UPCOMING
Celebrate Women's Equality Day
Orientation for New Members
Voter Services Team Meeting
Voter Services Wants YOU!
Informed Citizen Book Club
RECENT
Out and About in the Community
Father's Day Fundraiser Thank You
NICE TO KNOW
Pollinator Habitat in Bloom
| | League-Wide News and Events | Celebration Time!!
Come to the Sweet Heart Winery
5500 W US-34, Loveland 80537
August 22 from 5:00 - 7:30 pm
Celebrate Women's Equality Day with Us!
Celebrate the 104th anniversary of women’s right to vote!
Celebrate the work of 3 inspiring local women:
Joy Sullivan, Gretchen Haley, and our own Beth DeHaven!
Celebrate being part of the
League of Women Voters of Larimer County!!
See You There! | Can't come on the 22nd? You can still join the fun by bidding on items in our
Virtual Silent Auction!
Yes! You read that right! This year the auction is TOTALLY ONLINE!
The auction opens and bidding begins on Sunday, August 11th.
Bidding closes at noon on Sunday, August 25th.
| | From Your Board of Directors | Hi, Fellow Larimer League Members!
Thank you for being active in our communities and thank you for trusting me to lead our local league. This is my first message as President.
| | We take our mission, Empowering Voters, Defending Democracy, very seriously. Our work, however, does not come without cost and we rely on fundraising to pay the bills. To that end, our Women’s Equality Day Celebration on August 22 is front and center this month.
We are grateful to be able to feature opening remarks by Marion Underwood, CSU Provost and Executive Vice President, who will set the tone for our celebration. And we have a great team planning every last detail of the event to ensure not only its success as a fundraiser, but also its success as a fun celebration of the 104th anniversary of women's right to vote, an uplifting celebration of the work of three inspiring local women (see their stories in this newsletter), and a convivial gathering of our League members, friends, families, and the greater community.
| | | | A big thanks to the planning committee leader Trish Warner and committee members Ann Keith, Becky Peters, Lori Rasmussen, Marge Norskog, Karyl Rice, Beth DeHaven, Evelyn Peterson, Julie Hellman, Julie Stackhouse, Joyce Haas, Lisa Leblow, and Kathy Maher. | | The team has put together a great silent auction, too, which will be run completely online this year for a full 2 weeks, from August 11th through noon on August 25th. So even if you can’t make the event, please visit the Silent Auction site and find something that tickles your fancy! | That said, I hope you will make every effort to attend the in-person celebration. Consider inviting a friend to come with you to make it more fun. We need everyone who can to be at this event in this important election year. It is the principal way we raise funds to support our mission, Empowering Voters, Defending Democracy! | Visit the calendar to get your tickets! Do it now! :-)
Yours in Gratitude,
Pat Burger | |
Get to Know the Women's Equality Day Honorees
At our August 22 Women’s Equality Day celebration at the Sweet Heart Winery in Loveland, the League of Women Voters of Larimer County will honor three Larimer County women whose work to protect the rights of women, defend voting rights of all, and create a world where gender doesn’t limit opportunities will be recognized.
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Beth DeHaven, whom many of our League members know well, will receive the League Legacy Honor for her work to educate groups at the state and local level on gun violence prevention, and for her advocacy work to influence public policy on gun safety. She is a leader in the Colorado League’s Statewide Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, encourages citizen engagement with the legislative process, and scrutinizes all legislative and public policy proposals for implications for justice, diversity, equity, inclusion. Congratulations, Beth! We’re proud of you!
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Joy Sullivan, President and CEO of United Way of Larimer County, will receive the Women’s Equality Day honors. She has led her organization to put equity at the heart of its work by investing financial resources in our community’s historically most marginalized identities (including but not limited to those representing the BIPOC and LGBTQ+ communities) while simultaneously providing transformational training opportunities for United Way staff to gain a deep understanding of what equity really means.
