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Winter 2017 Volume XIX, No.1
Mission Statement:
AAUW advances equity for women and girls through advocacy, education, philanthropy, and research
AAUW values and seeks a diverse membership. https://aauwduluth.wordpress.com/
I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E :
Presidents message 1
Programs 2016-17 2
Stay Informed –Website Info 3
Created Here: Meet the Artists 4-5
On Diversity 6
Duluth Branch Officers 2016-18 7
Focus Groups 8-9
Diversity Bookshelf 9
Reducing Plastic—Changing 10
AAUW Action Guidelines 11
Treasurers Report 12
Branch Highlights—PR Group News —
14
New Members— Position Available —
15
Special Insert for your directory with New member Listings
President’s Message ~~ HAPPY NEW YEAR! Thank you for your participation in our branch's events during the first half of our AAUW year, whether it was the Garden Party, the Northland Get-Together in Ely, the New Member Orientation, Created Here, and /or the Holiday Tea. Your support and enthusiasm for events which bring women to-gether are exciting. Join us for the upcoming programs this winter/spring, as not-ed in this LOB. Specifically, consider attending the Nepali Dinner [which will raise emergency funds for victims and sur-vivors of trafficking] scheduled for February 11th (5PM) at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation. Participants wishing to join the AAUW tables need to make a reservation by January 20th with Wendy Williamson or Theresa O'Gara
Women's issues seem more intense now, with all that has happened on our national scene---trafficking, safety, health concerns, career advancement, equal pay/rights, opportunity, diversity, sexism...... AAUW, an advocate for women and girls, offers us a network of support; nationally, take notice of the Action Plans and Advocacy emails or check out the web-site. Locally, our Duluth branch is a wonderful group of wom-en, looking to make a difference in a variety of ways. Look for you at events and along the journey,
Judy and Terry
Upcoming AAUW Duluth Branch Programs for the 2016-2017 Year
The Program Committee has been preparing some very interesting events for this winter.-spring.
We hope to see you there!
February Fireside Chat 2/7/17 7 to 8:15 PM ** Kitchi Gammi Club, Fireside Room
Educating Today’s Police Officers, featuring Scott Lyons, former Duluth Chief of Police and Law Enforcement Educator. Light refreshments served.
Please let MJ Thomas know if you plan to attend. 315/264-1212 or [email protected]
Nepali Dinner
2/11/17. 5:00 PM * * Unitarian Universalist Congregation (835 W. College St., Duluth) Sit down dinner.
Catered by Shunu Shrestha, who grew up in Nepal and serves as Trafficking Coordinator. We are forming AAUW tables for dinner, RSVP to Theresa O’Gara by January 20th. This event will benefit the Trafficking Emergency Fund.
March - Women in Science and Math
03/14/2017. 7 to 8:30 PM ** First United Methodist Church (Coppertop) 230 E. Skyline Parkway Space Snacks will be served!
Celebration of Women’s History Month. Intergenerational exploration of careers in science and math to include girls, moms and members. Featuring Kirsi Kuutti, the Young Woman of Equity Recipient as she breaks from her NASA duties.
APRIL – EQUAL PAY DAY The next Equal Pay Day is Tuesday, April 4, 2017. This date symbolizes how far into the year women must work to earn what men earned in the previous year by Dec 31. AAUW and other Wom-en's Groups will collaborate on an attention-getting activity to raise awareness of women's lack of pay equity. If you are interested in supporting this effort, please contact M.J. Thomas : [email protected].
State Convention
Date is set for April 28, 29,30. Location TBD. Theme TBD.
Duluth Branch Annual Meeting May 9, 2017. Location, Speaker, Menu all TBD.
AAUW National Convention June 14-17, 2017 washington, D.C.
