The Voter

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President's Message

You're Invited!

Lobby Days

January 23-24 in Tallahassee

LWVFL's Lobby Days is a unique opportunity to humanize our legislative priorities with our state lawmakers. The League's reach has continued to grow over the past year and we're excited to show that off in the halls of our state capitol.

Planning for LWVAC attendance at the event is well underway and space and refunds may be limited, but please contact Jean Robinson if you would like to attend.

Click here to learn more and register for the event.

Meet and Mobilize

January 25 @ 6:00 p.m.

Cotton Club Museum and Cultural Center

837 SE 7th Avenue

LWVAC is co-sponsoring a Meet and Mobilize event with other non-partisan community organizations, including Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. - Delta Sigma Zeta Chapter, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. - Gainesville Alumnae Chapter, The Visionaires Club, and The Links Inc. - Gainesville Chapter.

The event aims to start meaningful partnerships as we enter the 2024 election season. This collaboration allows our organizations to mobilize, strategize, and promote civic engagement in our community, especially among those who may not be inclined to vote.

During this event, the organizations will get to know each other and share their respective initiatives. Since we will spend some time brainstorming and planning regarding voter engagement and empowerment, this event will only be open to members of the guest organizations (not the general public) as we work with each other to develop a partnership plan of action to empower our community.

If you would like to attend, please RSVP by January 19.

Susan B. Anthony Birthday Party

February 18 @ 3:00 p.m.

Cotton Club Museum and Cultural Center

837 SE 7th Avenue

The Friends of Susan B. Anthony Committee is inviting everyone to a party. We are celebrating Susan B.’s 204th birthday at the Cotton Club Museum from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, February 18, 2024. (Her real birthday is February 15.) There will be appetizers, non-alcoholic beverages, and, of course, birthday cake. Music will be provided by the acapella group Resonance.

Known for her tireless work for women’s suffrage, Susan B. Anthony’s role as a teacher and educational reformer is less often emphasized. The Committee has it on good authority that Susan B. might appear to discuss this neglected aspect of her life of activism. The Committee will also celebrate the contributions of African-American suffragists to the struggle for the franchise, which seems appropriate since February is Black History Month.

The Museum is located at 837 SE 7th Street in Gainesville. We are asking for $5.00 donations. Invitations will be sent out soon and will be available on the FoSBA website. Please come and join the fun and celebrate Susan B. Anthony and the principles for which she struggled.

Introductions

Matheson Museum Partnership

Voices & Votes Exhibit

Our League has an unprecedented opportunity to partner with the Matheson Museum in an exhibit titled “Voices and Votes”. The exhibit will occur this spring and summer. We will be helping with the exhibit and promoting it to various groups such as students and minority groups. We will be registering voters and helping people to make a voting plan. This is really exciting and will be a lot of fun. If you want to join the team, contact Janice. 

Speakers Bureau

One superpower of the LWV is its nonpartisan education mission. Democracy thrives when its citizens are informed. The LWVAC Speakers Bureau is ready to serve.

We begin the year with a presentation to the Democratic Women’s Club of North Alachua County on January 28.

Contact Candy Birch if you need a speaker for a program. We will work to customize a presentation for you. 

In Memoriam

By June Girard

My dear friend Barbara Herbstman died on December 13, 2023. Here are just a few of my favorite memories of Barbara:

• I met Barbara at Oak Hammock when I was attempting to start a unit of the Alachua County League of Women Voters. She became my Voters Services chair and arranged all our candidate forums during my tenure.
• Barbara was president of the Alachua County League from 1996-1997. 
• We became partners to present our original musical in 2016, which was a roaring success. 
• Then in 2020, we performed a fantastic show to celebrate 100 years since women won the right to vote in the United States. 
• In 2016, we incorporated the Oak Hammock Barbershop Quartet who sang tunes we all knew but with new words written by Barbara to tease and amuse. 
• In 2020, Barbara researched the women who fought for the vote. She cast Oak Hammock residents to play the part of each of the women. She told me how much fun she had researching and casting women she had never heard of. The show was her introduction of the women in history who each told in Barbara's words their role in the fight for suffrage.

Barbara was talented in many ways. She was a fierce debater and a wonderful participant in Institute for Learning in Retirement (ILR) discussion groups. She will be remembered for her mantra "follow the money."

Goodbye, Dear Friend!

