Wednesday, June 29, 2016

2016 Washington County Fair - Need booth volunteers

The Washington County Democrats will again be hosting a booth at the County Fair July 18-21. We are looking for volunteers to help staff the booth as well as for set-up and tear-down. If you are interested and able to help out, please review the open booth slots below and contact our Secretary Sonya Housholder with your availability. We'd like to have at least two staffers at the booth during each shift.

MONDAY, JULY 18:
 1:00-3:00 pm
     1) Harold Frakes
     2) Lorraine Williams
     3)
     4)

 3:00-5:00 pm
     1)
     2)
     3)
     4)

 5:00-7:00 pm
     1) Kim Davis
     2) Kitch Shatzer
     3)
     4)

 7:00-9:00 pm
     1) Richard Gilmore
     2)
     3)
     4)

TUESDAY, JULY 19:
 1:00-3:00 pm
     1) Lorraine Williams
     2)
     3)
     4)

 3:00-5:00 pm
     1) Peter Morrison
     2) JP
     3)
     4)

 5:00-7:00 pm
     1) Peter Morrison
     2) JP
     3) Kim Davis
     4)

 7:00-9:00 pm
     1)
     2)
     3)
     4)

WEDNESDAY, JULY 20:
 1:00-3:00 pm
     1) Harold Frakes
     2)
     3)
     4)

 3:00-5:00 pm
     1) Peter Morrison
     2) JP
     3)
     4)

 5:00-7:00 pm
     1) Peter Morrison
     2) JP
     3)
     4)

 7:00-9:00 pm
     1) Richard Gilmore
     2)
     3)
     4)

THURSDAY, JULY 21:
 1:00-3:00 pm
     1)
     2)
     3)
     4)

 3:00-5:00 pm
     1) Shirley Pfeifer
     2)
     3)
     4)

 5:00-7:00 pm
     1) Harold Frakes
     2)
     3)
     4)

 7:00-9:00 pm
     1) Richard Gilmore
     2) Steve Maxon
     3)
     4)

SET-UP & TEAR-DOWN:
     1)
     2)
     3)
     4)

Thank you in advance for considering a shift. See you at the Fair!

July 4th Wellman Parade & Fish Fry

On July 4th, the Washington County Democrats will be participating in the Wellman Parade.  We would love to see you!  If interested in riding on the truck with Gloria to distribute candy, please contact Washington County Democrats Secretary Sonya Housholder. We will be meeting at 9:00 with the parade starting at 10:00.

Following the parade, all are invited to a fish fry at Diane and Matt Schaefer's home. Contact Sonya for the address. Please bring a dish to share and/or something to drink.

Monday, June 27, 2016

Washington County Democrats Minutes - May 10, 2016

The Washington County Democrats met at Art Domestique on Tuesday, May 10, 2016 with 15 attendees. Chairperson Lorraine Williams called the meeting to order at 6:58 pm and the Pledge of Allegiance was recited.

Minutes of the April meeting was approved as distributed and will be posted on the blog.

Kay Ciha presented the Treasurer’s report with updates to membership fees, income from the sale of food items at the 2nd District Convention, donations and the candidate fund. New expenses include a contribution to Kim Davis’ supervisor campaign ($250), the Golden Delight Bakery for pastries resold at the 2nd District convention ($225), the Washington County fair booth fee ($200) and starting petty cash at the 2nd District Convention ($200).

A motion to move $845 into the Candidate Development Fun was submitted by Harold Frakes and seconded by Doris Park. Pete Morrison reminded the club about the possibility of needing those funds for an election headquarters/office in Washington County. Kay Ciha reported the history of rent payments in previous election years 2010-2014, showing funds were, on average, needed for July-November and occasionally in May/June. Kevin Kinney lended support via feedback from his campaign history, stating that although Johnson County, Riverside, Kalona and Wellman are the most influential areas for democratic candidates, a strong presence is needed in Washington County. Having a headquarters should be carefully considered. Lorraine Williams endorsed reallocating $845 for the Candidate Development fund. Should we need those funds for a headquarters, a new discussion can take place to return them to the General Fund. A vote was called with 1 opposed. Motion passed.