More Info @ www.AAUW.ORG
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AAUW has always worked to ensure equality for women and girls. Today some of the issues that we worked on are in danger of being reversed or changed. Such issues are: women’s reproductive rights and health care, equal pay for equal work, paid sick leave, paid parental leave and equal opportunity in schools and/or assuring Title IX is in com-pliance.
Many of our Legislators at the State as well as at the Federal level have supported AAUW’s positions. When this occurs, it is important to thank them and to let them know we are aware of their votes. Also, it is important to let them know our position before a vote on a particular legislation is taken. Your voice matters and calls are better
than emails. Here is contact information for our Legislators: Rick Nolan-202-225-6211 or 218-464-5095 Amy Klobuchar 202-224-3244 or 612-727-5220 Al Franken 202-224-5641 or 218-722-2390 Mark Dayton 1-800-657-3717 Jennifer Schultz 651-296-2228 Erik Simonson 651-296-4246 Mary Murphy 651-296-2676
AAUW Action Network is a great source for advocacy: [email protected]
Stay informed and let your voice be heard!
Gay Trachsel, Public Policy Chair
TAX INFO
Remember that $46.00 of your AAUW dues Is tax deductible!
Website Info
AAUW Duluth Branch — https://aauwduluth.wordpress.com/
Minnesota AAUW —www.aauw-mn.aauw.net
National AAUW — www.aauw.org
Please submit Branch pictures and updates for our webpage to Abby Mlinar
Submit pictures and updates for our Newsletter to Nancy Sivertson
New facebook page – check it out: aauw duluth mn
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Created Here thanks you for continuing to support our mission!
Created Here: Meet the Artists raises money for schol-
arships awarded to women pursuing graduate degrees at the
community and national levels. This November 2016 ’s
event proved to be another outstanding fundraiser! And most
importantly participants enjoyed the artists that shared their
stories and talents : visual artist Esther Piszczek, business
leader/advocate & urban manager Kristi Stokes, and musi-
cian Lyz Jaakola.
2016 Duluth Branch Scholarship Fundraiser
Created Here: Meet the Artists, our scholarship fundraiser held at Northland Country Club on Thursday, November 3, 2016, was excellent! Funds from this event support scholarships for women at both the national and community level. Registered attendees totaled 147 and we raised over $5000! Many people contributed to the event. We extend deep gratitude to the artists who shared their time and talent – visu-al artist Esther Piszczek, business leader/advocate & urban manager Kristi Stokes, and musician Lyz Jaakola,. AAUW committee members worked on the details of the fundraiser. Much appreciation goes to: Mary, Michelle, and Marcia Bowker for managing reservations; Minden Hultstrom, treasurer, and the silent auction cashier team (Gay Trachsel, Lou Anne Siefert, Diana Kennedy, Mary Ann Lucas-Houx, Dawn Conlan, Kathy Antilla and Marilyn
Toscano); Karen Keenan for facilitating print media; Raymone Kral and her team (bid tabulators Heather Sweet-land and Leanne Ventrella; set-up Kathy Antilla, Dawn Conlan, Carol Kelley, Rose Drewes, Heather Sweetland, Gay Trachsel, Julie Seidelmann) for managing silent auction preparation and set-up; Theresa O’Gara, Gay Trachsel, and Dawn Conlan for working with the program information and artists; Rose Drewes for hospitality, site details, and dessert donation; Karen Moen for coordinating ad solicitation; Wendy Williamson for shepherding program printing and name tags; event greeters Kathy Antilla and Bonnie Neimi and co-committee chairs Marilyn Toscano and Karen Keenan for guiding, planning, and overseeing the event process. Committee efforts were given graciously and are greatly appreciated. Thank you to: Marie Owens for creating table decorations; Terry Teich, Judy Seliga Punkyo, and Minden Hultstrom for giving the welcome, introductions and information about AAUW scholarships; and Leanne Ventrella for urging silent auction bidding. And many thanks to Linda Turpening for