September 2026 Newsletter

Our WE non-partisan meetings are held at the Rogers County Building, 416 S. Brady, Claremore, OK at 4:30 on the last Thursday of each month. 
Significant others are always welcome.

46 Days to the Midterms!!!

That’s the countdown to the election in November and our chance to start “Restoring America.”  

Timely Program on Tap for September 24th Meeting

Unsure about upcoming State Questions 845 and 847? Don’t fully understand what they mean? Haven’t figured out how you should vote on Nov. 3 or just don’t really know anything about them at all? Mollie Tindle from the Oklahoma Policy Institute (OPI) will be speaking to us this month. As a nonpartisan think tank based in Tulsa, OPI focuses on state policy issues. Recently they have been analyzing the potential impact of SQ 847 on property taxes, as well as the changes proposed in SQ 845 for the Judicial Nominating Commission. Both are important issues, and we look forward to Ms. Tindle helping us become informed voters in November. Hope you can join us at 4:30 p.m. at the Rogers County Building, 416 S. Brady in Claremore.

Voices of Women Conference a Success!

Congratulations to the VoW Committee and to all who helped create a great conference. Many thanks to all who turned out to help on Friday night to make sure we were set up and ready to go and to those who spent the day on Saturday making sure everything ran smoothly and that we were packed up on time (no small task). 

The speakers were marvelous--we heard wonderful comments about their presentations--the vendors offered great variety; the decorations once again transformed a gym; we had wonderful items and baskets to give away; we managed to have live flowers and greenery in the table arrangements; the box lunches were a hit; and the ditty bags were definitely appreciated.   Best of all, we had several generations in attendance.  

While the dedicated VoW Committee has already met and made notes of as many do’s and don’ts for next time, as could be noted, your suggestions are always welcome. The unanticipated snafu with the speaker system has led the board to decide it’s time to have our own system so that can’t happen to us again. We are indebted to Rev. Linda Barton Paul for saving the day with her very professional system. 

To all of you who gave of your time and talents and to the many who generously donated items and sponsorships, please know that you are appreciated for helping make this happen both physically and financially.  Job well done, everyone!!

From the President's Desk
It is so hard not to be discouraged by the news of increasing amounts of illegal actions and bizarre behavior that we know shouldn’t be allowed, but I know we have to keep faith in the process while we have it and dig deep to keep it fair and honest. If you don’t understand how this could keep happening, you are not alone. This is absolutely the greatest challenge to the workings of our democracy faced during my lifetime, and no, we can’t give up on what we believe in now, not to an administration and president who are trying to leave a legacy of cheating, of arresting and killing  people without cause, of keeping immigrants in concentration-like camps, and of scamming the nation out of billions of dollars to line their pockets. Did you ever believe you would hear an American president call on his followers to cheat like crazy in an election or pledge allegiance to him? 



It’s time for a turnout on November 3rd that leaves no doubt in anyone’s mind that this was a free and fair election. I saw a screenshot on Facebook that said, “It’s up to the women to get it done!” Let’s get it done and let’s make it a landslide that cannot be questioned, that the Liar-in-Chief cannot call into question and be believed by anyone.

It’s Crunch Time!!

Here are 2 opportunities for you to help make a difference.

First, we are going to keep the office (106 S. Cherokee, Claremore) open from Monday to Friday afternoon on Sept. 28-Oct. 2 from 1:30 - 3:30 p.m. for postcard writing. Postcards have been ordered, some humorous, some serious. Personal note suggestions will be available, if needed. WE are going to attempt to write to nearly 1,000 women of Rogers County who did not show up to vote in the last mid-terms and persuade them how vital the vote is this time. 

I know how generous our group is. If you can, please bring postcard stamps to the September meeting for this effort (or plan to make a donation towards purchasing stamps). One must believe that as the USPS has been stripped of funds and has been forced to keep increasing the price of stamps that part of the intention was to make it harder for us to reach out to people with even a simple postcard.

Second, our WE resident artist, Chris Thomas, and anyone else who can print legibly, is going to offer car window painting of voting slogans with safe paint designed for this purpose on your back and/or side windows of your vehicle on Friday, Oct. 23 from 3:00-4:30 p.m., weather permitting, in the parking lot south of the Rogers County Bldg, . Bring your own simple (g-rated :) slogan or choose one prepared for you.

Sign up sheets will be available at the membership meeting for both “get out the vote” projects.

