2017:
Oregon has two great senators. Yesterday I got a chance to hear Senator Ron Wyden's take on healthcare, the environment, and the incoming administration. I have to say, it gives me great solace knowing Senator Wyden is fighting for Oregon.
2016:
We may have lost the presidential race, but I'm not defeated. I've been making calls and soliciting donations for a US Senate race in Louisiana. There was no clear winner in the general election in November so the top two vote-getters, a Democrat and a Republican, go to a run-off on December 10th. I'm making calls for Foster Campbell. Getting one more Democrat into the Senate is what it's all about now!
In Oregon we have the absolute best political role model for women and girls - Governor Kate Brown. She met with local leaders and business owners in Independence this morning.
Canvassing for an Emerge sister in Woodburn was such fun! Teresa Alonso Leon is destined to be an amazing legislator!
I graduated from Emerge Oregon last weekend. What an amazing experience. It was transformational! The women in my class will go on to be the leaders of tomorrow. Oregon is so fortunate!
Spent a little time prior to the primary calling Democrats to gauge support for Hillary Clinton. Vast majority of people I spoke to were supporting Hillary in the primary!
Last week I attended the Democratic Party of Oregon's State Central Committee meetings in John Day, Oregon. What a beautiful part of the state! I got to meet Carolyn Lee, a staffer on the Hillary Clinton campaign and we were all treated to an enthusiastic call from Governor Howard Dean on Hillary's behalf as well as a call from Sen Turner in support of Sen Bernie Sanders' candidacy. Very exciting stuff!
Yesterday a large group of us volunteers walked various neighborhoods for Paul Evans for House District 20. Me, Amanda, and Sheronne walked streets in Independence. We met with several voters, had some great conversations, and dropped lit all over town!
I start working again later this week at the Heritage Museum in Independence. I'm thrilled to be working there and doing my part to preserve the history of Independence.
I am indeed proud to stand with Val!
Eugene area House Representative Val Hoyle is running for Secretary of State. We need more and more women leaders in government. #IStandWithVal.
My Emerge journey this year has been incredible thus far. This past weekend we were in Eugene and got to drop in on OEA's convention and sit in on Secretary of State candidate speeches. Beside us in the room was Governor Kate Brown. She was awaiting word on whether or not OEA would endorse her...they did. She rocks!
My Emerge classmate, Tiffany Partridge, launched her City Council/Ward 5 campaign tonight at a Marion County Democrats' meeting. Several Emerge sisters, including me, were in the audience to cheer her on.
On February 11th, I hosted a Drinking Liberally-Polk County forum with Val Hoyle, Secretary of State candidate. She spoke about her values, work ethic, ability to cross the aisle, and the future of progressives in Oregon.
On February 5th, I was introduced into the 2016 Emerge Oregon class by none other than Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici. What a thrill! Class work started the very next morning. What an exhilarating, challenging, terrifying adventure!
Today I, Sheronne Blasi, and Erika Kane supported our Emerge Oregon sister, Teresa Alonso Leon as she launched her campaign for House District 22.
Special guest speaker at the event was my personal political hero, Oregon House Speaker -- Tina Kotek!
I've been accepted into Emerge Oregon's 2016 class. I couldn't be more thrilled. Emerge Oregon is a political leadership training program for Oregon Democratic women who demonstrate an interest in pursuing public office.
Last week, I was elected to serve as the first chair of the Democratic Party of Oregon's brand new Women's Caucus. I am beyond honored to serve!
Last night I watched 'Suffragette" in Salem with some wonderful and politically active women. The movie was inspiring and reminded me how far women still have to go to establish parity with men!
I have spent some weeks working on a committee to set up a Women's Caucus within the Democratic Party of Oregon. This effort was approved at the last quarterly SCC meeting. In preparation for the next SCC meeting in late November, I've submitted my name as a candidate to chair this caucus. It's so important that women raise their hands!
I spent October 16-18, 2015 at the Democratic Party of Oregon's biennial Oregon Summit in Sunriver, Oregon. Our entire Congressional delegation was there as were many Oregon House and Senate members. It was an invigorating, stimulating, informative, and fun weekend. I can't wait until the next one!
Monday Night Football Fundraiser for Oregon House District 20 Representative, Paul Evans. Great to see Paul keep his promise about supporting local businesses. We had a great night at the Independence Grill near my house in Independence.
This summer I joined the Salem Progressive Film Series' Board of Directors. The SPFS works to effect change with knowledge, through film. In August, the board was interviewed by Wendy Brokaw and Mary Louise VanNatta of CCTV's program, Insight.
I recently organized the first ever Drinking Liberally - Polk County at the Redhawk Winery in West Salem on August 2nd. Our special guest for the night was House District 20 Representative, Paul Evans.