her gift of piano music. We appreciate and thank the 48 businesses and organizations featured in the program book for supporting our mis-sion through their contributions. The following members solicited ads: Kathy Antilla, Mary Bowker, Helen Hanten, Karen Keenan, Raymone Kral, Carol Kelley, Mary Ann Lucas-Houx, Dan and Sarah Maddy, Bonnie Niemi, Judy Sausen, Annelie Sober, Zabelle Stodola, Terry Teich, Marilyn Toscano, Leanne Ventrella, Wendy Williamson, Gei-ger Yount. Graphic designer Scott Beard created media materials featuring artist Esther Piszczek’s work. AAUW members and friends contributed 76+ items for the silent auction. Thank you to auction item solicitors: AAUW Lit and Sampler Groups, Kathy Antilla, Mary Bowker, Michelle Bowker, Phyllis Childs, Dawn Conlan, Rose Drewes, Gayle Gilmore, Helen Hanten, Karen Keenan, Carol Kelley, Linda LeGarde Grover, Jackie Moran, Susan Meyer, Bonnie Niemi, Gail Schoenfelder, Nancy Schumacher, Julie Seidelmann, Terry Teich, Mary Jo Thom-as, Marilyn Toscano, Gay Trachsel, Paula Termulen, Leanne Ventrella, and Wendy Williamson. Thank you to those organizing tables of eight or more. Table hosts were AAUW Lit and Round Table Discussion Groups, Mary Bowker, Carol Kelley/Rose Drewes, Karen Keenan, Sue Meyer/ Nancy Sivertson, Theresa O’Gara, Kay Strand, Gail Schoenfelder, Annelie Sober, Terry Teich, Marilyn Toscano, Wendy Williamson, and Geiger Yount. A big thank you to all who attended the fundraiser, invited friends, bid on items, made donations, and who have sup-ported AAUW in numerous ways through the years. We had another banner year for branch participation! Members still wishing to make donations may mail checks (made out to AAUW) to: Minden Hultstrom, 4011 Re-gent St., Duluth, MN 55804.
An Invitation It bears repeating - many hands make light work! Thanks to AAUW member willingness to help make Created Here: Meet the Artists come alive and thrive, this event grows each year. THANK YOU! The Created Here: Meet the Art-ists Committee invites you to join us in 2017! Please let Wendy Williamson, Karen Keenan or Marilyn Toscano know of your interest in this good work.
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on Diversity . . . by Patricia E. Weems Gaston and Kay Brocato Diversity is about who is on the team. Inclusion is about who gets to play. This sports analogy speaks to the heart and soul of what makes the world go round, why we see women and minorities still fighting to get a seat at the table. And we members of the American Association of University Women should put it in our playbooks and use it as a way to look at our present and future. In short, the American idea and dream is and always will be about the complete and total merit of those who mesh with the complete and total others on the field, court, or table at any given time. My D&I journey began in the early 1980s while working as a copy editor at the Rochester (N.Y.) Democrat & Chronicle. Our corporate owner, Gannett Co. Inc., tasked our committee to look at the chain's efforts to di-versify news pages, to be more open to opinions from others than just [singularly ethnic, visually the same skin-toned] white guys in suits. That work showed me that diversity makes good business sense and that it gives vibrancy to an otherwise black and white world. The improved healthiness comes from bringing togeth-er all colors, shades, and hues to talk – not to become one another. Any group with longstanding, sanctified dominance can implode on its one sameness. In my early professional work, this same-cultured dominance happened to be white male. This work of learning to be open to other opinions continues to inform me today. I got a seat at the table while working as an assistant foreign editor at the Dallas Morning News. I was co-editor of a project on violence against women in which we chronicled the universality of violence. We looked at situations all across the world and ended the project in the United States. I wanted this project to be differ-ent, and we co-editors opted for a mostly female (editing, writing, photography, graphics) team, and