Report of the Chair:
Today’s guest is Iowa Senator Kevin Kinney. Senator Kinney provided a summary of his legislative successes from the past session.
* A human trafficking/public safety legislation was passed into law.
* Narcan, an antidote for morphine overdoses, was approved for law enforcement and first responders to carry. It has already proven to save lives.
* “Peeping Tom” legislation restructured existing law to make trespassing on property with concealed cameras/recording equipment an aggravated misdemeanor with a sentence of up to 2 years in prison and thus allowing the state to obtain DNA for the database. Statistics show that this type of criminal behavior tends to elevate to crimes of sexual assault.
* The statutes of limitations on child endangerment were extended from 3 years to 10 years following the 18th birthday or 2 years after DNA identifies a perpetrator. This change was prompted by a young man who had been abused physically by a guardian well into his teenage years.
* Questions from committee members resulted in lively discussion over several issues. Salient points from that discussion are:
     o Mandatory sentences were reduced but judges have the option to increase sentencing, as they deem is necessary. The positive outcome of this change is a decreased recidivism rate with a parole officer watching/working with an individual as they are not as likely to offend again with shorter sentences.
     o The Iowa Department of Agriculture oversees organic growers and crop spraying. The State of Iowa will now be working with the Hygienic Lab, which has a test that takes 4 weeks versus the IDALS (SP?) 6-month test that the state had been using for years.
     o On water quality issues, we can't compare urban versus rural water quality. Sewage treatment plants also greatly contaminate rivers, not just farm chemicals. Senator Kinney will be participating in a water summit to identify resolutions. It is also important to note that nitrogen naturally occurs in soil. It's a complex issue without easy solutions. Some solutions may require changes to farming practices similar to the reduction of phosphorus through no till planting methods.

Old Business:
Overview of the convention: Washington County did an incredible job with the convention. The 2nd District is very pleased, although it was pointed out that the location of the convention may not remain stationary in Washington going forward.

Changes to note should we host another convention: Have a dinner plan, improve audio as members in the back of the room had difficulties hearing as well as reading the screens. Due to the lateness of the meeting adjournment, possibly consider reserving a block of hotel rooms for attendees wishing to stay over. Senator Kinney only heard good things about the convention.

Fundraiser: Auctions items were a good showing for Washington County.

State Convention carpooling needs: deferred to the June meeting.

New Business:
Jeanne Redlinger in Riverside requested that a future meeting be held in Riverside and possibly rotate throughout the county to increase attendance by other area democrats. This has been tried before without success, but the club will consider it if Jeanne finds a location and can motivate attendance.

Parades: Kay Ciha called the Washington Chamber to obtain a list of county parades. John, departing Community Events Chair, also provided a list of dates. The float for this summer's use is available at John's house. We'll use Richard's truck and distribute water. Kay will purchase red, white and blue candy.
     June 4, Washington, Ridiculous Days
     June 18, Kalona, Kalona Days
     June 25, Riverside, Trek Fest
     July 16-19, Brighton, Whoopee Days
     Sept 23-24, Kalona, Fall Festival

There are upcoming debate events for US Senate candidates (May 15, 4-6pm in Des Moines) and County Supervisor candidates (May 24 at the Washington County Library).

At the next meeting, we'll be passing around sign-up sheets for the Washington County Fair booth shifts (July 17-24) as well as for RABRAI (July 29). It was suggested the Washington County Democrats sell watermelon and pie to RAGBRAI riders.

After the primary on June 7th, we should schedule a meet and greet with Dave Loebsack. Possible location could be the lodge at Lake Darling.

Committee Reports:
Affirmative Action:
Harold Frakes suggested all attend City Council to bring up the handicap parking spot outside the YMCA. It is sloped so water collects where those with mobility challenges need to walk. It forms into ice in winter. If City Council is notified of a physical hazard, it's their responsibility to repair it. It was suggested that photos of “failures” be taken and presented at City Council for liability issues.

Candidate Development:
Marcus Fedler is running against Jared Klein. A recent interview he participated in was read aloud. Fedler has been promoted as being a less conservative candidate but the interview revealed his views are extremely conservative and rooted in strict religious belief, including views on marriage equality, planned parenthood and other issues. We need a democratic candidate to run against both Jared Klein and Marcus Fedler. Several suggestions were submitted for consideration.

Community Events:
John Greener wishes to not serve this summer due to other conflicts with family, etc.

Platform Committee:
No report.

The next meeting will occur on Tuesday, June 7, 2016 at 7:00 pm at Art Domestique.

The meeting adjourned at 8:25 pm.

Attendees: Sonya Housholder, Richard Gilmore, Kay Ciha, Mary Martin, Harold Frakes, Peter Morrison, Deb Kinney, John Greener, Kevin Kinney, Kitch Shatzer, Shirley Pfeifer, Robert Spenner, Robin Plattenberger, Steve Maxon and Doris Parks.

Washington County Democrats Minutes - April 12, 2016

The Washington County Democrats met at the Café Dodici Shop on Tuesday, April 12, 2016 with 20 attendees. Vice Chair Richard Gilmore called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm and the Pledge of Allegiance was recited.

