Utica/Rome Voter Issue 46; March 2013 Newsletter of the League of Women Voters, Utica/Rome Metro Area P.O. Box 24 Washington Mills, NY 13479 (315) 733-6244 www.lwvuticarome.org Officers 2012-2013 GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING Co-Presidents Dianne DiMeo 735-5969 sdimeo1@roadrunner.com Lorrie Wasielewski 736-7425 loriwaz@gmail.com 1 st Vice-President Nancy Horvath 736-1333 nancylouise@roadrunner.com 2 nd Vice-President Treasurer Nancy Agen 733-1408 winniewi@roadrunner.com Secretary Barbara Brookes 853-2723 bbrookes2003@yahoo.com WHEN: WHERE: Saturday, Mar 23 rd, 10 am (Registration begins 9:30am) Dorothy Smith Advocacy Center RCIL 1607 Genesee Street, Utica (corner of Scott St., formerly Temple Beth El) (THIS LOCATION IS FULLY ACCESSIBLE) TOPIC: Board of Elections Overview SPEAKERS*: Russell Stewart Democratic Commissioner, Oneida County Audrey Dunning Democratic commissioner, Herkimer County COST: $12 per member, $15 per non-member Phone Trudy for lunch reservations (733-6244) or e- mail: trewck@roadrunner.com by Tues, 3/19 If you would like to come to hear the speaker, without breakfast, please arrive at 10:30 and your admission will be FREE of charge. NOTE: Please cancel your breakfast reservation within 48 hours of the event, or payment will be billed. Directors Karen McBride 724-2359 skiesprit@aol.com Sharen Barboza 534-9253 sharenb@gmail.com Shirley Hilts-Adams 724-1277 shadams10@roadrunner.com Off-Board Specialists: Action Alert chair: Lillian (Trudy) Kennedy * Both Republican and Democratic BOE Commissioners were invited to speak. Republican Commissioners Rose Marie Grimaldi and Kathleen Farber were unable to attend. Shirley VanMarter 797-8043 Shirley32@roadrunner.com Audrey Sotendahl 797-3282 asotendahl@roadrunner.com Dawn Laguerre 733-0040 laguerremedia@gmail.com Historian/Archivist: Donna Loomis Rubin Elizabeth Pattengill 733-7973 lizpattengill@yahoo.com Carole Torok-Huxtable 822-5283/827-4203 dchuxtable@windstream.net Lucille Argenzia 337-7043 luciluci@yahoo.com Lucretia Hunt 732-1032 Lhunt@bcce.MORIC.org
CO-PRESIDENTS CORNER With spring on the horizon, we are hopeful that our efforts will continue to blossom. This is manifested in a number of ways Students Inside Albany, Membership, focus on voter registration and due diligence on keeping membership informed of local/state & national trends. The members have made great strides in these areas over the past few months. This newsletter has information on these activities and you will hear more at the March General Membership meeting scheduled for March 23. Please take note of the date in March while we usually hold our meetings on the 3 rd Saturday of the month, because of St. Patrick s Day weekend, we decided to move the March meeting the 4 th Saturday. With the local interest in the Boards of Elections, we were able to reach out to commissioners in Oneida and Herkimer Counties to present at that meeting. Both Democratic Commissioners are able to join us; the Republican Commissioners in both counties are unable to join us due to other commitments, but have agreed that their Democratic counterparts will be able to adequately represent both offices during this overview. We are hopeful that this will be the beginning of an ongoing dialogue and relationship with these critical offices in both counties. Sadly, we send our condolences to the family of Meg Pfeiffer who passed away unexpectedly in February. The contributions she made to the League were significant, in a very gentle way. She will be terribly missed by all of us. -- Dianne DiMeo and Lorrie Wasielewski BOARD OF ELECTIONS SPEAKERS FOR MARCH 23 RD GENERAL MEETING Russell Stewart My name is Russell Stewart and I have always considered myself to be a lifelong learner who is interested in new challenges and that is how I became the newly appointed Democratic Commissioner for the Board of Elections. I enjoy the challenge of working as a team member to identify, prioritize and work to meet the needs of the community. I have worked in the mental health field for over 25 years as a therapist with clients who were dual diagnosed with chemical dependency and mental health issues. I enjoyed the challenge of working with clients who were involved in the criminal justice system. I have been a school board member for over 26 years. I lobby on behalf of education both in Albany and Washington. I ve been the president of the largest union in our neighboring Madison County, representing close to 300 members and also sat on the Board of Directors for CSEA. I established a very small business in Equine Management and have worked in this regard throughout the country. On a personal note, one of my passions is shared with my wife of 33 years. We both love to hike mountains and canyons. The tallest mountain that we have hiked to date is 14,110 feet. We recently explored repelling down 150 foot waterfalls. Our four children also enjoy the outdoors. My goal as Commissioner is to bring all of my past experience to the Board of Elections and that the guaranteed right to vote is, in fact, guaranteed. Audrey Dunning Ms. Dunning is the Democratic Board of Elections Commissioner for Herkimer County. No additional biographical information was available at the time of printing