Our State Environmental Challenges Keep Growing

It apparently wasn’t enough that we need to accept having a data center and a proposed aluminum smelter in Rogers County, an enormous power line running beside the Creek Turnpike to bring electricity to the large data center being built in east Tulsa, or having a proposed nuclear facility along with a burial site for waste from other states proposed for southern OK. Now another enormous power line is proposed to go across ranch and farmland in four counties in northern Oklahoma that will not benefit anyone in our state, but is designed to carry power from Kansas to Missouri for a data center there. Did Kansas not want it to cross their productive land, so Oklahoma gets to sacrifice a football field-width of land as it crosses each farm and ranch and gets to deal with the effect on its wildlife and the loss of acreage?   

Who, Gov. Stitt and the current State Legislature, decided that a state with great farming and ranching and water was the perfect place to bring the environmental damages of large industrial growth?? 

Bits and Pieces

First, some good news! The Inola Town Trustees granted a moratorium this week on the smelter until April 2027! Big relief for all who spoke, including at least two of our members.

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The newest Supreme Court ruling is also good news for this election, but discussion seems to indicate they may have left the door open for another try at messing with mail-in voting in 2028. Nice how the Supremes do that, isn’t it? Never quite a final NO, it’s not the federal government’s business.

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Please be sure you peruse the calendar for events in both September and October. There’s so much going on in the next two months. We tried to cover as much as possible, hoping not to leave out anything vital.

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Note: The WE Board needs to find out at this month’s meeting how many are interested in riding in the Will Rogers Parade on Oct. 31, IF we have an entry. This year’s event promises to be one of the largest parades in recent history. 

Please sign up at the WE meeting if you would like to ride (or walk and distribute candy). We will need a BLUE pickup and a few hay bales. We don’t know the theme of the parade yet, but that might help us decide what to wear. If we do this, we will certainly want a Lady Liberty riding with us :). Your interest will help the board decide about WE’s participation in the parade.

Standing Together for a Better Tomorrow

Sharon Douthitt, President

Calendar of Events

You can find these events on our website under the Calendar tab

September

Thurs., Sept. 17 - Sat., Sept 19—Rogers County Fair

Fri., Sept. 18, 10:30 a.m.—Regional Resilience Collective (Environmental Collective WE belongs to) RRC/OKECO) Zoom Mtg.

Mon., Sept. 21, 6:30PM—RRC/OKECO Zoom Mtg. 

Thurs., Sept. 24 - WE Membership Meeting, Rogers County Building, 416 S. Brady in Claremore

4:00—WE Sign In & Table Sale

4:30—WE Membership Meeting

Note: RoCo Democrats are not meeting that night. They are signing up voters by office downtown

Fri., Sept. 25—CHS Homecoming

Fri., Sept. 25, Appleseed Awards - 6:30 - 9:30 p.m. in Tulsa, $100. Our member Debra Whitfill is one of the recipients!

Sat., Sept. 26, 10:00 a.m. —Day of Action at Blue Whale in Catoosa. Come prepared to knock on doors and hand out literature for our candidates.

Mon., Sept. 28-Fri., Oct. 2, 1:30-3:30 p.m.—GET OUT THE VOTE postcard writing at WE Office, 103 S. Cherokee in Claremore. Sign up at the Sept. meeting. 

October

 Thurs., Oct. 1, 3:00-4:00—NO ICE Peaceful Protest, RSU's Carolyn Taylor Plaza led by Chris Thomas

Tues., Oct. 6-Thurs., Oct. 8, 9:00-5:00—Tar Creek Conference at NEO Student Union, Miami, OK -- ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS to OKLAHOMA

Thurs., Oct. 8, 4:00—WE Board Meeting

Weds., Oct. 14, 11:00—Stacey Abrams at National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, OKC, $100

Sat., Oct. 17, 12:00-2:00—Next designated NO KINGS demonstration at 41^st and Yale in Tulsa

Fri., Oct. 23, 3:00-4:30—Car window painting to get out the vote. Parking lot south of Rogers County Building. Sign up at Sept. meeting or drop by.

Sun., Oct. 25, 4:30—Defunding Our Future: UNEQUAL EDUCATION & The Impact of School Vouchers, Historic Big 10 Ballroom, 1624 E. Apache St., Tulsa, Free & Free Dinner but you must register here.



Weds., Oct. 28—Early voting begins and lasts through Saturday.

Thurs., Oct. 28—Anniversary of the dedication of the Statue of Liberty

Thurs., Oct. 29 - WE Meeting, Rogers County Building, 416 S. Brady in Claremore

4:00—WE Sign In & Table Sale

4:30-6:00—WE Membership Meeting/Vote on Officers, Board,

and Bylaws & Standing Rules Revisions

6:30—RoCo Dems. Meeting

Sat., Oct. 31, 10:00—Will Rogers Parade (line up at 9:00)

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