THE TRUMPETER - January 2023

RWOP Newsletter Editor: Joan Lesko, RWOP VP Communications, [email protected]

I hope you all had a blessed Christmas and New Year’s holiday with family and friends.

As I contemplate 2023, I look back on 2022 with thankfulness and pride on the accomplishments RWOP made this year. I am thankful for my Board of Directors that bonded together to go in a new direction that led RWOP to achieve all the goals we set out for ourselves at the start of 2022. I have an extreme amount of pride on how each of my Board members, along with you our members and team member volunteers who participated and supported us along the way, played a pivotal role in our success of our goals set out at the start of 2022. 

Our vision of success along with reinforced camaraderie, building alliances with other local Republican clubs, while preserving the exceptional culture that RWOP is known for, catapulted RWOP to regain its title of “Largest Federated Republican Women’s Club, not only in Arizona, but our Nation." We ended 2022 with a membership count of 1,057 members. Thank you to RWOP’s Membership team for working together and accomplishing such a great outcome. Also, thank you to you our members for renewing or joining our club for the first time and for recruiting your family and friends to join RWOP!!

Not being able to hold our Main Event for the past three years due to COVID and lingering effects, RWOP’s Ways & Means teams of 2020, 2021 and 2022 worked hard to hold fundraising events to help financially support our club, again, with you our members stepping up to attend each event in large numbers! I want to welcome Michele Hamer, RWOP’s 2023 2nd VP of Ways & Means to our Board knowing she will pick up the mantle leading our fundraising efforts. Michele is very involved in our community and brings her knowledge of managing community fundraisers to RWOP. Welcome Michele!

Also, new to our Executive board is Cynthia McSwain, RWOP’s 2023 Secretary. Cynthia brings enthusiasm and record keeping experience to her position. Welcome Cynthia! 

RWOP’s other 2023 Executive Board members, including myself, Judy Blake, Heather Densmore, Sue Tatar, Joan Lesko, Jill Martin, Linda Nichol’s and Elsie Tyree are all looking forward to working together in 2023, and with Michele and Cynthia, to achieve our programs, education and other important 2023 goals while keeping RWOP’s well respected reputation in our city, state and nation!!

Photo from left to right: Michele Hamer, Jill Martin, Sue Tatar, Cynthia McSwain, Judy Blake, Sherrie Hanna, AZ State Treasurer, Kimberly Yee, Joan Lesko, Heather Densmore

Regarding the 2022 November election, I am as disappointed as all of you were when the “Republican Red Wave” fizzled here in Arizona and around the country. However, here in Yavapai County we did our job and kept Yavapai County red! I am currently and have been for many years, a precinct committeewoman with our Yavapai County Republican Party. Never have I seen so many precinct committeemen involved with our current county party and a large portion of them are RWOP members and associate members. I know our Yavapai County precinct committeemen made the difference in keeping Yavapai County red! Thank you all for working hard and being involved! 

Our Arizona GOP state committee members will be electing our State Party Chairman in Phoenix this month and as a state committeewoman, I will be traveling to Phoenix to participate in that election. This will be a critical election to elect the individual who will lead our state Republican Party into the future. Locally, in order to protect our children, RWOP will continue to be involved in the PUSD Governing Board meetings to support our Republican PUSD Governing Board members, monitor their activities and work to keep the woke agenda and politics of the Left out of our schools. We currently have a group of retired teachers and administrators reviewing the Social Studies curriculum the PUSD board will be voting on to approve or disapprove. This curriculum could potentially be in place for the next twenty years so it is critical PUSD picks a solid curriculum that supports America and American values.

This year will also see Prescott City Council elections. RWOP will be actively involved vetting the Republican candidates. We must be sure we support CONSERVATIVE REPUBLICANS in their quest for office. We know what happens when cities, towns and states elect Leftists into office and the destructive policies they institute can destroy beautiful cities like Prescott.  

With more club news, RWOP's Merchandise will not be available for sale at January's luncheon. With the holidays and the end of 2022, the Board felt this might be a good time to take a break and re-group. Look for RWOP's Merchandise to be available for sale at our February luncheon.

