|
|
MARCH 5TH IS VOTING DAY!
Think your vote doesn't matter? In the last election, candidates won or lost by as little as 6 votes. You can submit your ballot by mail, in a drop box, or at your polling place. Get all your questions answered on the Santa Barbara County Elections Office here. For candidate statement and info on Prop 1, go to VOTE411 here.
| | | |
Celebrate Women's History Month With Us on March 22nd
at Casa Dumetz in Los Alamos
Sonja, owner and winemaker of Casa Dumetz, thinks the best way to begin the weekend is by “expanding our minds and listening to the stories of others, all while enjoying a glass of wine.” She recently invited our LWV to be the focus of the Speaker Series on Friday, March 22nd. Learn about our history and hear the latest from our Voter Service, Water, and Women’s Health committees as we ramp up for the November election. Our non-partisan candidate and proposition forums will give you the info you need to be an educated and informed voter in November.
Enjoy a glass of wine and get to know other LWVNSBC members – prospective members are always welcome. Join us at 5pm at 388 Bell Street – by the flag pole.
| |
|
Dear Fellow LWV Members:
Have you voted? March 5th came on in a flash. Voter resources can be found on our website here. Not too late to be well informed! Blink and the national primary election will be gone! Are you glad California is not the last one to vote, seemingly, as in the past?
Your LWVNSBC is looking forward toward the remainder of our fiscal calendar which ends June 30. Alison Wales, Voter Services Chair, is battening down the hatches and getting our LWV ready for what we think may be as many as 7 candidate forums in the fall election cycle 2024. Collaborations will be welcomed with other non-partisan groups in the North County and we will be calling on members to help out, of course. Do you know of upcoming races in your North County area that will be closely watched? Please email Alison here.
Propositions will be another story. LWVCA will provide the very valuable assistance they have always provided with emphasis on identifying “money in politics,” to inform voters where each proposition is receiving its funding, both pro and con. That information alone will be part of each voter’s decision making offer a tremendous value. Consider joining the LWV and/or donating here to enhance your support.
We held our annual planning meeting on February 21st to set our priorities for the upcoming year and to submit our top two to the UWVUS to be considered at the national convention this June in Washington, D.C. See the report below. At the meeting, a question was asked about “rank choice voting.” The LWV Santa Barbara has a description of this in their very newsy newsletter here.
And now, let’s have a little educational fun before the hard work begins with a couple of socials and some good books from book clubs in various Leagues! Celebrate Women’s History Month with us at Casa Dumetz on March 22nd at 5:00pm in Los Alamos. What a great little wine tasting room right by the flag pole on Bell Street. The winemaker is a lovely woman named like Cher with one name: Sonja. The wine is good (I did the mandatory pre-event tasting😊) and the group of locals that show up are really fun. LWVNSBC has been asked to present a short program so we are using this opportunity to invite members and friends to celebrate with us in a lovely setting.
A second learning/social gig is the opportunity to get out and see an awesome play at SLO Rep April 6th, “What the Constitution Means to Me.” LWVNSBC is getting together a group of 10+ to receive a discounted ticket price and enjoy lunch prior to play while we are at it, if agreeable. Carpooling, of course. Grab a friend/spouse and come out! Reply here if interested by March 15. Price for play is approximately $35 plus a copy of the U.S. Constitution for all, too.
LWV Book Clubs in Santa Barbara and San Diego are reading great books and have invited us to join in so check out these links. Santa Barbara Overbooked Book Club: “ Oath and Honor: A Memoir and a Warning” by Liz Cheney, A Memoir. March 21st at 1:30pm. Join here.
The San Diego Book Club is reading "Young and Restless: The Girls Who Sparked America's Revolutions" by Mattie Kahn on March 25th. Even if you haven’t read the book, please consider joining here. The San Diego LWV is a leader on the issue of Immigration. Let’s get to know these interesting Leaguers as they discuss great books! Their list of prior reads are listed on their website.
Until next month, Keep your chin up.
Vote Local, You Vote Counts More!
Sincerely,
Virginia
| |
LWVNSBC SETS PRIORITIES
Submitted by Lisa Thornhill, Treasurer and Past President
We held our annual planning meeting on February 21. We heard from the attendees regarding what they felt the local interests are that we should send to the LWVUS as recommendations for the national League program for the next two years.
Member Mireya Pina's personal story, "DACA: My Life As a DREAMer," highlighted the need in our area to focus on immigration. Making Democracy Work was voted the second most important priority; Women's Healthcare, mental health, and homelessness were voted third.