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Gretchen Haley, Unitarian Universalist minister serving Foothills Unitarian Church, will receive the Women’s Equality Day honors. Since beginning her ministry duties in 2013, she has been recognized as a force in the Fort Collins community for equity, fairness, and opportunity for women AND men. A common theme of Gretchen’s work is that women’s equality is needed in all the spheres that women inhabit and in all the basic building blocks of life – financial stability, safe housing, help with child rearing, stable immigration status, reproductive rights, and safe communities where all can thrive.
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| Orientation to the League
Thursday, August 15 2:00-3:30 pm
Heart of the Rockies Christian Church
6501 Brittany St, Fort Collins, CO 80525
Join prospective and new members to learn about the history, mission and program priorities of the League and opportunities for involvement. We'll begin with refreshments and conversation followed by informal discussion. Bring a friend and your questions!
RSVP by August 12 on the calendar.
Carpooling can be arranged.
| | | Voter Services Team Meeting
Tuesday, August 13th, 6:30 - 8:30 PM
Virtual Meeting via Zoom
Thank you to everyone who attended our Candidate Forum Volunteer training. We had a great turnout. If you weren’t able to attend the training but would like to volunteer at forums, please contact Judy Weaver to get on the list of volunteers.
As we prepare for the fall elections, there are many ways to get involved with Voter Services! Consider attending a Voter Services Team meeting or email Heather Sulgrove to get connected to volunteer opportunities like:
- Ballot issues research and summary writing
- Ballot issues community presentations (presenters needed!)
- Ballot issue pamphlet distribution
- Candidate Forum volunteering
- Voter Registration
- Get out the Vote postcard campaigns
- Vote411 website
We will also need good questions for candidates for use at forums and on Vote411.org. If you would like to submit a question idea, please send it to Heather Sulgrove.
| | Photo: Candidate Forum Volunteer Training, July 20, 2024 | | Two Voter Registration Organizers Needed
Voter Registration is the heart of the League and of the Voter Services Team.
We visit many venues to register electors: farmers' markets, food banks, high schools, senior centers, CSU, Front Range Community College, festivals, and the Larimer County Jail and Work Release/Community Corrections. We have leads covering most of these venues. They set up events and get their volunteers.
Overseeing these events has been the job of the voter registration organizer to ensure everyone is trained and has supplies. Linda Thomas has been the voter registration organizer since 2017, but will be stepping down from this role as of January 2025. We need 2 people to take over this critical role. | | | The responsibilities of the two Voter Registration Organizers are outlined below.
This fall would be a great time to shadow and see what happens behind the scenes. Please contact Heather Sulgrove or Linda Thomas if interested or if you have questions. | | Voter Registration Drive Organizer #1
Register with the State, Train, Maintain Circulator List, Serve as Contact Person
1. Register with the Colorado Secretary of State (SOS) as a Voter Registration Drive (VRD) in January. The allows us to collect forms. You will be recognized by the State as the League's Voter Registration Organizer and will be given a VRD # for the League.
2. Train circulators or have them watch the Colorado SOS circulator PowerPoint presentation. Linda is willing to train people the first year in 2025, if needed.
3. Maintain a trained circulator list for those volunteering for registration events.
4. Send training info to people as they volunteer throughout the year. Share information with Volunteer #2.
5. Serve as the contact person for organizations wanting registration events. | | Voter Registration
Organizer #2
Order Supplies, Maintain Records, Set Up Some Registration Events
1. Keep supplies on hand for registrations. Marge Norskog has the template and places to order from for our stickers, Vote411.org bookmarks, and Voting with Convictions cards.
2. Order registration forms from the Colorado SOS as needed (English/Spanish VRD and non-VRD forms).
3. Keep a list of registration events (venues), number registered, and hours volunteered. A form is filled out by each lead person setting up the event to give you this information. This is needed for various reprots durnig the year and at the end of the fiscal year.
4. Maintain crates with supplies.
5. Set up registration events where needed if not covered by a lead person.
| | | Informed Citizen Book Club
Meetings on the Second Wednesday every month, morning and evening sessions.
10:30 AM - 12:00 PM: In-person meeting
7:00 - 8:30 PM: Zoom meeting
Morning attendees will meet at The Highland Meadows Grill (formerly Raff's Tavern), 6300 Highland Meadows Parkway, Windsor, CO, or at a member's home.
