September 2025 - 2nd edition

Last week, David Hensley of our Moore County School board called for an emergency meeting to discuss school safety. It was scheduled for tonight, September 15.

HOWEVER: Several of the Board members had scheduling conflicts with this date. Because there would not be enough members present to have a quorum, the meeting was cancelled.

Pease let any friends or neighbors know if they were planning to attend.

Our precious Constitution was signed by our Founding Fathers on September 17, 1789.

This Wednesday, September 17 at 12:00 noon at the Board of Education Central Office, Moore Republican Women will join other patriots in "ringing the bell" for one full minute to celebrate the ratification of America's founding principles.

Come and join us as we mark this great occasion in U.S. history!

Address: 5277 Highway 15/501 South, Carthage, NC

In response to Pauline Bruno's message at our September luncheon about the massive growth in our area, Taylor Clement, mayor of Southern Pines, sent us the following email:

Yes, there's a lot of change happening at once. There are serious growing pains in Moore County and I, too, want more Republicans to step up. We lose municipal elections because many Republicans only vote in national elections. We need local leaders who will follow the law AND hold a hard line. Who abide by our US & NC Constitutional powers. We need candidates who can balance property rights, understand fiscal responsibility, and work within the legal process; Republicans are ideal candidates!

Our community leaders can't stop the growth, we can only manage it and we are trying! I can only speak for Southern Pines, but we are constantly walking the fine line of preserving our character, protecting private property rights and managing growth within the powers granted to us by the General Assembly.

Read her whole message, which makes clear the challenges we face.

Thank you, Taylor, for this insight into the issues surrounding growth in our communities in Moore County.

And remember: We have local elections coming up this November (with early voting in October), and MRW will be featuring numerous candidates at our luncheon on October 8.

Please note that MRW's next luncheon is Wednesday, October 8 (the 2nd Wednesday of the month). Invitations will be going out toward the end of September. We encourage you to bring a guest!

At our September luncheon, we formally announced the launch of our Regents Program, in which members and associates can donate to MRW at specific levels to help us defray costs and support our political activities. The response was truly amazing - eight additional members donated on the spot, and more have joined in the past couple of weeks! We are so pleased to thank the following women who are now MRW Regents:

Gold level ($300 donation): Charli Thyne, Peggy Smetana, Pauline Bruno, Elaine Bologna, Mariann Benway, Pilar Page, Kay Wildt, Lisa Sheridan, Nancy Manley, Kathleen Beddow, Laura Morgan, Lydia Bosch, Mia Bibey, Alice Demastus, Caroline Kelly, Jeanne Harrington, Pauli Lohse Wells

Silver level ($200 donation):

Carol O'Reilly

Bronze level ($100 donation):

Lou Ellen Runyan, Mary Flynn, Teressa Beavers, Sandi Carl, Marge Swierz

If you'd like to be part of the Regents Program, simply send your check (made out to MRW) to: MRW, PO Box 3654, Pinehurst, NC 28374. Mark it "Regents" in the comments line.

Or you can also give your Regents check (separate from luncheon payment) to Peggy Smetana at MRW luncheons going forward.

Are you interested in serving on MRW's Executive Board?

Elections for Moore Republican Women's Executive Board will take place at our November luncheon. We are looking for dedicated, enthusiastic volunteers with certain talents to join our Board, as several people will be retiring from long service and/or stepping down for personal reasons.

We meet once a month and are responsible for all activities related to Moore Republican Women. It’s a great way to get to know MRW committee chairs and other members. And we have fun doing our respective jobs and bonding in our quest to Make America Great Again! Plus, you will be an integral part of our larger task of winning the 2026 election!

If you are interested in being considered by the Nominating Committee, please respond to this email as soon as possible.

Click below to see descriptions of the five key Executive positions.

MRW is a strong supporter of the Governor James E. Holshouser Speaker Series, which brings non-partisan expert speakers to our area to discuss topics of high importance. After the assassination of Charlie Kirk last week, we are on high alert: What is happening in our education system that leads young people to violence against those who promote traditional values?

We encourage you to share an evening with Jonathan Butcher, Acting Director, Center for Education Policy and Will Skillman Senior Research Fellow in Education Policy of The Heritage Foundation:

Above: (L to R): Anna Gaab, Kiera Daberkow, Angel Apolinar, Emily Auman, Lieutenant Commander US Navy Retired Tim Winn

Below: Jacki Shelton

"Youth Day" at MRW!

Our luncheon opened with 7-year old songbird Jackie Shelton, who belted out amazing renditions of our national anthem and "God Bless America." Then, we were treated to a presentation by Junior Navy ROTC officers from Union Pines High School. They told us about their comprehensive program designed to train upstanding leaders and produce model citizens.

We thoroughly enjoyed hearing from these young cadets, who were poised, confident, disciplined, accomplished and very impressive. America's future is in good hands!

We also conducted the following important business:

NOMINATING COMMITTEE. At the meeting, we elected three representatives from the floor to be on the Nominating Committee for Officers on the MRW Executive Board: Anna Vigilis, Deb Piazza and Lisa Sheridan. They, along with Sandi Carl and Mariann Benway (representing the Board), will present a slate of officers at our October meeting.

LOOKING FOR CANDIDATES FOR MRW EXECUTIVE BOARD AND KEY COMMITTEES. We are actively looking for members who might be interested in volunteering to be Treasurer or Membership Chair (2nd VP).

In addition, we are seeking someone (or two women) to chair (or co-chair) our Luncheon Committee, as Lisa Sheridan will be stepping down from this important position she has so ably headed up for quite a while.

If you are interested, please hit "Reply" to this email as soon as possible.

Ways & Means results

Congratulations to the following people:

• Basket Raffle - $239.49. Diane Ingold was the winner.
• Split the Pot -145. Mary Wilson-Wittenstrom took home $72.50
• Jewelry Sales - $143.72

[The odd totals reflect Square credit card sales, where they charge a small fee for their service.]

Many thanks to all who purchased items!

If interested in attending, RSVP to mefreidelsr@gmail.com.

• September 17: Constitution Day
• September 18: Moore County Republican Men's Club luncheon
• September 19: Life Care Pregnancy Center Gala
• September 21: Prayer vigil honoring Charlie Kirk, 5-6 pm, Pinehurst Village Square
• September 22: Pinehurst candidate forum (see above)
• September 25-28, 2025: NFRW Convention, Orlando, Florida
• October 8: MRW luncheon, Noon
• October 8: Holshouser Speaker Series event (see above)
• October 16 - November 1: Early voting in municipal elections
• November 4: Election Day
• November 15-16, 2025: NCFRW Fall Meeting, Koury Convention Center

The Thursday Think Tank

Join fellow Moore County conservatives gathered for a weekly review of issues and events. GOP headquarters, 11:00 a.m. every Thursday except the third Thursday of the month.