THE VOTER JUNE 2020
Enjoy a really quick look at the Kent LWV Year in Review with images from the Rubber Ducks Women's Equality Day Game, VOTER Girl Project, KSU Homecoming Parade, our centennial birthday event, a trip to Seneca Falls, a candidate forum and the NAACP Prayer Breakfast! Members Lorraine McCarty, left, and Renee Ruchotzke.
Our New President’s First Message

First let me say that I am honored and excited to serve as your next president. It is daunting and exhilarating to think about our League in this new year.

You may have heard - we have an election coming up in November, and it may be the biggest election of our lifetime. Only 22% of registered voters in Ohio participated in the primary election in April, compared to 44% in the previous primary. We have a lot of work to do between now and November to educate the public, register voters and advocate for a fair, secure, safe and accessible election.

The National LWV is holding it’s convention June 22 - 27. As a League member, you may attend the free caucuses, offered beginning 6/22. If you are interested, please go to lwv.org/2020Convention to register. I hope every member can find at least one caucus of interest. And we're proud to say LWV Kent is hosting a caucus to promote The VOTER Girl Project on Tuesday, June 23, at 7 p.m. Come listen in!

I also want to encourage and urge each of you to get as involved as you possibly can. Our League is very active with quite a variety of opportunities for engagement. Please go to our website, my.lwv.org/ohio/kent , and click on “A Place for You In League Work.” You’ll find a list of committees you may join, along with information about them and a way to sign up. We will soon have two new committees that may be of particular interest, Advocacy and Social Justice. In addition, if you have experience working with web sites, your talents would be welcome on the Communications Committee. Check out these opportunities.

In closing, I truly look forward to a challenging, fruitful and exciting year with the Kent League of Women Voters. See you at our Health Equity Studies discussion on June 17.

In League,
Debbie
Health Equity Virtual Consensus
June 17, All Member Meeting, 6:30-8:30 p.m.

The Health Equity Study addresses the issues of public health and health disparities in Ohio, as well as the distribution of resources for health care. Health Services include health care, public health, and the creation of environments in which people have the opportunity to be healthy. At the June 17 online meeting, Kent League members will discuss and come to consensus on a set of questions about health equity in Ohio. Need to review the study information? Click here .

Member participation in this step of the process is important because the results of each local League’s consensus on the issue is considered by the Ohio League as it works to create a statewide position. After consensus has been reached at the state level, LWVO and local Leagues can take positions on public health policy and government health programs. 

Topic: LWVK Health Equity Study Consensus Meeting
Time: June 17, 2020 06:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
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July & August Virtual All Member Meetings


July 20 All Member Meeting
Speaker: Terrie Nielsen, Deputy Director of the Portage County Board of Elections

Terrie, who is a long-time Kent League member, will talk about the work of the Board and its staff for the challenging 2020 Primary and how plans are going for the General Election. Here is your Zoom information. LWV Kent friends and persons interested in membership are welcome. There will be time for questions through a moderator.

Topic: LWVK All Member Monthly/ HES Consensus
Time: Jul 20, 2020 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

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August 4 All Member Meeting
Speakers: Joan Seidel, Commissioner, Kent City Health Department, and Joe Diorio, Commissioner, Portage County Combined Health District

The health commissioners will talk about their agency's work during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic in Kent and Portage County. LWV Kent friends and persons interested in membership are welcome. There will be time for questions through a moderator.

Topic: LWVK All Member Monthly 
Time: Aug 4, 2020 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

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Coming in September...
Mark your calendar for Sept. 10, 2020, for our annual Fall Kick-off Meeting! Planning is still underway but it will most likely be online.
LWV Kent announces annual Book Award Scholarship winners

LWV Kent Vice President Penny Graves recently shared the news with the Kent Roosevelt High School community that seniors Sydney Golden and Ava Reischuck will receive the 2020 Book Award scholarships. The recipients of the $500 scholarships are chosen based on their applications and essays. The scholarship fund receives donations from members. Interested in donating or serving on the committee, email lwvkent@gmail.com . Click here to read the essays.
Get involved in Our League's Education Committee
Today is an excellent opportunity to join the Education Committee It is one of the best ways you can begin to advocate for high-quality public education for all. Getting involved is a way to meet League members and use your talents and expertise. One of our goals for this year is to mobilize educators, parents and community leaders who share a commitment to ensuring the success of all students.

