Date: 4/24/2025
Subject: LWV of Denver VOTER - May
From: League of Women Voters of Denver

The LWVD Newsletter

May 2025

Annual Meeting will feature the thoughts of Patricia Calhoun on the freedom of the press in our current climate of an expansive executive. She will speak after people have a chance to mingle and chat with friends as well as to enjoy a breakfast made possible by several Leaguers in the four Units. We do need to make some by-laws changes so for those who like to get into the weeds, bring your weed whacker. People who have worked exceedingly hard for the League in the short and long term will be honored. As a final event, I will donate a League-appropriate door prize to be given away at the end of the meeting; you must be present to win.

Annual Meeting – By-Laws Changes. In its Transformation Plan the LWVUS required all local Leagues to have their local by-laws conform to the LWVUS by-laws. The changes the Denver League needs to vote on at the Annual Meeting on May 10 can be found here: Proposed Changes to Bylaws - Article II and Changes to Bylaws - Article III. As the reader can see, the changes are housekeeping matters and not matters of policy. I have left in the statement about LWV of Denver being able to take action on local issues etc. even though our Article II will not be exactly like LWVUS Article II. I recommend further work to update our by-laws.

Jeanette Scotland, Director of Organization

Washington, DC
April 18, 2025

Celina Stewart, CEO of the League of Women Voters, and Dianna Wynn, president of the League of Women Voters, released the following statement:

“It has now been 87 days since the start of the Trump administration. From the flagrant disregard for congressional authority and governmental checks and balances to defying Supreme Court orders to bring Kilmar Abrego Garcia back home, one thing is abundantly clear: our country is in a constitutional crisis.

"We the people must fight back. That is why the League of Women Voters is launching a powerful new initiative, Unite and Rise 8.5.

"Unite and Rise 8.5 will engage and mobilize 8.5 million voters between now and November 2026 to protect and preserve our democratic institutions.

"The foundational principles that have sustained our democracy — checks and balances, the rule of law, free and fair elections — are under direct and sustained threat. In this extraordinary moment, we cannot proceed with business as usual. All Americans — no matter who you voted for in 2024 — need to come together, stand united, and fight back to save our democracy. We cannot afford to fail the generations to come.”

Voter Service In Action

Circulator Training – New Dates for May!
We’re excited to offer two more chances to get trained (or refreshed!) as a circulator this May. Whether you’re new to the role or returning for another season, these on-line sessions will get you ready for a busy voter registration season in Colorado. Circulators are essential to our mission of expanding voter access. By completing this training, you’ll join a community of committed volunteers helping ensure every eligible Coloradan can participate in our democracy.

Open to both new and returning circulators:

📅 Thursday, May 15 at 8:00 p.m.

📅 Thursday, May 22 at 8:00 p.m.

Each session will cover:

✅ Colorado voter registration laws
✅ Circulator responsibilities
✅ How to talk to voters and ensure complete, valid registrations

Ready to join us? To sign up, please use this Google doc. To learn more, please contact Mariam Bouricius at mttejeda@gmail.com.Let’s work together to empower voters and defend democracy—one registration at a time!

Join the Voter Service Committee
We’re always looking for new members! We typically meet virtually on the fourth Monday of the month at 5:00 p.m. Our next meeting is April 28, followed by May 19 (one week early to avoid the Memorial Day holiday). Our main focus areas are voter registration and voter education. And if you know a civic-minded young person, aged 15 to 25, please let them know that we have a Youth Council and that they are welcome to join! Contact Lisa Haddox at lisa.m.haddox@gmail.com or Mariam Bouricius at mttejeda@gmail.com to learn more.

Voter Education Programs – Requesting Volunteers
In 2025, we are expanding our education efforts beyond election-related information to include youth outreach. We are looking for volunteers to work with local Girl Scout troops on patch and badge programs. We are also seeking volunteers to help hone two existing LWV programs related to voting history/impact and mock elections. If this resonates with you, please contact Lisa Haddox at lisa.m.haddox@gmail.com.

The League of Women Voters of Denver’s

2025 INDOOR FLOWER BULB SALE
Begins MAY 1 and ends JUNE 30

Success Depends on All of Us!

10 Premier Amaryllis – including 5 New Varieties - and
2 Luxurious Paperwhites!
Also New for 2025: an Amaryllis Planting Kit!

Winter beauty for our homes – and perfect gifts for people in apartments and condos!

The Indoor Flower Bulb Sale is the League of Women Voters of Denver’s primary fundraiser. Our League depends on the funds raised and depends on members to market the sale and sell bulbs to friends and relatives.

Participate now!

• Order bulbs for yourself
• Give bulbs to friends and relatives – perfect for the Holidays
• Send the link below to people on your email lists
• Bring a Bulb Sale Packet to your bridge or other social group

Bulbs ordered this spring will arrive in October.

Use the link below to the Flower Bulb Sale on our website, where you may order online (live after May 1) or print an Order Form to fill out and mail to the League office with your payment.

Flower Bulb Sale - League of Women Voters Denver

Circulate a Bulb Sale Packet to friends and relatives -
Contact Barbara Mattison, Sale Chairperson: 303-322-4878 or rambjm@comcast.net

Thanks, everyone, for helping kick off the sale!

Briefing Recap: What Can We Do? April 15, 2025

After a new member orientation with 15 new members, the final briefing of the League year was held on Tuesday, April 15 with over 50 in-person attendees. The topic was “What Can We Do Now? Staying Civically Engaged in Difficult Times.” Representatives of several organizations discussed their efforts to keep democracy working with suggestions for engagement in local efforts.