ADVOCACY DAY IN ALBANY FOR NYS LWV Front Row, L to R: Nancy Agen, Lorrie Wasielewski, Nancy Horvath Back Row, L to R: Shirley Hilts-Adams, Barbara Bartoletti, JoAnn Jacobson On the Annual LWV Lobby Day in Albany, Feb. 5 th, five members of the Utica-Rome Metro affiliate heard updates from LWV Issue Specialists on financing education, women s issues, transportation, healthcare, election reform, campaign finance reform followed by a Q & A period. After the briefings and lunch, Barbara Bartoletti, LWVNY Lobbyist, acted as a Tour Guide for a walk through the State Capitol. Members visited the Hall of Governors, the War Room, the Senate Chambers, and finished off with a visit to Claudia Tenney, representing the newly formed 101st District. The issue handouts from the briefing are now posted on the League s website, http://lwvnys.org under Advocacy. LWV Rome-Utica will be forming groups to make visits to our state legislators to discuss the issues. Local Leaguers will be asked to volunteer for a group, via e-mail, once the appointments are made. Please read up and select the issues in which you are most interested so that we have well-balanced and informed groups. Thanks for your help with this important League activity. REDISTRICTING UPDATE ONEIDA COUNTY On February 25 th, drafts of revised district maps prepared by the Oneida County Planning Department were ready for review along with a "Population Summary Report" for the proposed 23 districts. The ideal district population has a target of 10,046 and the percent deviation from that figure is also listed for each district. The new district populations range from 9,329 to 10,637 with a goal of less than 5% deviation. The total population for Oneida County is 231,069. Public meetings are scheduled for late February and early March in Westmoreland, Rome and Utica. Following the March 5 th public meeting the Committee is scheduled to vote on the new districts. The Committee timetable has been moved up from the end of April to its presentation on March 13 and then to the full Board of Legislators at their 2 pm meeting. Maps of the current legislative districts are available online at www.ocgov.net/leg. Here you will find a list of the current legislators, along with their district numbers. Click on a district number to view a map of that district. Maps of the 23 proposed new districts were scheduled to be added on Tuesday, February 26, 2013. -- Elizabeth Pattengill
NATURALIZATION CEREMONIES Participating in voter registration at Naturalization Ceremonies is one of the great joys of being a LWV member. It is a moving experience. If you are interested in being a part of this wonderful process, please contact Karen McBride (724-2359) or Barbara Brookes (853-2723). Dates, times and locations for upcoming ceremonies are: Oneida County-sponsored Naturalization Ceremonies 2013: County Office Bldg., 10 th Flr. Legislative Chambers Ceremony starts at 10:30 a.m. [Arrive no later than 9:30 a.m.] All Fridays 4/26/13, 9/27/13 & 11/1/13 [Nov.1 st ceremony at MVCC IT Bldg. Auditorium.] Federal-sponsored Naturalization Ceremonies 2013 Alexander Pirnie Federal Bldg., 10 Broad St., Utica, NY - 3 rd Flr. Court Room Ceremony starts at 11:00 a.m. [Arrive no later than 10:00 a.m.] All Thursdays 3/21/13, 5/9/13, 6/20/13, 7/25/13, 8/15/13, 9/12/13 (Ft. Stanwix) and 12/5/13 BOARD MEETING SUMMARY DECEMBER 1, 2012 Meeting called to order at 10:15 a.m. by co- President Dianne D. Those present: Liz Pattengill, Lorrie Wasielewski, Dianne DiMeo, Karen McBride, Meg Pfeiffer, Sharen Barboza, Nancy Agen, Lucretia Hunt, Dawn LaGuerre, Barb Brookes Excused: Lucille Argenzia, Nancy Horvath TREASURER S REPORT: Nancy A. reported that our League passed the Audit of mostly Audrey s records. Nancy has been sending the Treasurer s Report by e-mail to board members and also distributes it to members at the meeting. Nancy A. said that 200-300 Legislative Agendas 2013 will be ordered and we will only need to pay for shipping. MINUTES: Minutes of Nov. 3, 2012 were approved with the following correction: The sentence Lorrie has contacted Common Cause NY and will invite local CC members should be deleted. Lucretia Hunt made a motion to accept the corrected minutes; Nancy A. seconded. Lorrie requested that the Minutes be forwarded to Donna Rubin, League Historian, and Lucretia Hunt shared a copy of a local League publication, This is Utica (1958). MEMBERSHIP: Meg reported that we now have 54 members. Dr. Deborah Wilkinson is a new member. Johanna Albrecht is now an inactive member. Meg proposed that the Freeman donation can be used for gift memberships. All approved. COMMITTEE REPORTS: VOTER SERVICES: Karen reviewed the LWVNY Voter Services Survey and the board requested that she forward the completed survey to all LWV members. Karen strongly recommended designating a date for a Candidates Forum well ahead of time next year (in May) so that the public and candidates will know when the LWV Forum will be scheduled. Lorrie was interviewed on WCNY. She addressed the topic, why people are not voting. VOTE 411: This year Karen assisted Barbara Thomas of LWVNY with gathering information from candidates in the 101 st Assembly District (Claudia Tenney s district). The board recommends that we participate in this project next year and will request training. Voter registration sites used this VOTE 411 reference tool extensively this past election season.