we chose reporters who weren't always picked first to do the big projects to write the 15 articles that in 1994 won the Pulitzer Prize for foreign reporting, among other awards. This crew helped us take our game to the next level. Please note the tiny , most important adverb “mostly” just before the word female in this paragraph. The group won those awards on the merit of the work, and the merit came from the purposeful decision to choose – diversely – the voices represented in the words, and photographs, on the page. AAUW is at this very point now, too. We can make a difference -- we are the captains of our own ships. As a two-term co-chair of AAUW's D&I task force, we are continuing to make strides. But more work needs to be done, we need to be “awake” as the millennials say, especially after the vitriolic 2016 presidential race in which bigotry, sexism and racism were on full display. So, as 2017 begins anew, let us have an open mind to diversity and inclusion, to helping to bring about change, to growing an inclusive branch. Here are a few things to think about as you begin, or continue your work: 1. Just do it: You don't have to be a D&I officer or program chair to help diversify your branch. Step up, take your seat at the table, or on the sidelines, and do what needs to be done. Reach out to someone who not look like you, may not think like you, but who just wants to see AAUW's ideals come to fruition. Do so pur-posefully. 2. Be more than a greeter at the door: Accompany a potential member to a meeting. Take a few moments to get to know them, their expectations, why they are there, and ask them to come back. 3. Know yourself: Be aware of your implicit biases: What are you afraid of? Fear of the unknown keeps us closed to others' differences. Learn to be more open to being welcoming. 4. Build trust: In our haste to grow the membership, we often don't take the time to build trust, or respect for different populations. Slow down, educate yourself. When you misstep here and feel it, apologize for the mis-step and carry on. When others make an error with you in trust-building, don’t expect an apology. Forgive and carry on. 5. Celebrate our differences: Many of AAUW's D&I officers are already doing this, but keep this in mind in your programming, in your collaborative efforts. ================================================================================= Patricia E. Weems Gaston is a Pulitzer-Prize winning editor at The Washington Post. She is a graduate of the University of Kansas and The George Washington University, a member of AAUW's Capitol HIll (DC) Branch and two-time co-chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Task Force.
Kay Brocato is Associate Professor of Education Foundations at Mississippi State University. She is the State Vice President for Programs of AAUW Mississippi, President of the AAUE Starkville, MS Affiliate, and the co-chair of the AAUW Diversity and Inclusion Task Force.
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Duluth Branch AAUW Officers for 2016-2018 Branch Number MN6008 Organized 1894 (1910)
Senate District 7 Congressional District 8 Website: https://aauwduluth.wordpress.com/
President (1) President (2) Publicity
Judy Seliga-Punyko Terry Teich Theresa O'Gara
1125 North 40th Ave East 508 North 12th Ave West 2531 East 5th St.
Duluth, MN 55804 Duluth, MN 55806 Duluth, MN 55812
218-525-4688 218-723-1099 218-724-4821
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
Membership (1) Membership (2) Newsletter
LouAnne Siefert Wendy Williamson Nancy Sivertson
5209 Norwood St. 614 Woodland Ave 1932 East 9th Street
Duluth, MN 55804 Duluth, MN 55812 Duluth, MN 55812
218-525-4295 218-724-9321 218-728-4378
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
Historian Public Policy Focus Groups
Marilyn Toscano Gay Trachsel Cindy Blomberg
24 Garden Stgreet P.O. Box 3675 1314 South Ridge Road
Duluth, MN 55812 420 W. Faribault Duluth, MN 55804
218-724-5078 Duluth, MN 55803 218-525-7475
[email protected] 218-728-5478 [email protected]
Treasurer STEM
Dr. Dorothy Anway AAUW Funds Karen Moen
