Greetings, Club Members:

Thanksgiving Day is behind us and many of you will have put up holiday decorations. But it’s always the right time to give thanks. 

Thank you, club members, for stepping up and doing all within your power to protect democracy. Just because we were not successful in some of the highest offices doesn’t mean we didn’t have some important wins (hurray, Scott Peters, Tasha Boerner and Terra Lawson-Remer!). And it doesn’t negate the good work our club members did.

I’d like to thank each of you who gave your time, talents and resources working to secure our democracy by calling, writing, walking, knocking, and voting. I’d like to thank our committees and chairs who spent countless hours behind the scenes, such as Rebecca King and our Public Policy Committee who studied each and every Ballot Measure and Proposition to give us the most accurate information before voting. Thank you to our Membership Committee led by Luan Troxel whose efforts grew our club to the unprecedented number of 300. Thank you to our amazing GO Team and the leadership of Patti Flores-Charter and Frank King, along with their large number of volunteers. Thank you to Steph Kaupp and those who helped organize a successful Web Affair to raise funds for our tech needs into 2025, and to Doris and Jim Besikof for hosting a fun event. Thank you to Edry Goot for opening your beautiful home for our recent Membership Appreciation celebration. Thank you to Jenna McIntosh and her team who put together a wonderful Red White and Blue Wave Brunch last Spring that left us uplifted and inspired. This year, every committee put forth their best, and we are so very grateful for each of you. I haven’t even named all of you who have given so much of yourselves to our club. Please know you and the work you have done are valued. Our amazing and committed Board – Patti Flores-Charter, Edry Goot and Carol Grimaud – worked tirelessly, and I am grateful for their wisdom and support.

And, an advance thank you to Gail and Bob Bardin for hosting our annual Holiday Happy Hour. (See more on that in this newsletter).

I cannot even begin to express our gratitude for each of our club member candidates who stepped up during a time when running for office has become so fraught with personal attacks, lies and misinformation. Casey, Laura, Christine and Shawnee, your integrity, courage and commitment have been inspiring, and we look forward to your continued engagement in our club and in our community. Although the results of our local race are not official as of this writing, we congratulate Amy Steward, who will be carrying our values into leadership on City Council.

And now, we all need a time of rest and refocusing on things that can calm our troubled spirits and bring us that inner peace; for some, time with loved ones, for others, long walks or time alone. Now more than ever we need our club. It might seem that with the elections over, there is no urgency to be in action. But we are entering into uncertain and painful times to come. Our club can provide a safe space for like-minded neighbors to be together. We may not be knocking on doors in January and February, but we will focus on gathering so that each of us can find mutual support and encouragement.

I invite you to stay connected.

Wishing you Peace,

Lori