Volunteer Opportunities

GOTV Action Team

As Janice mentioned above, LWVAC is gearing up for an important and busy election year in 2024. We have created an Action Team focusing on Get Out The Vote (GOTV) efforts. Please contact Janice if you would like to get involved.

Upcoming Tabling Events

• January 25 at 6 p.m. for the Meet & Mobilize Event.
• January 30 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at The Village of Gainesville (we have enough volunteers for this event).
• February 3 from 10:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Springs Run benefitting the Florida Springs Institute.

Contact Gwen or Diana for more information or to volunteer for any of these events.

Call for Nominations



This is a great time to consider becoming more involved in LWVAC leadership. The Nomination Committee is looking for volunteers to serve on the LWV Board beginning June of 2024 (after our Annual Meeting near the end of May). The following positions are held by people whose terms expire on that date. We are hoping that some people who already hold positions will agree to be renominated, but the board always needs new people who are willing to serve in leadership positions. The positions are: 

1. President (Janice Garry has agreed to be nominated for a second term.)
2. Secretary
3. Elected Directors (two positions)
4. Communications Chair (Connie Nicklin has agreed to be nominated for a second term but could always use a Co-Chair or assistance/assistants.)
5. Criminal and Social Justice Chair
6. Education Committee Chair (currently vacant)
7. Local Issues Committee Chair (currently vacant)
8. Natural Resources Committee Chair/Co-chairs
9. Nominating Committee - all members
10. Voter Services Committee Chair/Co-chairs

Board positions are two-year terms. The Board and Committees meet once a month, usually.

If you are interested in serving or know someone who is, please let a Nominating Committee member know. Current members of the committee are Janet Allen, Diana Boxer, Elaine Francis, Roberta Gastmeyer, and Donna Waller. Good leadership is critical to the functioning of our very active chapter, so please think about serving in one of these capacities. 

Happy New Year! We hope your New Year’s resolution will be to become more active in your League of Women Voters. We are building the leadership for our next two years of League, and we need YOU! 

Committee Updates

In this section, we bring you updates from your LWV of Alachua County committees. Committees are the best way to get involved in LWV of Alachua County and your local community. Feel free to reach out to the Committee Chairs to express interest, join their meetings, and get involved.

Campus Outreach

Santa Fe College Chapter

Contact: Linda Mussillo

LWV @ SF College is looking forward to Lobby Days in Tallahassee and to the SF Campus "Club Rush," both in January, where more LWV chapter members will be recruited!

February plans include tabling at the SF campus Volunteer Fair on February 6 with LWVAC members invited to table alongside us, and a still-to-be-planned February Black History Month collaboration/presentation related to the history of voting rights and voting restrictions. Also to come in February: SAFE Santa Fe events with the SF Police Department, gunlocks, and gun safety. 

At all events, voter registration and awareness of VOTE411 will be a central activity!

Contact Baylee Van Doran, Chapter President, to get involved with the SF chapter group, follow us on Instagram@sfleagueofwomenvoters, and stay tuned for invitations to future events at SF College!

University of Florida Chapter

Contact: Diana Boxer

The UF LWV chapter is holding its first meeting of the year on January 30. All officers are in place and the bank account has just been instated. The chapter looks forward to participating fully in local LWV activities. Leah Edwards, one of the officers, is working for the Bob Graham Center and will be involved in the planning and execution of the upcoming candidate forums.

Gun Violence Prevention & Safety

Contact: Gwendolyn Saffo

This committee will meet via Zoom on January 16, at 6:30 PM. We are conducting a Listen and Learn series by inviting potential partners to speak at our meeting as we continue to develop our plan of action and determine how we can work with various community organizations/agencies as it relates to gun violence prevention and safety in our community. This month's guest speaker is Rebecca Darnell, Legislative Lead for Moms Demand Action. She will share her views on how the League can potentially partner with Moms. If you are interested in attending this meeting, contact Gwendolyn.

Health Care

Contact: Barbara Frentzen or Kim Walsh-Childers

1. At our last meeting, we discussed the success of the petition drive to place abortion on the 2024 ballot while acknowledging a difficult fight ahead from Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody’s opposition to the wording of the amendment. Florida’s Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on February 7.
2. We have been in contact with the Suwannee River Area Health Education Center (SRAHEC) who provide Navigators to assist people with their health insurance, including Medicaid or a health plan through the Health Insurance Marketplace. This is especially important due to Medicaid Unwinding and the large number of people who are losing their Medicaid benefits. SRAHEC has provided a document to us explaining their services and we discussed delivering it to various health clinics, the Health Department, Health Street, the Senior Center, and other locations as allowed. We will also attempt to get media outlets to provide Public Service Announcements about their services.
3. We discussed priorities for 2024. Ideas include working to promote Medicaid expansion in Florida and providing education to Medicare recipients regarding the problems of coverage with Medicare Advantage.