In closing, I ask that you all please stay involved with RWOP and your local Republican Party. We have strength in numbers! RWOP will continue to bring informative speakers on important topics in our community along with Prescott City Council candidates to speak at our luncheons. We will keep you informed along with pertinent educational programs in which you can participate. We intend to support and pray for our newly elected, Congressman Eli Crane and our LD1 Representatives AZ Senator Ken Bennett, AZ Representatives Quang Nguyen and Selina Bliss in their efforts at the State level. I am so grateful for your support and positive comments you have given me over the past year. It inspires me and our Board to keep moving forward. It might seem like an insurmountable problem right now but we intend to keep fighting to protect our families, our city and our county! Stay Strong!

I look forward to seeing you all at our January luncheon!

Sherrie Hanna

2023 President

Republican Women of Prescott

Three Cheese Tortellini with grilled Chicken Alfredo and Asparagus

OR

Chicken Waldorf Salad

OR

 Vegetable Cobb Salad

Dessert

A reservation made is a reservation paid...thank you!

Reserve your spot online: HERE

Reservations on a first come first served basis

All reservations to Elsie Tyree 928-778-0235 or [email protected]



THE MEETING STARTS PROMPTLY AT 11:00 AM. TRY TO ARRIVE EARLY TO ALLOW FOR PARKING AND CHECK-IN

To help speed up our check-in process:

• Prepaying for the luncheon is encouraged - online or by check mailed prior to luncheon
• Arrive early and allow time for parking
• No large bills accepted
• Have your payment ready – CASH or CHECK (made payable to RWOP for $35 - already filled out

SPECIAL GUEST

Charlie Arnold

Charlie Arnold will be giving a presentation on the Wheelhouse Sports Complex in Prescott Valley.

Chad DeVries

Tim Mitzel

Chad DeVries and Tim Mitzel will be giving a presentation on the 

Arizona Fellowship of Christian Athletes.  Tim is the Multi-Area Director of Northwest Arizona.

Lori will be speaking on her candidacy.

Blake Masters will be giving an election update.

I, Michele Hamer am honored to serve as your 2nd VP of Ways & Means in 2023 and will work hard to continue the success of Sue Davis and her team in providing great fundraising events. The bake sale and vendor booths at the December luncheon were outstanding! 

One of the main focuses for me and my Ways & Means Team will be preparing to oversee the VIP Reception for RWOP’s May 2023 Main Event, along with other upcoming RWOP fundraisers. I plan to continue the raffle baskets at our monthly luncheons, which have been a good source of revenue for our club. I appreciate all our members who continue to support our fundraising efforts. 

Best wishes to all of you for a healthy and prosperous New Year!

Michele Hamer 

Outreach Ambassador - Linda Bray

There will be collection boxes at the

January 18th Luncheon!

As of the printing of this newsletter for the 2023 membership year we have:

Total Members: 469

Active Members: 371

Associates: 96

Student: 2

New members please pick up you new member packet and 2022 Directory. If you have ordered a name badge, please come pick it up at the table in the RWOP Mall, you may also order a new name badge, if needed.

New Active Members:

Suzanne Cramer

Cheri Eby

Susan Adele Knowles

Jamie Michels

Linda Moore

Nora Jean Tuggle

Donna Wagner

Kelly Waring

Kristine Whitman

New Associate Members:

Quang Nguyen

Mark Perle

Photos for the 2023 Membership Directory will be taken at the December, January, and February Luncheon meetings. 

If you like your current photo you don’t need to get a new one we can just reuse your current photo.

Happy New Year to all of our members and keep encouraging your friends and family to join us. 

Select HERE for the 2023 RWOP Luncheon Schedule!!

Click here to read the report and get instructions for submitting feedback to the district.

Email Jill Martin if you have questions: [email protected]

SAVE THE DATE!

Arizona March for Life

FEBRUARY 23rd, 2023

RALLY: 11:00 a.m.

MARCH: 12:00 p.m.

Phoenix, AZ

Come join your RWOP friends for a fun day at the capital!

We are reserving a bus so we are all comfortable.

The bus leaves in time for the march!

Email Jill Martin [email protected] to make your reservation.

A famous lady, Helen Keller, once said, “Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.”