1219 N. 21st St. Minden Hultstrom 1609 E 7th St
Superior, WI 54880 4011 Regent St. Duluth, MN 55812
715-394-4061 Duluth, MN 55804 218-728-8048
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
Program Chair Secretary Diversity
Mary Jo Thomas Dawn Conlan Zabelle Stodola
413 Oxford Street 518 E. Oxford 131 North Hawthorne Road
Duluth MN 55803 Duluth MN 55803 Duluth, MN 55812
315-264-1212 218-343-3723 218-728-8048
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
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2016-2017 AAUW FOCUS GROUPS
The mission of AAUW is to advance equity for women and girls through advocacy, education, phi-lanthropy and research. Focus groups provide a venue for kindred spirits to meet, socialize, and par-ticipate in activities that interest them. Duluth Branch members are welcome to join any of the follow-ing groups at any time. For more information, contact the group’s chairperson. ZEITGEIST AFTERNOONS: Looking for something to do on a cold winter day? See a top-quality film at Zinema for only $5 on Wednesdays, or at your convenience. Then join Geiger and others at 4:00 p.m. on the first and third Wednesdays at Zeitgeist Café for food, drinks, half price beer and discussion. New people can get on Geiger’s email list to find out what’s showing. Chair: Geiger Yount [email protected]
BRIDGE GROUP: How about a fr iendly table of Br idge? Six teams currently meet in members’ homes on a flexible schedule for a rousing Round Robin chal-lenge. New members and subs, no matter what their level of play, are always wel-come. Get in the game, call Laurie or Lorraine. Chairs: Laurie Boche 218-340-9295, Lorraine Brayden 218-727-6317
FOOD FUN: Let’s do lunch! Join the Food Fun group for lunch and conversation the first Wednesday of the month at a time and place determined by the group. Call Mary by the first Monday of the month for details and to reserve your place at the ta-ble. Chair: Mary Bowker 218-724-7895
LITERATURE DISCUSSION: Cold winter days are made for r eading. Book lovers meet the third Monday of the month at 7:00 p.m. at a member’s home for dessert, book re-view and stimulating discussion. Book selections through June are: Jan No meeting
Feb The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, by Junoit Diaz (Marlene) Mar The Whistling Season, by Ivan Doig (Wendy) Apr All city read - Locally Laid May The Worst Hard Times, by Timothy Egan (Dee) June My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, by Fredrik Backman For more information contact Peggy. Chair: Peggy Mohrman 218-724-2603
ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION: For this lively Algonquin Roundtable style discussion there is no studying, no homework. Topics are drawn from a hat. About ten people have been meeting on the third Tuesday of the month at 5:15 p.m. over Happy Hour. Bring your ideas and join in the camaraderie! Location varies as determined by the group. To get on the email list contact Dawn or Mary Jo. Chairs: Dawn Conlan 218-343- 3723, Mary Jo Thomas 315-264-1212
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SAMPLER: Our SAMPLER group will be meeting on Tuesday, January 24, 7:30 P.M. at Hope Methodist Church to make mittens and scarves for Kids Closet. Mary Bowker is the hostess for the meeting. Anyone who may be interested in joining us for the service project is more than welcome to come. Just let Lou Anne Siefert know if
you would like to come. ([email protected]) 218-525-4295
HIKING/WALKING: As milder weather has set in, this outdoors group has decided to resume Thursday morning walks. Watch for emails for more infor-mation. Contact person will be Peggy Mohrman 218-724-2603
If you would like to start a new Focus group, contact Cindy Blomberg, Focus Group Coordinator, 218-525-7475, [email protected]
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DIVERSITY
BOOKSHELF
In her last public remarks to a group of educators on January 6, 2017, First Lady Michelle Obama stat-ed, “Our glorious diversity—our diversity of faiths, and colors, and creeds—that is not a threat to who we are; it makes us who we are.”
