase, CEO, LWV US

Sat., February 9, 9:30-4pm
9:30 - 10:00 AM - Networking and Continental Breakfast
10:00 AM - 3:00 PM - Event with Break-outs

Tickets: $45. with lunch, $30 without lunch
LOCATION
Google Community Space, 188 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94105
REFUND POLICY: Refunds up to 7 days before event

Scholarships - Available upon request write to Mkronen@aol.com


Women's Leadership Policy Summit - Santa Clara County
February 2, 2019, 8am - 1pm
A gathering of women and allies for a day of education, engagement and empowerment.

Hosted by Supervisor Cindy Chavez,  join women from across Santa Clara County for two break-out sessions with multiple panels that include leaders in each subject. Connect with local nonprofits and agencies at the resource fair and get empowered at the Keynote luncheon with policy makers across the county.

Session Panels:
Housing 101 and 102; Transportation 101 and 102; Wage and Equity; Policy Initiatives; How to be an Effective Leader from Both Sides of the Dais; Policy Initiatives.

READ MORE and REGISTER

Understanding California's Red Flag Law
LWV Palo Alto and Stanford Law School, Tues, Feb 12, 7-8:30pm
Although California has some of the strongest gun safety laws in the country, the lack of awareness of California's Gun Violence Restraining Order has led to its underutilization.  This event will provide valuable information to lawyers, law enforcement, social workers, mental health professionals, faith leaders, families with members who own guns and anyone concerned about gun violence, [MCLE Credit].

Moderated by Stanford Law School Professor John J. Donohue III
Panelists:
Dean L. Winslow, MD, Professor of Medicine and Co-Founder SAFE SCRUBS, Stanford University School of Medicine
Marisa McKeown, Supervising Deputy District Attorney at Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office
Julia Weber, JD, MSW, GVRO Implementation Fellow, Giffords Law Center
to Prevent Gun Violence
League and Community Activities

LWV Presents: Insights and Perspectives
Comcast Channel 30, Mon, 7:30pm and Sun, 4:30pm; Ch 27, Wed, 5:30pm
The best way to describe Channel 30 and Bay Voice Channel 27 is TV "by the community for the community." Channels 30 and 27 air non-commercial, member-produced videos that educate, express views, and expose talents to the San Jose community and beyond.  

Connect to our League Web Site for current and archived Insights and Perspectives broadcasts:

Gloria Chun Hoo interviews
Chad Johnston, CEO CreaTV
CreaTV and the Role of Community TV
Airs week of Jan 28
Gloria Chun Hoo interviews
Terry Christensen, Ph.D.
2018 Election Review
Airs: Weeks of Feb 4 and 18
                 
Kristin Schafer, Rosaleen Zisch
Rosaleen Zisch interviews  Kristin Schafer, Executive Director of Pesticide Action Network
Reclaiming the Future of
Food and Farming
Airs: Week s of Feb 11 and 25






Watch CREATV Channel 30 shows on your computer with an  internet connection .       

                                                                                 
Calendar
Information on many of these events is available in this newsletter. See our  website calendar  for current listings and more information.  If you'd like more information but don't have web access, contact the League at (408) 271-7163.


Jan 24 LWVC League Transformation Presentation  
Jan 26
Annual Program Planning Meeting
Feb 2 Women's Leadership Policy Summit - Santa Clara County
Feb 9 Bay Area League Day
Feb 12 CA Red Flag Law panel, LWV Palo Alto and Stanford Law School
Feb 21 Lunch with League

Address / Email Change
To keep our records current please send any changes to your address, email address, or phone number, to our Dues Secretary, Sandy Remmers.  The only updates she receives are on the renewal form which is only sent once a year.
The Voter
Submissions due the 20th of the month
The LWV SJ/SC Voter is distributed monthly.  Article deadline is the 20th of the month.  If you have questions or comments, contact Liz Bogatin-Starr , the Voter Editor.

  Democracy is not a spectator sport!  Educate!  Advocate!
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