President's Message

The President's Message to Members of San Jose/Santa Clara League,
informing members each month about ongoing League activities.

Message May 2008.  Message April 2008.  Message March 2008.

President's Message May 2008

A conversation with our co-Presidents, Sandy Mory and Sally Pyle.

Sally: It's too late in the day to drink my Green Tea Latte...the caffeine bothers me now. Great to see you. This coffee chat is a celebration of the successful Spring Luncheon. The super six who did such a great job are: Elizabeth Hayes, Tiralisa Kaplow, Kristy Kinney, Susan McKuhen, Esther Rechenmacher, and Carol Watts. What a wonderful day.

Sandy: Honoring Joan Doss and her work for the League and our community made the day. It was nice to see new and old smiling faces. And Tiralisa as an auctioneer...who knew??

Sally: The food, service, and ambiance at Eulipia were excellent, as always. Our League is lucky to have family connections to the owners. This, our 14th year, was surely one of our finest.

Sandy: May promises to be a busy month for members. Check the calendar on Page 8 for reminder dates. I know you and Joan are planning to attend the State Leadership Council, May 17-18, in Sacramento. On-line registration is available at http://www.lwvc.org. The Health care session is on Saturday and the Redistricting Action is on Sunday. You can go for one or both days and make the tough choice.

Sally: I am very excited about the launch of our brown bag lunch program. The date for the first one is Wednesday, May 28 at High Noon. See the article on Page 3 for details. It promises to be very timely given the June propositions on the ballot.

Sandy: We also have the League Bay Area Convention right here in our own backyard ... Martin Luther King Library, Saturday morning, May 31. This is an excellent opportunity to connect with Bay Area Leagues. Many of the challenges we face are region based.

Sally: Our League receives a bimonthly publication, Bay Area Monitor, that updates us on issues such as air quality, transportation, and coordinating regional emergency response.

Sandy: You can also read it on line at http://www.bayareamonitor.org...current and past issues.

Sally: Says you, oh champion of the internet. Have I told you my gmail is still not letting me receive the email which is sent to our general address?

Sandy: Yes, and I will share...I will send you some of our mail to answer.

Sally: We need to plug Virginia Holtz's work as Community Outreach Chair. Because of her work, we have been awarded one of National League's grants to support our fall program. Virginia has done an outstanding job building alliances with other groups. Rita Norton is working with Virginia to ensure our success.

Sandy: Everywhere you look, Green is the theme. I have been seeing some of the commercials that Al Gore has helped to promote...Reverand Sharpton and Pat Robertson agreeing on something.

Sally: You know Sandy, we are coming to the end of one year here ...do you think they will charge us rent for this table??

Sandy: Nah...we're among their best customers.

Sally: Oh! Should we start mentioning the Annual Meeting??

Sandy: For sure....it is going to be at Christ the Good Shephard Church on Saturday, June21 in the morning. We will hold elections, readopt our bylaws and positions, and perhaps hear a speaker. Hope to see many of our members there.

Sally: Drive carefully and see you soon.

President's Message April 2008

Sandy: Here we are again, sipping our favorite afternoon beverages. I want to hear all about the trip you took to Paul and Marie Arnold's Cabin. They put it up every year as an auction item for the Spring Luncheon and it is a really big draw!

Sally: The Luncheon is coming up on April 5. I know the committee is planning for a great turnout of League members and guests. So many things happening that day... silent and live auctions, lunch, jewelry table and a time to celebrate our League.

Sandy: Joan Doss is the honoree this year! What a great choice. She works so hard behind the scenes as well as in front as Program Chair. She really is a Wise Woman!

Sally: Are you rested up for all the League events coming up in May and June? First of all, we have the LWVC Leadership Council on May 17 and 18 in Sacramento. The website for LWVC.org has good information on this event. Hope we can get lots of members to attend at least one day.

Sandy: The Bay Area League Convention is May 31. We will put information out on the E-list as we get more details. The LWVUS Convention is in Portland this year from June 13-17. I know we have several members planning to attend as delegates and several others going for part of the time to experience the gathering of all the Leagues in the US. What an exciting time.

Sally: Lots of decisions to be made at all levels about upcoming studies and other areas of interest! I know we will have reports at the annual meeting to be held on June 21. (More information to follow.)

Sandy: We have lots going on locally: assisting with elections for various groups and organizations, planning for Pro/Cons and voter education about the upcoming ballot measures (Eminent Domain is the issue and Peter Szego is keeping us up to date), and working with the state California Voters FIRST redistricting initiative. Laura Grybos is also busy preparing for possible Candidate forums for local positions as well as working with County Leagues for other races. Smart Voter is up and running!

Sally: See the information on voting in the primaries on page 6.

Sandy: Our Voter Service team and Speakers Bureau are really active and are already lining up events for spring and fall.

Sally: Just when we think we can relax and sip our green tea, the calendar fills up. Thank goodness we have so many people willing to help and we have new members joining us regularly!

Sandy: See you back here in a few weeks to see what else is new.

Sandy Mory and Sally Pyle

President's Message March 2008

Sally: Just what is this green drink we are having?

Sandy: It's called a Green Tea Latte. I thought we should have it in honor of our greening/sustainable/earth friendly issue this month.

Sally: It does fit in with Saint Patrick's Day also. I told you about the Sustainability Forum Virginia Holtz and I attended on the 25th - the day that it was raining sideways?

Sandy: I remember, the one the five county Leagues co-sponsored with Supervisor Liz Kniss. Palo Alto led the way.

Sally: Rita Norton also attended (see her article on pg. 5). There was one gentleman who came using public transportation and Supervisor Kniss announced she came in her Prius. We did carpool, and I have elected not to buy any new car until I can decide if lower gas mileage versus a battery that needs to be disposed in 10 years is best. Guess I am thinking about the foot print the car factory makes...yikes.

Sandy: Well Roy and I decided on a low mileage vehicle. We did change the light bulbs, lowered the thermostat, and have been buying energy saving devices for years. I really do think it is going to take each of us doing what we can. Was Virginia able to pick up on anything that might work for our program?

Sally: Yes, we both liked Jack Broadbent as a speaker, but what he said was tough to take. He told us that 30-40% of the particulate matter in the atmosphere comes from burning wood...and we need to respect the 25 days a year that we are asked to `spare the air.' He also talked about tracking diesel particulate matter...as you might suspect it is highest in this county at the intersection of 101 and 280. There was great interest in what we can personally do...supporting companies who are green...buying their products, buying their stock. For more information, go to the websites which follow this column.

Sandy: Reaching out into the community is Virginia' s speciality and I am certain she will put together an excellent program. By the way, have we decided who is going to the LWV National Convention in Portland this summer? Let's talk it up...it only comes to this coast every 4 years. I know our Leagues will be bringing Education as an area of interest for the delegates to consider. Based on our membership, we have two voting delegates, but all members are encouraged to attend and we do have budgeted funds.

Sally: Portland is a great location. The dates are June 13-17. Meanwhile, the auction item collecting for the Spring Luncheon on April 5th is in full gear. Ester Rechenmacker, Tiralisa Kaplow, Carol Watts, Christy Kinney, Elizabeth Hayes, and Susan McKuhen, the merry makers, are working hard to make this the best one yet! I am going to use my win from last year this month. Thanks to Marie and Paul Arnold for the donation of their cabin!

Sandy: Well that's it for today, right? Here's to going green and supporting the sustainability effort. Another Latte??

Sally and Sandy

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