Dear Education Committee Members,

I would like to thank you all for your continued support, enthusiasm and dedication. Your hard work has enabled us to reach our Education Committee goals for the year. As the new program year approaches, I am looking forward to building on the success that we have started.

Keep pushing and pulling for our kids. Continue the Advocacy Campaign of letters, emails and phone calls to influence your elected representatives, and to let them know what their constituents want and expect.

Sincerely,
Deborah Austin Sanders
Education Chairperson

Click here to go to the current education committee advocacy campaign found in a previous newsletter. Instructions and legislators' contact information in the online publication make it easy! Interested in joining Deborah's committee? Click here and complete the form that will be sent to her.

Photo of Deborah Austin Sanders
Statement from Leagues in Portage County on the death of George Floyd
The League of Women Voters Northern Portage County and the Kent League of Women Voters stand in solidarity with all who grieve the killing of George Floyd and condemn violence against Black people everywhere.

As an organization whose mission is to empower voters and defend democracy, LWV stands with all Black communities. The League’s commitment to democracy requires us to speak out against racism and violence.

Speaking out is an important first step, but in this moment, we wholeheartedly embrace change. We must all advocate for anti-racist policies at every level of government. We must all vote in November – the road to change lies in the ballot.
The systems of oppression that have perpetuated the myth of white supremacy in our country must be dismantled if we are ever to become the nation we pledge to be - indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

April Secura, President LWV Northern Portage County
Printed in The Record-Courier , June 5, 2020

Photo of members Jane Preston Rose and Stacy Yaniglos who attended a recent protest in Kent along with a number of other members.
Annual Meeting was well-attended, welcoming new members and seeing friends!
It's happening all across Leaguedom...online meetings, workshops, book club gatherings and committee work! We made it work for the 2020 Annual Meeting of the League of Women Voters of Kent. First we welcomed new members and guests, April Secura, president of the League of Women Voters Northern Portage, and Shelly Lewis of the new League of Women Voters of Geauga County. Business that was accomplished: Click here to see the bylaws changes (page 3), program positions (page 10) and budget (page 8) that were proposed and adopted. No changes from the proposed versions.

Shown during the meeting, the Year in Review video opens this newsletter so take a peek and watch closely, a lot goes by in a short time from this busy past year. LWV Ohio President and Kent LWV member Iris Meltzer shared a progress report about the tireless work LWVO is doing to protect voting this year and beyond.

League members also voted in a new Board! Great to have new perspectives and energy to add to the talent on the board and those who rotated off: President Stacy Yaniglos and directors Alfreda Brown, Fran Lantz and Fay Ann Sebaly. Our grateful thanks and admiration!
Special gifts for outgoing LWV Kent President Stacy Yaniglos...
...a yellow rose bush to commemorate women's suffrage, a framing gift certificate...
...and a "Votes for Women" glass paper weight. Many thanks, Stacy!
Looking forward to the work of the new Board in this challenging year

President: Deborah Barber (unexpired term ending 6/30/21)

Two-Year Terms Ending 6/30/22
Vice President: Janice Hutchison
Treasurer: Gail Pytel
Directors: Amie Cajka, Jennifer Kinney, Renee Ruchotzke, Sally Saltzman

One Year Term Ending 6/30/21
Director: Jill Hazelton (unexpired term held by Alfreda Brown)

2020-2021 Nominating Committee: Iris Meltzer, Chair; Mary Myers, Chris Schjeldahl

Continuing Board Members
Vice President: Penny Graves
Secretary: Jackie Peck
Directors: Deborah Austin Sanders, Sherry Rose

Submitted by: Iris Meltzer, Chair; Deborah Austin-Sanders, Penny Graves, Mary Myers, Chris Schjeldahl

Have an interest in serving on the Board or its committees, check out this page on our website: my.lwv.org/ohio/kent/board-member-application .
LWV Kent Book Club lives online!
Here are the selections LWVK Book Club members chose for the next few months. Meetings are held the first Wednesday of the month at 1:30 p.m. on Zoom until further notice. Join by contacting Jane Preston Rose at janeprestonrose@yahoo.com or call her at 330-678-9127.

July 1, 2020:   The End of the Myth: From the Frontier to the Border Wall in the Mind of America  by Greg Grandin

August 5, 2020:  Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore  by Elizabeth Rush

September 2, 2020:  T here There: A Novel  by Tommy Orange

October 7, 2020:   The Ones We've Been Waiting For: How a New Generation of Leaders Will Transform America  by Charlotte Alter