President's Notes

April, 2024

In early March I was asked to give a lecture on the history of the League of Women Voters Berrien Cass Counties at the St. Joseph Heritage Museum and Cultural Center in St. Jo. Preparing for the presentation made me a bit nervous but as I got into the process, I realized that I was learning a lot and gaining a deep respect for the LWVBCC and all it has accomplished since its founding in 1957 in Niles.  

The League has always emphasized voter services beginning with registering voters and showing them how voter machines work to today when we guide young people to the Secretary of State’s website to register using QR codes and providing them with the information they need to find out where to vote or how to get an absentee ballot.  

Education has also been an integral part of the LWVBCC activities. In 2023 the League sponsored 8 events with presentations ranging from microplastics to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. This year we have 5 presentations planned and are making plans for candidate forums in the late summer and fall.  

The work of the LWVBCC founders continues but like many small non-profit groups we need to continue to grow our membership and leadership. Please consider getting involved as a board member or as a committee member. There is a special chart showing all the opportunities coming up in this newsletter. 

April is going to be a busy month for us

– April 16 – Love Creek

– April 30 – Dana Nessel at LMC.

All our dates will be on the website calendar. Be sure to check out the website for important updates and news from our partner organizations.  

Thanks for reading and have a wonderful April.

In League,

Faith Schoon

Voter Services

Here are three of our members registering young voters in Niles. Snacks, stickers, information and guidance. Voter Services chair Mary Beth Mullenholz organized teams to go to six area high schools.

One of her teams is making a return visit to St. Joseph High School this month. Thank you. Mary Beth! We also have an enthusiastic registrar in Cass County, Zane Lankford, who will be registering voters later this month.  

Please contact Mary Beth - mbmullenholz@gmail.com to volunteer.  

Also, we have some nifty bookmarks with voter information and QR codes that are perfect for passing out in your neighborhood and dropping off at your local library. You can pick some up at the April 16 luncheon or contact a board member to get a supply.

Volunteer Opportuntites

Many of you may wish to become more active in our League. Here are some of the main activities that are sometimes handled by one person but could certainly be ones that a "team" could work on. If appropriate, there will be a Board member to be contacted. Thank you!

• Voter Services – MaryBeth Mullenholz
• Membership – Jane Raymond
• Website – Mike Schnable
• Facebook – Mike Schnable
• Event planning – Faith Schoon, Carla Ripley
• Fundraising – John Ripley
• Environment – Chris Zilke
• Communications (press releases, Instagram, publicity, flyer distribution) – John Ripley, Mike Schnable 
• Newsletter – Faith Schoon

Book Club

April is Book Club month. We are meeting at the home of Jane Raymond – 9746 Karen Court, Bridgman, MI 49106. The book for this meeting is Oath and Honor by Liz Chaney. Please contact Jane to let her know you are coming.Jraymond42@frontier.com or 269-208-4043

The discussion of this timely choice will be lively and informative.

Opportunities from LWVMI and Voters Not Politicians

VNP is giving a seminar on writing letters to the editor on April 16.  Our most long standing member, Gloria Weeberg has been writing to editors all her life.  Just last month the Herald Palladium printed one of her letters.  Check our website – lwvbcc.org for all the details.  

LWVMI

Date - Wednesday, April 24, 

Time - 7pm

Location - Virtual Meeting - Register Here 

Topic - Using Media Literacy (Mis- & Dis-Information)

Journalism Professor Sue Ellen Christian shares tools and resources from media literacy to sharpen our ability to recognize and deal with mis- and dis-information generated by artificial intelligence. 

These workshops are open to any League member. To register, click on the links above or in the calendar at www.lwvmi.org in the Members section on the LWV Only page. If you need the password for the LWV Only page, please ask your local League president or one of us.

Help the Environment

April showers bring May flowers and we’ve already seen a proliferation of daffodils, jonquils, pussy willows already gone to large puffs of scattering seeds, some magnolias that blossomed in March, now sadly done for this year.

Happily I haven’t read about damage to fruit trees, but it must be worrisome for so many of our local fruit growers that an unusually warm spell was followed by more normal temps. Not sure what it will take for more people to recognize that we are in deed causing changes of all sorts to our environment.

It’s a beautiful day today, windy again but sunny. How can YOU help the environment?

Enjoy one of the many trails available to us locally. There are at least 25 well-maintained trails in our immediate area.

Volunteer to help keep them that way. Volunteer to help eliminate invasive species. Check your own property to be sure there are none.Volunteer for one of the many environment-focused/water focused organizations - FLOW for example. Donate money when you’re able. Support our local plant nurseries by buying native plants and planting for your own pleasure. Plant a tree.

Appreciate all the natural beauty around us.

Chris

Going Plastic Free

Last month, I focused on how to use less plastic in the kitchen. This month I want to focus on using less plastic in the bathroom.

- Use bars instead of liquid hand soap, body wash, shampoo and conditioner. Bars are available for moisturizing the skin, but I found them to crumble when worn down to a smaller size.

- Deodorants are available in creams or solids in a paper container.

- Moisturizing sticks work well for the face, eyes, and lips.

- Face and body moisturizers are also available in glass jars with metal caps.

- There are many websites offering plastic free makeup: ecoroots, ecco bella, oceanly, axiology, and others.

I wish I could be totally plastic free, but at this time I feel that it’s not easy. But any small change helps. Until next time, keep trying. If you have any more ideas for going plastic free, please send them to me to share.

Carla Ripley, Secretary