In that spirit, we’d like to begin “stocking” a Diversity Bookshelf in the Lob from now on. To start us off, here are two recently published non-fiction books to consider. Hidden Human Computers: The Black Women of NASA (Hidden Heroes), by Sue Bradford Edwards and Duchess Harris (Essential Library Publishers, 2016. Essential Library is an imprint of Abdo Publish-ing, a major educational publisher). Hidden Human Computers discusses how African American women made critical contributions to NASA in the 1950s by performing calculations that enabled astronauts to fly into space and return safely to Earth. These women are often referred to as the hidden Human Computers. With their contributions at Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, the hidden human computers paved a path for black women in the fields of STEM. This book was featured on TPT’s Almanac on January 6, 2017. -----
You Can't Touch my Hair (and Other Things I Still Have to Explain) by Phoebe Robinson (Plume Books, 2016). Phoebe Robinson is an African American stand-up comedian, writer, and actress whom Vul-ture.com, Essence, andEsquire named one of the top comedians to watch. She has appeared on NBC’s Late Night with Seth Meyers and Last Call with Carson Daly, Comedy Central’s Broad City, and The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore, among many other gigs. The book is featured in NPR Weekend Edition, New York Magazine, Refinery 29, Book Riot’s “Best Books of 2016” and Cosmo, and Publishers Weekly.
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Campaign to reduce plastic
and
change Public behavior from Gay Trachsel—Public Policy chair
Facts and Events
22 million pounds of plastic dumped in Great Lakes Annually 1. The campaign has a name - Bag It, Duluth! # For the Love of Place 2. To initiate the campaign there was a press conference on Thursday January 5 at 4:30 p.m. in the Zeitgeist atrium. 3. At the Press Conference Jamie Harvie of the Institute for a Sustainable Future (the person who convened the group that I am a part of) talked about plastic bags/styrofoam and stated the fact that there should be a serious community effort to develop an ordinance to limit the use of these toxic ma-terials in our region. He further noted that the language of the ordinance has not been worked out but would most likely be modeled on the recent Minneapolis ordinance which in turn has been modeled on the more than 160 or so U.S. cities which have placed restrictions on thin film plastic carry-out bags and/or styrofoam containers in retail and restaurant use. "Bag It" a film will be shown on February 16 at Denfeld High School in the Lecture Hall and an educa-tional panel will follow probably including Dr. Lorena Mendoza a plastics researcher at UWS, Em Westerlund and someone from WLSSD. This is the current list of supporters: AAUW, Vikre Distillery, Whole Foods Coop, CHUM, Bent Paddle, Duluth Grill, Kenspeckle Letterpress, Minnbox and LWV Duluth Natural Resources Committee. Sever-al other organizations have been asked and are considering joining. If you are part of an organization who would be willing to sign on to this important work, please contact me.
Take Action ~~ What can you do to help
1. Most important: contact your City Councilor and ask them to support an ordinance on re-ducing plastic bags and “to-go” styrofoam containers. 2. Reusable cloth bags will be collected to give out at the February event, so bring some along if you
are willing to share. 3. Whenever you patronize an establishment, thank them for not using plastic and if they do use plas-tic, ask them if they have an alternative?