On June 19th, in combination with Juneteenth Day, the Salem-Keizer NAACP hosted a memorial for the 9 murdered worshipers in Charleston, SC. It was a heart-warming tribute and a great opportunity for people in this area to come together and grieve.
The highlight of my year has got to be witnessing Governor Kate Brown sign HB 3433, a first-of-its-kind bill to provide 12-month prescriptions for birth control, in to law. This law will greatly expand access to prescription contraception for women across the state.
I was thrilled to help support a Linn-Benton PPAO LAT fundraiser recently in Corvallis. The fundraiser included a series of short documentaries, with the focal point being Young Lakota, a documentary about a young Lakota Indian challenging South Dakota's abortion law.
Oregon Labor Commissioner spoke out about important issues such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership at the Annual Marion County Democrats' Auction Benefit in Salem in May. We're very fortunate in Oregon to have such good progressives leading the state!
2015 marked the return of Military Family Appreciation Day to the Capitol! Although it was a small group, we heard about issues facing veterans in Oregon and now look forward to working on some solutions. A big thanks to Representative Paul Evans for kick-starting this effort.
Planned Parenthood's Day of Action was a spectacular event! My team and I had time with our House Representative and Senator. We made our cases for two important pieces of legislation. It was democracy in action indeed!
Today I participated in Lobby Leader training in anticipation of the Planned Parenthood Advocates of Oregon's Day of Action on April 6th. I will be escorting and facilitating discussions between House District 20/Senate District 10 constituents and legislators. I am looking forward to engaging with legislators on bills that matter to women and women's health advocates!
I was recently elected Vice Chair of the Polk County Democrats. It's an honor to serve. Although Polk County is more conservative than the metropolitan counties, the Polk County Democrats are doing our part to get the word out about state-wide Democratic successes. We monitor legislative activity, attend forums, follow political developments, and then report back to our members via web-based e-mail marketing, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. An informed voter is a better voter!
As an advocate for Planned Parenthood, I cover legislative hearings concerning women's health issues. I always find these hearings insightful and informative. This is participatory government at its finest!
2014:
Getting an opportunity to work on the Democratic Party of Oregon's Coordinated Campaign was life-altering. I worked long and sometimes tedious hours, but in the end it was all worth it. My team fought hard for the Democratic ticket, but especially hard for Senator Jeff Merkley's re-election. In addition to campaign work, I helped organize two Merkley events in Salem.
I worked on Paul Evans' campaign for Oregon House District 20. I am happy to say he won!!! He is the best legislator ever!
Shortly after moving to Oregon, I was invited to a Planned Parenthood fundraiser in Salem. The keynote speaker was Secretary of State Kate Brown. It was my first exposure to Oregon politics and I was thrilled about the progressive nature of her speech and the energy in the room. I am so happy to be an Oregon resident fighting for progressive efforts here!
I attended a Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast fundraiser in New Orleans in the summer of 2013. Cecile Richards, the president of the PP Federation of America, hosted. It was thrilling to hear about the issues facing PP directly from her.
The Women's Center for Healing & Transformation opened in Abita Springs, LA in 2013. It was a God-send for me. It was a haven for progressive thought, cultural exploration, spirituality, and it embraced women from all walks of life. In the beginning they were incredibly short-staffed and without any dedicated funding, so I volunteered to design and produce their quarterly catalog. I also helped run the silent auction for their 1st Annual Gala.
As a member of Team Blue Dat, the Louisiana Democratic Party's grassroots organization, I covered committee hearings and participated in social media efforts in support the federal government's Medicaid expansion package. The Louisiana legislature voted against accepting federal funding. It was a huge disappointment. To bring home the point about how much the Medicaid expansion measure would have helped families across the state, we put together Mother's Day baskets full of "thank you" cards for local legislators. The intent was to remind them that families, and in particular mothers, would be adversely affected by their failure to support the important measure.
To commemorate President Obama's 2012 reelection win, I helped organized an Inaugural Ball fundraiser for the St Tammany Democratic Executive Parish Committee. We raised a good bit for DPEC operations and had a great time celebrating the blue win!
I was part of a Northshore Democratic Women's Club effort to put together and market a cookbook to raise funds for the hungry in our community. To date, approximately $8000 has been raised. The book, Cookbook for the Hungry, is available on Amazon. Proceeds from the sales, after publication costs, go directly to hunger missions and efforts on the northshore of Lake Pontchartrain. To formally introduce the cookbook to the community, I helped organize a book launch event we called "Hunger Bites".
A few months later, Liz Scott Monaghan, the NDWC President, and I, were interviewed about the Cookbook for the Hungry by Poppie Tooker on her NPR show, Louisiana Eats. [interview begins at 15:46]
At a bipartisan summit at Tulane University in New Orleans, I engaged with political commentator and host, James Carville. To help with cookbook marketing, he agreed to pose with a copy!