Last year held many ambitious experiences, some were ‘trials’ while others sadly included ‘suffering’ but all lent to the strengthening of our souls, personally as well as that of our organization. The RWOP Board of Directors (BOD) and the volunteer team members took on exciting challenges, new causes and many activities to accomplish all the work needed to achieve success.

For my last “Did You Know...” article as your 2022/23 Secretary, let me recap a few of the main things the RWOP Board specifically focused on this past year:

The BOD, along with the Chairs of the Standing and Special Committees, met every month to discuss and make decisions on the club’s operations, finances and general business. From this the following activities/results emerged:

• 12 business/luncheons filled with information from candidates and speakers which helped us all become more informed voters!
• Successful and fun fundraising events that kept our club viable and brought our members together. As well as other fund-raising activities, such as: basket and 50/50 raffles, merchandise sales, the Christmas bake sale with vendor participation...just to name a few. The Ways and Means team worked tirelessly to make every event special and a huge success!
• Each Board Officer and Chair had a job to do, and they each did it well. There are just too many to list here. But as you aware just how active RWOP is, you can only imagine all the activity behind the scenes that have to happen to achieve success.
• Several classes were offered, again to comply with our Mission to Educate and Inform. RWOP 101 was rolled out and classes by Mr. Kelly Cordes on the Constitution and our Founding Fathers received great reviews. And, the Day at the Courts was a huge success.

The Board voted to investigate a specific Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the PUSD School Governing Board and the Teen Launch Pad (TLP) where PUSD was giving an outside business more liberty than was appropriate. From this effort the following activities/results emerged:

• RWOP’s Education Vice President and her team planned two very successful Parent/ Grandparent Forums with about 200 attending. The attendees were provided with the information and on-line tools to gain a better understanding of the issues. The on-line tools provided a wealth of knowledge to anyone interested.
• The Republican PUSD School Board candidates were luncheon speakers allowing all of us to become better informed.
• And, as an aside, several of the Board members personally helped the Republican candidates with their campaigns.

RWOP worked to elect more Republicans to the PUSD School Board while YavGOP worked to get more Republicans on the School Boards across Yavapai County. From this effort the following activities/results emerged:

• There was one Republican on the PUSD school board initially and as a result of the last election there are now three. This is a key accomplishment which gives the Republicans a majority.
• Before the election, in Yavapai County, there were 18 Left-Leaning boards out of 25 total school boards and after the election there were 18 Right-Leaning schools boards out of 25...it was a huge accomplishment, however, there is more work to do.

We also had successful Community Outreach events, we improved the way we do our accounting/finances and wrote our 2023 Budget, our Communications is being managed with continued updates and/or improvements, we focused on our Veterans and started the Veteran’s Corner, our membership team has worked diligently to attract and retain members, and an appreciative shout-out goes to Reservations/Hospitality. 

Last year was RWOP’s 80^th Anniversary! We held a complimentary event for our members to thank them for their many years of support. All wished RWOP another wonderful 80 years!

So, I say good-bye to you as your Secretary. I will now hand over the reins to your very competent and enthusiastic 2023 Secretary, Cynthia McSwain.  I know you are in great hands! 

Let’s make 2023 a great year!

With Warm Regards,

Linda Nichols

Governor Ducey Delivers Farewell Address to Arizona



“The North Star Of My Administration Has Been Opportunity For All”

In farewell to the State of Arizona, Governor Doug Ducey thanked Arizonans for entrusting him with the privilege of being governor of this great state for the past eight years. 

The address capped eight years of accomplishments by Governor Ducey, who was elected in 2014 and reelected in 2018 as Arizona’s 23rd governor.

In the final weeks of his tenure as governor, numerous Arizona and national media outlets have focused on how Arizona has been transformed under Governor Ducey’s leadership. They include: The Arizona Republic and its podcast The Gaggle, KTAR, National Affairs, Washington Times, Washington Examiner, Fox10 Phoenix, and nationally-syndicated, conservative commentator and author George Will.

The full statement reads as follows: 

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Happy Holidays. This is truly one of the most beautiful times of the year in Arizona, and I hope every Arizonan enjoys some down time with friends and family.

I also want to say “Thank you.”

Thank you for entrusting me with the privilege of being Governor of this great state for the past eight years. It has been a blessing. Angela and I could not be more grateful. 