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AAUW Duluth Branch Treasurer's Report ~~ January 2, 2017
Categories / Accounts Actual Amounts Budget 2016-7 Income National Dues $1,200.50 $3,430.00 State Dues $270.00 $657.00 Local Dues $274.00 $720.00 Extra Dues paid Donations from members $13.50 Total Dues and Donations $1,758.00 $4,807.00 Program Income Member Programs $400.00 Dec. Tea $495.00 Income from Reserves $1,000.00 Maddy Funds $250.00 Income from 2016 Convention $2,485.00 $2,485.00 Total program income $2,980.00 $4,135.00 Total income $4,738.00 $8,942.00
Expenses National Dues $1,249.50 $3,430.00 State Dues $261.00 $657.00 Extra Dues Refunded $0.00 Total Dues Expense $1,510.50 $4,087.00 Branch Operations National Convention $0.00 State Convention $600.00 Regional Gathering $50.00 President's Expenses $13.99 $50.00 Treasurer's Expenses $50.00 Public Relations Expenses $500.00 Other Board Expenses Board Insurance $350.00 Total Branch Operations $13.99 $1,600.00 Membership Services Lob Tree $265.26 $800.00 Membership Directory $140.39 $125.00 Membership Outreach $22.18 $150.00 Dinner prize $25.00 Total Membership Services $427.83 $1,100.00 Program Expenses Member Programs $2,000.00 Garden Party $252.48 Dec. Tea * $584.73 Zeitgeist Arts -Trafficking (Maddy funds) $250.00 Annual Mtg Port Cities Luncheon Total Program $837.21 $2,250.00 Miscellaneous Expenses Diversity Expenses $100.00 STEM Expenses $100.00 Sonja Kovalesky Day $500.00 Other Misc. Expenses $25.00 Total Other Expenses $0.00 $725.00 Total Expenses $2,789.53 $9,762.00
Total Income: $4,738.00 $8,942.00 Total Expenses: $2,789.53 $9,762.00 Net Income/Loss: $1,948.47 ($820.00)
*Incomplete Page 12
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Holiday Tea
.
.
On December 4th, 2016, Duluth AAUW members
met at Ecumen Lakeshore's Fireside
Room for a Holiday Tea! Tradi-
tional English Tea re-freshments were served
Elizabeth Spehar
of The Snooty Fox Tea Shoppe presented
a history of tea and conducted a tea-themed game. She brought 3 varieties
of tea for us to sample.
A real highlight of the afternoon was the performance by the Duluth East High Choralaires
Everyone enjoyed all the food, the tea, the entertainment and the venue! Many thanks to the Program Committee: Kathy Antilla, Kate Baldwin, Dawn Conlan, Carol Kelley, Theresa O'Gara, Zabelle Stodola and Mary Jo Thomas. Everyone did their part to have a lovely and successful event!
BRANCH BENEFITS FROM NEW PUBLIC RELATIONS GROUP
Increasing our Branch’s visibility and recruiting/maintaining members were two of the priorities that were set at the Duluth AAUW Board Retreat in August, 2016. To help bring these priorities to frui-tion, the Public Relations/Membership Committee was formed. The committee set a robust agenda for itself at a brain storming session in October, 2016. Much has been accomplished since October thanks to the talent and hard work of the amazing PR/Membership Committee Members. 1. A new AAUW Duluth Branch website, was created thanks to Abby Mlinar. Gratitude is also ex-tended to Cherie Pettersen for the many years of volunteer service she provided setting up and main-taining our original website. Visit our new website: aauwduluth.wordpress.com 2. A Facebook presence for our Branch was established thanks to Abby Mlinar and Naomi Yaeger. Follow/Like us on Facebook AAUW Duluth MN 3. Multiple submissions, such as, press releases, public calendars entries, photos and articles, were made to local media, thanks to, Ann Redelfs, Zabelle Stodola, Mary Jo Thomas, Wendy Williamson and Theresa O’Gara 4. A relationship between the Duluth Branch of AAUW and UMD was reestablished. The Duluth Branch now has a College/University Partnership with the University of Minnesota Duluth thanks to, UMD, partner Susana Pelayo-Woodward, and Branch Members, Terry Teich, Abby Mlinar and Leanne Ventrella. A thank you also goes to Alta Oben for facilitating our partnership with UMD. Al-ta is a member of the St. Paul and West Metro AAUW Branches. She has strong ties to UMD, and is good friends with several Duluth Branch members. Any two- or four-year educational institution that offers recognized associate, baccalaureate, or higher degrees and has full accreditation or appropriate association approval can partner with AAUW. C/U memberships open doors to grants and fellowships, leadership training, professional development, ed-ucational resources, and advocacy tools" for the academic scene, notes the AAUW website. Students enrolled in C/U partner institutions can join AAUW as an undergraduate for free, through the E-Student Affiliate program (online). Benefits for the institution (UMD) and its faculty, staff, and stu-dents abound.