Our next meeting will be on February 12 at 4:00 p.m. in Conference Room A at Oak Hammock.

Natural Resources

Contact: Roberta Gastmeyer or Jay Rosenbek

Probably most or all of us are aware of the increasing resistance generally to enlightened environmental policy. However, the NR Committee leadership and membership recognize that silence is unacceptable, resignation and retreat are self-defeating, and that action fosters hope (Thanks, Greta). And so we are committed to the following in 2024 and look forward to member suggestions of other ideas for action:

1. Continue involvement with the Lee Property issue in two ways: a. identify and write letters of support to the agencies considered as funding sources for the Option One, the environmental easement and b. encourage state-of-the-art environmentally conscious development of the UF golf course.
2. Support and influence the content of Climate Action Plans as developed by both city and county governments.
3. Continue advocacy for solar+battery as the best option for any new electricity generation source.
4. Support the next effort to gather sufficient signatures to get a Right To Clean Water amendment on the 2025 ballot.
5. Continue collaboration with state NR group and the NAACP to support healthy environmental legislation during the 2024 legislative session.
6. Work with Bennett Brummer to expand support of electric vehicles in the community.
7. Respond, as resources allow, to emerging threats to the local environment.

The next Natural Resources meeting is scheduled for January 24 on Zoom from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. The program will be announced soon, but our goal is to have a little something for everyone.

We still encourage residents to complete the City of Gainesville's Climate Action Plan Survey. If you have not already, please take a few moments now to complete the survey. Let the City know that climate change action is important to you!

Oak Hammock

Contact: Mary White

At the January Oak Hammock meeting, Dr. Nancy Hardt presented, "Politics and Infant and Maternal Health." Dr. Hardt is a professor emerita at the UF College of Medicine. She now collaborates with community leaders to address local health equity issues, especially early childhood brain development. A recording of the presentation is now available to watch here.

The February Oak Hammock meeting will take place on February 13 at 7:00 p.m. at Oak Hammock and will feature Adriana Menendez and Veronica Robleto from the Rural Women's Health Project speaking on "Health Justice Support for Farmworkers and Immigrant Communities."

Everyone is invited to attend. Contact Mary White for further information.

Voter Services

Contact: Diana Boxer or Gwen Wagner

Upcoming Tabling Events:

1. January 25 at 6 p.m. for the Meet & Mobilize Event.
2. January 30 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at The Village of Gainesville (we have enough volunteers for this event).
3. February 3 from 10:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Springs Run benefitting the Florida Springs Institute.

Contact Gwen or Diana for more information or to volunteer for any of these events.

Save the Dates: LWVAC is once again partnering with The Bob Graham Center for:

1. A primary candidate forum on June 23, 2024, and
2. A general election candidate forum on September 22, 2024.

Contact Diana if you would like to help with either or both of these events.

VOTE411.org is up and running for voter registration and checking your precinct. We will start inputting the candidates' data for the 2024 elections soon.

Elaine Francis is working with the school and public libraries to feature the children’s book, I Can’t Wait to Vote. 

The next Voter Services meeting will be February 7 at 6:30 p.m. via Zoom. Join us!

Reminders

Follow the 2024 Legislative Session

Our colleagues at LWV of the St. Pete Area brought to our attention an app to help Floridians engage civically, and we thought you might find it interesting as well.

Using the Voatz app by the Digital Democracy Project, you can track the legislation being considered and let your legislators know which bills you support from the comfort of your phone. Polling is anonymous, and you get to see your legislators' alignment with their constituents in real time. The 2024 Florida Legislative Session is currently underway, and your legislators need to know what you think about the bills being proposed. Interacting with your representatives does not have to be daunting. Download the Voatz app and start engaging today!

Comments, Questions, Feedback? Contact the editor Connie Nicklin.

LWV of Alachua County Leadership Team

President: Janice Garry

Vice-President: Gwendolyn Saffo

Secretary: Eileen Roy

Treasurer: Anne D’Amico

A full list of LWV of Alachua County Board Members and Committee Chairs can be found here.

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