Dianne D. suggested that our League be nominated for a Voter Services award at the 2013 LWVNY State Convention. YOUTH: Donna Gillette/Dawn LaGuerre Students Inside Albany (SIA) conference in Albany (April 14 17, 2013): Dawn distributed SIA fliers and discussed plans and procedures for recruiting and selecting high school Juniors and Seniors. Our League will send one student. There is no cost involved except transportation and Lorrie offered to provide transportation. The name of the selected student must be sent to LWVNY by Feb. 15 th. PROGRAM AND EDUCATION: Liz P. and volunteers Shirley H.-A., Mary Chapin, Dawn L. and Karen will present the LWVNY VOTE 18 interactive, roleplaying game at BOCES on Monday, Dec. 17 th. Two classes of h. s. students at BOCES will participate in this activity. Volunteers will meet on December 3 rd to rehearse. Contact Liz P. for more information. PUBLIC RELATIONS: Dawn is making effort to get publicity about our League in local news media. She will request local news media coverage for special activities, general membership meetings and other events. GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETINGS Sat., January 19, 2013: Dawn suggested the topic of Voter Suppression/Disenfranchising Voters. Shirley H.-A. cited the PBS documentary narrated by Bill Moyers entitled The United States of ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council) as good background information on this topic. Speakers suggested included Susan Lerner of Common Cause, Sonia Martinez of Latino-American Association, Deitra Harvey of NAACP and Meredith Madden, Government Dept. at MVCC. Also Shirley H.-A. is a good resource person for this topic. Dianne D. will contact Sonia and Deitra. Lorrie will call LWVNY to find out if this topic would be appropriate and relevant for our General Membership Meeting. Sat., March 16, 2013: New Election Commissioners Annual Meeting in May: State of the State or Hydrofracking Update OLD BUSINESS: The Great Lakes Concurrence will be discussed at the January 19 th meeting. NEW BUSINESS: Membership items: 1) At Dawn s request, Meg will call all members to remind them of General Membership meetings(she has been doing this in the past phone tree?) 2) Karen will submit attendance sheets from Candidate Forums to Meg and membership committee. 3) Meg is drafting a new brochure announcing upcoming meetings. 4) Dawn volunteered to write fund-raising letters. NEWSLETTER: Sharen reminded board members to submit material for VOTER by Dec. 28 th for publication in early January. Board requested that Karen submit Activities Sheet 2011-2012 to LWVUR website (www.lwvuticarome.org). The next newsletter will highlight a Leaguer so all board members should send a biographical sketch to Sharen by the deadline. ANNOUNCEMENTS: Naturalization Ceremony on Dec. 6 th at Federal Bldg. in Utica. Volunteers should be there by 10:00 a.m. Since there was no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 12:06 p.m. -- Barbara Brookes, Secretary BOARD MEETING SUMMARY JANUARY 5, 2013 Quorum declared and meeting called to order by co-president Dianne DiMeo at 10:16 a.m. Those present: Dianne DiMeo, Lorrie Wasielewski, Sharen Barboza, Lucretia Hunt, Liz Pattengill, Nancy Agen, Karen McBride, Nancy Horvath, Carole Torok-Huxtable, Dawn LaGuerre, Barbara Brookes Excused: Shirley Hilts-Adams, Lucille Argenzia, Meg Pfeiffer, Audrey Sotendahl Absent: Donna Gillette, Shirley VanMarter MINUTES: Minutes of Dec. 1, 2012 approved. TREASURER S REPORT: Nancy reported the income and costs from breakfast G. M. meeting in November was There is $177.00 in Barbara Weaver s Memorial Fund. Dianne will reach out to Lucille who is chair of Finance Committee. COMMITTEE REPORTS: Membership: Three new members: Karen Norton from Watertown, Charles Titus IV and Deborah Wilkinson Voter Services: Karen has received a request from Brenda Breen to host the county Naturalization Ceremony on Feb. 1, 2013. More new members are needed to volunteer (four needed at each ceremony.) Karen suggested rotating a list of 8 10 volunteers. Nancy Horvath is available to volunteer on Feb. 1 st. Barbara will give DVD of LWV Cortland Candidates Forum (2012 Congressional race) to Donna Rubin. Youth: Dawn distributed fliers and color brochure for Students Inside Albany, April 14 17, 2013. Dawn will take care of PR for SIA. Deadline for student applications is Feb. 1 st ; name of accepted candidate will be sent to LWVNY by Feb. 15 th. Our League will send one student this year. Program and Education: Liz reported successful presentation of VOTE 18 in two classes of eighteen-year-olds at Madison-Oneida County