5. Written communication via the Lob Tree has continued. Nancy Sivertson does an outstanding job editing the Lob, and she is also a positive voice at our committee meetings. Our Gratitude goes out to Nancy and also to Nancy Schumacher, the previous and longstanding Lob editor, for all the work she did over the years.
6. Informational emails to members and phone tree calls have continued thanks to Terry Teich.
Although an astounding amount has been done, there is much more to do before this committee meets its goals! Future agenda items include: developing College/University Partnerships with the College of St. Scholastica, Lake Superior College and Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College, continued efforts to engage with local media and developing a press release kit to name a few. For a fun and gratifying experience with fellow AAUW members, please consider joining our group. As the saying goes, “Many Hands Make Light Work,” or in other words “We Need You!!! To help us out, contact one of the group Co-chairs: Theresa O’Gara, [email protected], 218.343.7489 or Wendy Williamson, [email protected] , 218.724.9321
AAUW Duluth Branch Highlights
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New Member Orientation
A mix of new and experienced AAUW mem-bers gathered on Oct. 19 in the Fireside Room, FUMC. The meeting provided an op-portunity for participants to become acquaint-ed with one another as well as with aspects the organization at the national, state and lo-cal levels. hank you to Theresa O'Gara for providing yummy refreshments.
Thank you to our 15 new member mentors, our officers, and all our new members. We plan to schedule another orientation for new members who were unable to attend the Oct. 19 event. Wendy and LouAnne, Membership
JOIN THE BOARD! POSTING FOR THE EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES FUND CHAIR:
Interested in supporting women through education? This engaging position provides an opportuni-ty to celebrate women in their pursuit of post-baccalaureate degrees through fundraising for and awarding of local scholarships. Responsibilities: - Coordinate the Scholarship Selection Committee. - Coordinate local community scholarships and present scholarships to winners at an annual meet-ing. - Prepare and Deliver a welcome address at the Created Here scholarship fundraiser event. - Oversee the silent auction payment tables, collect and record all monies from Created Here schol-arship fundraiser: registration, ads, and silent auction. - Make payments to venue and vendors for the Created Here scholarship fundraiser. - Mail yearly scholarship donation to the national branch and name honorees. Present certificates to honorees at annual meeting. This board position will be available in April 2017. If interested, contact Judy Seliga-Punyko (218-525-4688, [email protected]) or Terry Teich (218-723-1099, [email protected]) Thank you!
AAUW
Members wishing to make donations to the AAUW Duluth Branch should indicate the purpose of the do-nation on the check memo line and submit the check to the correct address listed below. If you would like to donate to national, you should do so directly. The addresses below are for Duluth Branch funds only. Previous donations from the Created Here: Meet the Artists Scholarship Fundraiser will go toward funding both national and local scholarships. Thank you for your donations to and support of AAUW! To the AAUW Duluth General Fund To the AAUW Duluth EOF (Scholarship) Fund Check Memo Line: AAUW Duluth Branch Check Memo Line: AAUW EOF Mail to: Dorothy Anway Mail to: Minden Hultstrom 1219 N. 21st Street 4011 Regent Street Superior, WI 54880 Duluth, MN 55804 Page 15
AAUW Hibbing Branch Book Sale Sharon Kearney, Hibbing AAUW President
AAUW Hibbing Branch Book Sale February 3-5, 2017
Friday, Feb. 3: 10:00 – 8:00, Saturday, Feb.4: 9:30 – 5:30, Sunday, Feb. 5: 10:30 – 2:30
Friday: best sellers $2.00, most other books $1.00, Saturday: Best sellers $2.00, most other books $.50, Sunday: everything $1.50 a bag.
Approximately 60,000 books, 100% donated, sorted, no buyer restrictions Profits used to fund scholarships, grants and local donations.