I believe the job of governor is the best job you can have in politics – and doing it in Arizona makes it the best job in the country. It’s made me a better person – smarter, wiser, more thoughtful.

I ran for this office back in 2014 because I knew Arizona faced great challenges – and I thought we could do better. I love this place. It’s where I came to start my life at Arizona State as a college student, where I built a business, and where Angela and I raised our three sons. I wanted everyone to know that Arizona is the best place to live, work, play, recreate, retire, start a business, get an education, raise a family and build a life.

I also knew then, a governor can’t do any of that alone. And I appreciate it even more now. In this job, I tried my best to do what I did as an entrepreneur – state a vision, set a goal, and work with talented people to get it done. Today, Arizona is thriving. We are a magnet for people and for jobs. In fact, many of you probably didn’t even live here when I first came into office. We have great schools, low taxes and an incredible quality of life.

I’m grateful to everyone who brought our state to this moment – working men and women; business leaders, entrepreneurs; the teachers, coaches, principals; our dedicated law enforcement officers, first responders, health care workers; members of the armed forces and Arizona National Guard; our partners in the Legislature on both sides of the aisle; and every Arizonan – native, long-time and brand new – who has worked to make this such a great place to live.

When we came in, the state faced a $1 billion deficit, our schools were mired in lawsuits and our economy was flat.

Today, Arizona has come a long way: Our economy is transformed, with good jobs available for every Arizonan who wants to work. We’ve made record investments in education. Passed the American Civics Act. Founded the Teachers Academy. Balanced the budget. Attained the largest “Rainy Day” fund in our state’s history. Led a coordinated state effort and historic investment in securing Arizona’s border. Today, we are America’s “gold standard” for educational freedom, we are the new epicenter for semiconductors and high-tech manufacturing, we streamlined our government and we have the lowest flat tax in the nation. 

CHRISTMAS CARDS FOR DEPLOYED MILITARY

In November we decided to send Christmas Cards to deployed military personnel! 

We included only Veterans and Veteran Volunteers since time was short, but next year we will open it up to the entire membership. It was so rewarding to be

able to make a difference for our service members who are far away from home this holiday season. We sent 312 Christmas cards to AdoptaPlatoon who will mail our cards along with the Christmas stocking care packages they send out. I saw one gentleman who happened to be at the Prescott Resort when we were collecting the cards on December 6, add 2 cards in our dropbox. When I thanked him, he said that he used to be one of those deployed guys and those cards made a “world of difference!” Thanks to all our members who contributed! 

Home Depot supports veterans! They have more than 35,000 veterans, active military and military spouse associates on their staff, and are dedicated to helping veterans with safe and affordable housing as well as free training in skilled trades. The Home Depot Foundation has donated over $400 million to veteran causes, and along with their partners U.S. VETS, Volunteers of America and Quest Communities, provided help with housing. Team Depot, Home Depot’s volunteer force, has volunteered more than 1.4 million hours since 2011 doing projects and critical repairs for veterans. Home Depot has new grants which help them expand their service even further with projects like Path to Pro, a program where separating service members get free skilled training and certification. These members then get on-the-job training by building homes with Habitat for Humanity, a great partnership.

Attention RWOP Volunteers

At RWOP we value all of our Volunteers and we appreciate and thank you for being a dedicated volunteer!

Each month please report your hours as follows: 

• Regular Hours
• Campaign Hours
• Campaign Calls
• Precinct Hours

Guidelines on how to report your hours each month are located at https://www.rwop.info/volunteer

(Please go to our website rwop.info and select the Membership Tab then select Volunteer and report your hours.)

Be sure to carry a notebook to keep track of your hours.

If you have any questions, please contact Judy Blake [email protected] or 805-402-8061.

Thank you,

Judy Blake

Volunteer Hours & Awards Chair

Sponsor Business Card Ads are $100 for 12 months of inclusion in the monthly newsletters. Your ad will also be highlighted on RWOP website. If you are interested in highlighting your business, please contact Joan Lesko [email protected]

SELECT BUSINESS CARD BELOW TO GO DIRECTLY TO THEIR BUSINESS WEBSITE OR FACEBOOK PAGE