VOTER President: Catherine Holt 814-223-9696 Voter Editor: Elisabeth Fulmer 814-229-4881 lwvcco@gmail.com http://clarion.palwv.org/ Calendar Monday, September 17 Constitution Day Lunch at Michelle s with Carol Kuniholm, Fair Districts PA Tuesday, September 18 Plastics Recycling Program 7:00 p.m. - Main Street Center Public welcome September 21 International Day of Peace Tuesday, September 25 National Voter Registration Day See additional information inside LWVCC Board meeting-5:15 p.m. 65th Autumn Leaf Festival September 29-October 7 October 12 CACBI Legislative Breakfast Park Inn, 7:30-9:00 a.m. Welcome, New Members! Linda Rose 55 E. 8th Avenue Clarion, PA 16214 And a special welcome to new student Members! Ana Carlton Lindsay Filcheck Alex Fularz Cora Fulton Gileyla Jones Billianna Kovacs Anastasia Sampson Tree Zuzzio 1
both the incumbent from US 15th Congressional District and the one from PA 63rd House District declined our invitations. We are planning an alternate event. President s Message You wouldn t know it from the muggy hot weather, but it s Fall. School is back in session, and the League is putting together programs and activities. One minute we are struggling to come up with ideas for events and the next our schedule is full. We have already had a voter registration event on the Clarion University campus. More both on campus and elsewhere are under discussion. The last pieces of the Plastics Recycling Program were coming together when we were surprised by an email from Carol Kuniholm, Director of Fair Districts PA. She is stopping for lunch at Michelle s on Monday, September 17, and wants to talk over lunch about progress in redistricting reform, what s been learned, and where we re headed next. We have an intern this year Kaley Simpson, a political science major. She is jumping right in and becoming an enthusiastic part of the team. In Appreciation of a great Team. Catherine Economic Development Summit II Friday September 28, 2018 At the Rustic Lodge in Indiana PA 9:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. Free and open to the public. Please register to attend. Our sister League in Indiana is one of the many sponsors of this event. In this free, public, one day conference, expert speakers will present on the potential for four sectors of sustainable economic development: Sustainable Agriculture, Renewable Energy, Sustainable Building Construction, and Land Restoration and Stewardship. Task Force recommendations will be presented. Contact Catherine for more information. The disappointing news is that it looks like we won t be sponsoring any debates this fall. While challengers were willing, 2
can RSVP on the newly created page, Fair Districts PA Clarion and Forest. What s new with Plastic? The redistricting effort missed a crucial deadline in Pennsylvania. An amendment to Pennsylvania s Constitution offering a truly independent citizens redistricting commission won t be on the ballot in time for the redrawing of lines after the 2020 Censuses. However, the effort to curtail gerrymandering continues. The Chair of Fair Districts PA, Carol Kuniholm, is making a swing through western Pennsylvania to reenergize volunteers and raise the profile of the issue. On Monday September 17 from 12:30 to 2 PM, she will be at Michelle s Café meeting leaders and volunteers from Clarion and Forest Counties to talk over lunch about progress in redistricting reform, what's been learned and where we're headed next. Carol Kuniholm s second event on Monday September 17 th at 6:30 PM is at the Oil City Library. She will explain what gerrymandering is, why it matters and how citizens across the state are working to end it. Do you sometimes feel like your vote doesn't count? Or your voicevoiceisn't really heard? Come learn more and help change this. Where does all of our plastic waste go? How much do we recycle? How much goes down our rivers and ends up in the Gulf of Mexico or the oceans? What is the dollar value of the plastic we send to landfills? What can we do? These are questions the League of Women Voters of Clarion County will be investigating at a public meeting on Tuesday, September 18 th. At this meeting Justin Stockdale, Western Regional Director of the Pennsylvania Resources Council; Kristi Amato, Director of the Clarion County Department of Planning and Development and Daniel Dunkel, Process Engineer from Green Line Polymers will discuss the current state of plastics recycling and share their expertise on other possible ways to handle the glut of plastic products. They will seek suggestions from the audience and answer questions about recycling plastics. Please join the League of Women Voters of Clarion County at 7 pm on Tuesday, September 18 th at the Main Street Center, 520 Main Street, Clarion, for this informative program that is open to the public. Bring your questions, concerns and ideas. There will be an opportunity at this meeting to sign up for a tour of the Green Line Polymers plant located at 22793 Route 66, Shippenville, PA. Even if you've never been actively involved, if you want to learn more and find a way to help, you're welcome. If you are on Facebook you 3
New Voters Register The Clarion League of Women Voters participated in the August 26 th Activities Day for freshmen orientation at Clarion University. League members in conjunction with the Clarion University Office of Judicial and Mediation Services set up a table to assist incoming freshman register to vote at this event. Clarion University had computers available so that students could register online or check the status of their registration there. League members also handed out forms for requesting an absentee ballot for students who are registered at their home address. We have an additional opportunity to register students online on Tuesday, September 25 th from 10:00 to 4:00. If you can volunteer for a two-hour time slot or more, please contact Donna Poljanec ASAP at poljanecd@yahoo.com. If you would like to register to vote online or check the status of your voter registration, please go to the Pennsylvania web site https://www.pavoterservices.pa.gov, or the League of Women Voters site at https://www.vote411.org/. 4
Simpson Attends Leadership Program Kaley Simpson, a member of Clarion County League of Women Voters, attended a National Education for Women s Leadership conference and workshop at Chatham University. She believes that the week-long leadership program for women in politics was very valuable. Kaley is doing an internship this semester with the Clarion County League of Women Voters, learning the ins and outs of a volunteer grass-roots organization. We are delighted to have her perspective and enthusiasm on the LWV Board. Watch for future reports from Kaley in upcoming newsletters. She reports: My experience was fantastic; I learned how to get my voice heard and how to speak in public. There were many women who shared their stories about the struggles women face in politics from campaigning to not being taken seriously. It also shed light on uninformed or misinformed voters in general. During the week s program I also traveled to Harrisburg to speak with state representatives and have lunch with them. The week-long program was eye opening and will be helpful in my future journey as a political science major and being a woman in politics, which is no easy task. 5