BOCES on Middlesettlement Rd, New Hartford, NY on December 17, 2012. 14 students were registered to vote in the first class and 12 in second class. Liz, Dawn and son, Mary Chapin, Karen and Shirley Hilts-Adams all assisted with this project. Redistricting: Liz attended introductory meeting of new Oneida County Redistricting Committee on Oct. 12, 2012. Carole recommended that LWV Observer(s) attend future meetings. Public Relations: Dawn distributed copies of article on Campaign Finance Reform G. M. meeting held on Nov. 17, 2012 which appeared in Utica Phoenix of Dec. 7, 2012. Board suggested other PR opportunities: 1) WKTV from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. PSAs. 2) News Talk with Kristin Copeland from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. Barbara suggested sending newsletters to media contacts; Dawn will send media e-mail addresses to Sharen. GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETINGS: January: Voter Suppression: Its Local Impact March: Election Commissioners (including Herkimer Co.) May: Annual Meeting (date and place and topic to be discussed at Feb. board meeting) OLD BUSINESS: Great Lakes Concurrence will discuss at Jan. 19 th G. M. meeting. NEW BUSINESS: Nominating Committee: two board members will be appointed to Nominating Committee at next board meeting. Lorrie will send JoAnn Jacobson, chair, directives from LWVNY regarding Nominating Committee responsibilities. Dianne will send list of current board members, both elected and appointed, whose terms expire in 2013. By-Laws: Lorrie urged all board members to review latest update of By-Laws and decide if changes need to be made. Reminder: Send bio to Dawn before June board meeting. Since there was no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 11:35 a.m -- Barbara Brookes, Secretary AREA CALENDAR Utica/Rome LWV Board meeting General Membership Meeting Oneida County Board of Legislators* Rome Common Council Utica City School District Board 10 am, Saturday, Apr. 6 th New Hartford Public Library, New Hartford 10 am, Saturday, Mar. 23 rd Dorothy Smith Advocacy Center, RCIL 1607 Genesee St., Utica 2:00 pm, Wed. Mar. 13 th ; Apr. 10 th Russell W. Williams Legislative Chamber 10th Fl., Oneida County Office Bldg, 800 Park Avenue, Utica 7:00 pm, Wed. Mar. 13 th & 27 th ; Apr. 12 th & 24 th Rome City Hall, 198 N Washington Street, Rome 7:00 pm, Tues. Mar. 26 th ; Apr. 23 rd Utica School District Admin Bldg, 106 Memorial Parkway, Utica 6:30 pm Wed. Rome City School District Board** Mar. 20 th RFA High School; Apr. 17 th Strough Middle School * Meetings can be seen on cable TV: Utica area - Chan 3 on the following Tues at 1:00 pm, Wed at 8:00 pm and Sat at 2:00 pm; Rome area - Chan 99 on the following Wed at 8:00 pm. ** Meetings are televised on Channel 99, on Tues at 9:00 p.m. and on Thurs at 7:30 p.m. SAVE THE DATE! LWV UTICA/ROME ANNUAL LUNCHEON MAY 18, 2013
PLEASE VISIT AND SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS! 135 Clinton Street Whitesboro, New York Phone ~ (315)736-3011 Fax ~ (315)736-3297 info@hartshillinn.com * www.hartshillinn.com A Tradition of Excellence for over 45 Years
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Interested in becoming a member of the Utica/Rome League of Women Voters? Name: Mailing Address: Phone Number: Send this form along with $25 for a student membership, $60 for a single membership or $90 for a household membership to or contact with questions: League of Women Voters Meg Pfeiffer, Membership Chair PO Box 24 Washington Mills, NY 13479