Beth Hendrix, Executive Director of LWV of Colorado, trains and supports volunteers to appear before the Legislature to advocate for or against proposals that are aligned with or opposed to League positions on such issues as healthcare, voting access, housing, K-12 and higher education, etc. At the state level, Leaguers can also participate in the virtual meetings of the Task Forces, which research and advocate about many areas of concern including, civics education, climate, healthcare, gun violence, reproductive freedom and news access/literacy. Check out other opportunities at lwvcolorado.org.

Morgan Turner, Community Engagement Director for the Colorado Center on Law and Policy (CCLP), noted that this organization focuses on food, housing, health and income inequality through legislative and legal advocacy and in-depth research on state issues. She urged the public to tune in to the free weekly (every Monday at noon from January into May) virtual meetings of the Colorado Social Legislation Committee panels, which cover legislative proposals being considered during the Colorado State Assembly’s annual session. CCLP staff are frequent presenters.

Andrew Barton, Program Manager for Common Cause Colorado addressed the successful efforts to pass SB25-001 Colorado’s Voting Rights Act to counter the current administration’s drive to suppress voting rights. Common Cause does outreach statewide to ensure fair and accessible elections. They do utilize volunteers.

Dr. Landon Mascareñaz is chair of the Colorado State Board for Community Colleges and Occupational Education. He is also a co-founder of Open Systems, which supports “redesigning education and reigniting democracy.” Landon led the group in interactive discussions about how we imagine and can ask for “courageousness” from our elected officials and ourselves. In collaboration with LWVCO, he will be leading a listening tour across Colorado to hear Ideas about how to move our state forward (see next article).

An open discussion followed the speakers with ideas for getting involved. Although we didn't solve the world's problems, we were all engaged, including new members. We discussed the work of the state and Denver League over the spring and summer to urge the City Council to place on November’s ballot a proposal to utilize the Ranked Choice Voting method in future municipal elections. Ideas from the handout prepared by Mariam Bouricius, Co-chair of Voter Service were mentioned: becoming trained as a voter registration circulator through LWVD; working as election judges and poll watchers; supporting fact-based independent journalism; attending School Board and City Council Meetings as part of LWVD Observer Corps (contact susanstark1947@gmail.com).

The entire list of ideas for engaging locally can be found here and on our website. Although LWVD is not as active during the summer, I hope Leaguers and others who attended this briefing will find ways to “roll up their sleeves” to make democracy work.

We will see you again at our Fall Kickoff Meeting.

Susan Stark, Program Director

Courageous Colorado Listening Tour

For those of you who attended our April briefing, one of the speakers, Dr. Landon Mascareñaz, demonstrated the questions they will be using in the Courageous Colorado Listening Tour, a nonpartisan conversation about the future of our great state

How can we build a more courageous and representative democracy in Colorado?
How can Colorado inspire the nation?

The group hopes to develop a 2030 Local and Statewide Action Roadmap. To accomplish this, sessions will be held across the state to engage communities in deep listening, shared learning, and collective vision-setting. Through a structured series of local gatherings and a statewide convening, this initiative seeks to surface key priorities, foster new coalitions, and lay the foundation for a long-term action policy and legislative agenda leading up to 2030.

League of Women Voters Colorado is a co-sponser along with CiviCO and Veterans for All Voters for this tour of 20 locations across the state. The event in Denver will be held on May 1. You can register to attend this free, in-person event here and let others know about this event by passing on the Courageous Listening Tour flyer.

Keep Track of Your Volunteer Hours!

Holley Murphy, LWVD member and LWVUS staff member, created a form that any member can use to record volunteer time. LWVUS needs this information and it is also important for us when applying for grants. Please use the form to enter any hours you spend at any cadence you'd like. Maybe once a month or after every event?

Volunteer Hours Form

Board Highlights
Monday, April 7

Approved 2025-26 Budget to be sent to members for vote at Annual Meeting
Approved a letter be sent to Denver City Council encouraging them to consider Ranked Choice Voting for Municipal Elections. LWVDenver is part of several organizations promoting this issue.
Continued plans for Annual Meeting, May 10, including registration
Approved having a table at Pride Days, June 28-29
The Voter Service Committee is looking into several ways to enhance voter education, including mock elections and working with local Girl Scouts.

Marty Sloven, Secretary

Welcome New and Returning Members

Virginia Ball, virginia.h.ball@posteo.net
Mark Burger, markdavidburger@me.com
Bonnie Greenberg, bonnieg457@gmail.com
Ann Klein, annklein@mac.com
Marla Mazalan, mbmazalan@yahoo.com
Sarah McCarthy, somccarthy@gmail.com
Madison Murphy, madison.b.murphy@gmail.com
Mary Ott, bluweaver@gmail.com
Susan Scott, susanleescottnyc@gmail.com
Susan Shetterly, sshetter14@gmail.com
Ariel Strickland, ari_tina@msn.com

LWV Denver Units

A great place for meaningful conversations

Units are small groups who meet after briefings to discuss the topic further and whatever else is on the minds of the attendees. As we wrap up the Program/Briefing year, so also do the Units. Look here in the Summer and September VOTERs for their next meetings. Joining a Unit is a good way to start getting involved with League.

Cheesman Unit
Will meet for a Potluck on Friday, June 13 at 5:00 p.m. at Cindy Sestrich's house and then in mid-August for the next book club get-together. Guests are welcome, but please RSVP to Bobbie Heisterkamp (303-333-6818).

Cherrington Unit
Will meet at the home of Marty Sloven for a potluck luncheon at noon on Thursday, May 22. Guests are welcome. If you would like to meet the members of Cherrington Unit, let Marty (303-333-3148) or leader Peg Oldham (720-220-3988) know.

Highland/Woodbury and Observatory
They hope to see all members at Annual Meeting.

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