Suggested activities around immigration included writing letters to electeds in support of immigration reform, monitoring policies developed in Congress, and local forums to educate community members regarding local immigration issues.
Making Democracy Work activities include posting voting locations on our website, posting yard and street signs in English and Spanish regarding the importance of voting and hosting informational forums covering measures on the ballot. Women's Healthcare and Homelessness will be our third priority locally.
The top two issue recommendations will be sent to the LWVUS for consideration at the National Convention this June in Washington, D.C. Thank you to all who joined in.
| |
|
|
MARCH
9: Join KCBX for a very special event when NPR's Kelly McEvers returns to San Luis Obispo with NPR’s Climate Correspondent, Nathan Rott. Learn how the stories you hear on NPR -- from our California environment to the Ukraine and the Middle East -- and what it's like to work as a journalist in this day and age. 7pm. SLO Brew (855 Aerovista, San Luis Obispo). Tickets: General Admission, $35; Students, $20; Limited VIP tickets, $100. For more info, click here.
20: LWVNSBC Monthly Board Meeting: All are welcome. 5:00pm. Hybrid meeting, in-person and on Zoom. To RSVP, email here.
21: This month’s selection by the LWV Santa Barbara Overbooked Book Club is “Oath and Honor: A Memoir and A Warning” by Liz Cheney, 1:30pm. Zoom link is available here.
22: Want to learn more about LWVNSBC? Casa Dumetz has invited us to talk about our history and future activities at its Friday night “Speaker Series.” During this election year, we're offering non-partisan candidate and proposition forums to educate voters at multiple locations. Plus we’ll hear updates from Voter Service, Women’s Health, and Water committee chairs on these LWV priorities. 5pm. Casa Dumetz (388 Bell Street, Los Alamos). Open to the public; no charge. Members – join us at this meet and greet and bring a friend or family member who might want to join.
25: The LWV San Diego Book Club will be discussing “Young and Restless: The Girls Who Sparked America's Revolutions,” by Mattie Kahn. The book chronicles the impact, and subsequent exclusion, of young women and girls in protest movements and cultural progress across two centuries of U.S. history. 5pm. Click here to register and receive Zoom link.
APRIL
| |
|
|
Join us April 6th at the SLO Rep
"What the Constitution Means To Me," by Heidi Schreck, traces the relationship between four generations of women and the founding document that shaped their lives.
This Tony and Pulitzer nominated play exposes baked-in biases and omissions, while also breathing new life into our Constitution and imagining how American lives will be impacted for generations to come.
Interested in attending? Please email us here by March 15th. With 10+ members and friends, we get a group sales price of $35, plus we can arrange carpooling. For more details about the performance, click here.
| | | |
|
MAY
Stay tuned for details on the LWVNSBC activity this month.
JUNE
27-30: The LWV 2024 National Convention will take place in Washington, DC. and online. Delegates from all Leagues will vote on our 2024 – 2026 Program, budget, LWVUS Board of Directors and Nominating Committee, and submitted bylaws amendments. Each League is entitled to a set number of delegates based on number of members. For more information, email us here.
FUTURE
8/22-25, Santa Maria; 8/29-9/8, Solvang: You won't want to miss "The Agitators," Mat Smart’s historical play of rebellion and revolution, personal passion and sacrifice. It's message reverberates powerfully in our America of today. Young abolitionists, Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony, are full of dreams and seemingly common purpose when they meet in the 1840s, in Rochester, New York, forming an unexpected friendship. PCPA (800 College Dr., Santa Maria.) Click here for more information.
| |
|
Did you catch us on the news? Santa Maria TV station KCOY featured us on the nightly news, covering our name change in January from the League of Women Voters Santa Maria Valley to the more inclusive League of Women Voters North Santa Barbara County.
We have been busy forming Advisory Committees in Guadalupe, Santa Maria, Lompoc, Solvang, and Buellton. We want to hear from local members of these communities so we can highlight the priorities we need to focus on in this election year.
Check out the video here. Thank you KCOY!
| |
|
Our Voter Service and Program Committees are busy planning for the election cycle -- from voter registration tabling events to issue and candidate forums in multiple North Santa Barbara County locations to inform and educate voters like you.
Won't you join us? We have much work to do and need your help. Join or renew on our website by clicking here. You can pay online or mail your check to LWVNSBC, P.O. Box 1388, Santa Maria, CA 93456. Scholarship funds are available and dues are waived for students of any age.
Have a friend or family member you think would like to receive our monthly newsletter? Just email us here with their permission and we'll add them to our mailing list. Thanks for helping us get the word out.
| | | | |