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Please join us for a lively discussion of our August book on August 14, 2024. Our book is Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology by Chris Miller.
Upcoming Books:
September
Our Migrant Souls: A Meditation on Race and the
Meanings and Myths of "Latino" by Hector Tobar
October
Walk the Walk: How Three Police Chiefs Defied
the Odds and Changed Cop Culture by Neil Gross
November
Young and the Restless: The Girls Who Sparked
America's Revolutions by Mattie Kahn
Please join us on the second Wednesday of each month!
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Out and About in the Community
| Taking Pride in DEI Engagement
June was a busy month for our volunteers. We joined the BIPOC Alliance to celebrate Juneteenth, and Northern Colorado Equality for Pridefest 2024.
If you would like to join us for Community Events, check the League Calendar or contact Cindy Linafelter.
| Juneteenth photo (top): Linda Mahan, Jane Hamburger.
Pridefest photo (bottom): Betty Marshall, Cindy Linafelter, Hilary Kennedy | Thank You from the Financial Development Team!
The Endowment Fund Match Fundraiser raised $1,300 in donations in June. With the matching funds from uninvested reserve assets, a total of $2,600 has been added to the LWVLC Endowment Fund at the Northern Colorado Community Foundation.
Pat Burger and Jupe Herrick donated in recognition of the match early on. Other members followed suit when the match was advertised as a tribute to Father’s Day. The following members offered tributes to their fathers:
Jane Hamburger: “In gratitude to T.P. Brammer, who instilled the importance of community in me through his role modeling.”
Beth DeHaven: “In memory of Stanley Huber; a quiet man who provided a loving home and allowed me to follow whatever path I chose.”
Ann Keith: “In memory of Edwin B. Oyer…one of the best!”
Carol Newlin: “In memory of David C. McNary, DVM (1917-1971)”
Trish Warner: “In gratitude to all the men who have and continue to support the women in their lives.” | | | | The Sunflowers are Blooming in Our Pollinator Habitat! | In May and June 2023, several LWVLC members participated in a City of Loveland/Colorado Native Plant Society project to enhance pollinator habitat in Sunset Vista Natural Area, which sits between Loveland and Fort Collins. Despite some vole-inflicted casualties, the two habitat areas are doing well and serving their purpose.
A wide variety of bees have been enjoying the native bee balm, yarrow, and prairie coneflowers, ladybugs are exploring the Maximilian sunflowers, and resident red-winged blackbirds have taken to perching on the towering Nuttall's sunflowers.
Community volunteers installed additional (vole-resistant) plants in June of this year and return twice a week to water the new plants and pull the some weeds. |  |
The second pollinator habitat area, a more formal gravel garden, has also been blooming this year, with goldenrod, buckwheat, penstemon, hairy goldenaster, and blanketflower putting on a decent show of staggered flowering. The native harebell, purple prairie clover, and Rocky Mountain gayfeather seem to be some critter's favorites, but they persist. The tough-as-nails white heath aster, which bloomed well shortly after being planted last year, is again getting ready to bloom in late summer.
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The City of Loveland and the Colorado Native Plant Society are grateful to the LWVLC members who helped install these habitat areas and continue to help weed them.
Want plant lists? Would you like to join the volunteers who maintain these installations? Would you like to lead educational activities based in these gardens? If so, please contact Kathy Maher.
| Want to Learn How to Wire Up an Audio Mixer?
Our Fall Meeting will be a large hybrid meeting and we're recruiting volunteers to cover the tech support. That includes configuring audio for both the in-person and Zoom audiences, projector and screen, setting up cameras, and manning the controller laptop. Training will be provided and step-by-step instructions are written down.
If you've been itching to know what all those buttons and knobs are for on an audio mixer, here's your chance to find out. (Spoiler alert: It's not as complicated as it looks, but don't tell anybody.) Join the cool kids doing A/V support! Contact Kathy Maher at kgmaher@gmail.com. | | | |