Minutes of the February and March meetings were approved as sent out and will be posted on the blog. Kay Ciha gave the Treasurer’s report for March 8, 2016-April 12, 2016 with updates to membership fees, donations and the Candidate Fund. New expenses include Cafe Dodici ($286.87) to correct a previous entry for an in-kind donation and Washington Community Schools for caucus night facility maintenance ($63.78).

With regards to the previous entry correction, state ethics no longer permit in-kind donations. The club will need to pay Café Dodici for the value of the donation. A motion to pay Café Dodici was made by Robert Spenner, seconded by John Greener and passed unanimously.

Report of the Chair:
Today’s guests are Mary Krier, former Chairperson of the Keokuk County Democrats, Ryan Siskow, newly elected Chair of the Keokuk County Democrats, and Al Bohanan, 2nd District Chairperson and member of the Cedar County Democrats.

Robin Plattenberger read aloud a letter from Harold Frakes thanking the club for the generous donations in memory of Louise Frakes.

A brief overview of the 2nd District Convention (24 counties) was provided by Richard and Al. Delegates and alternates are being contacted to confirm attendance. In 2008 the convention went to 2:00am. In 2012, it went to 7:00pm. Anyone who wants to be a delegate or committee volunteers and has to provide a statement regarding their interest, so there could be lengthy periods of listening to their arguments for selection. There are no plans for a formal dinner, so we may be ordering pizza or sandwiches if it goes late. Because the rules provide for another realignment of preference groups, it may happen.

Old Business:
The Washington County Democrats, as hosts of the 2nd District Convention, are needed to help with setup, sales of lunch and concession items, and clean-up after the convention adjourns. Sign-up sheets were passed around for members to sign up for duties for set-up/clean-up, food serving, and money collection.

On April 29th at 5:00pm, chairs need to be moved from the Methodist Church, YMCA & Art Domestique to the Washington High School & set-up. If there is inclement weather, high school sports practices will be held inside and set-up will be delayed to 7:00pm.

On April 30th, tickets will be sold for lunch ($15.00), baked goods, soda, coffee and tea. 2-4 people are needed to plate food for 350+ attendees. There will not be a “Wine Down” afterwards. Also, a volunteer is needed to pick up baked goods from Golden Delight bakery by 7:00am. Doris Parks will pick up the baked goods with John Greener on call as a back-up. Coffee, with stir sticks & creamer/sugar included, will be provided from HyVee.

Fees will be collected as cash or checks. A motion to have Kay withdraw $200 cash for the change box was submitted, seconded and passed unanimously. With regards to the auction at the convention, state ethics now requires all raffle items need to reported, including a description, donor information & estimated value of the item(s). We need an auctioneer. Club members should approach community democrats about items to donate for the auction. We need to show-off our community, but we cannot have items from an incorporated or limited liability corporation company. For anything alcoholic, provide a certificate for the item and give it to them later. Ethics’ job is to be transparent about why an action was taken. They are there to help.

Kim Davis, 2nd District Convention Credentials Committee Member, reported all delegates are to pay a $30.00 fee either in advance via PayPal to Bob Wiese or by cash/check when registering at the convention. In the past, the club has offered to pay the fees for up to 10 delegates from Washington County. Washington currently has 9 delegates, however some delegates prefer to pay their own fees. After discussion, it was suggested that delegates pay their own fees but can submit a request for reimbursement to the club. A motion to approve was submitted by Robert Spenner, seconded by Peter Morrison and passed unanimously. The credentials committee will be using a new application to register delegates, but will plan to have paper and pen copies as back-ups. Credentials committee members will be going to training on April 24th. Mike Jesse, Chair of the Credentials Committee asks delegates to be patient at registration.

New Business:
Discussion of state convention carpooling is delayed to the next meeting. Kay Ciha suggested the club should give Art Domestique something for the use of their space & utilities.

Committee Reports:
Affirmative Action: Gary Murphy
None.

Candidate Development: Jim Gorham
Kimberly Davis is running for District 4 supervisor (Wards 1 & 4). Harold Frakes has donated $200 towards her campaign fund and hopes the club will provide funds from the Candidate Development Fund as well. Lorraine read aloud a message of support from Harold encouraging the club to be a foundation of support with regards to advice/guidance on interviews, the process of running for office, how to file expenditures, etc. In Lorraine or Harold’s (??) words “we have a young, lovely person running for office and we need to support that.” Historically the club has given $250 to supervisor candidates. Robin Plattenberger motioned to pay $250 to Kim’s campaign fund, seconded by John Greener. There was no discussion. Motion passed unanimously.

Also, Marcus Fedler, a libertarian from Washington, is running against Jared Klein.

Community events: John Greener
Convention, convention, convention.

The club needs to decide on whether or not to reserve a fair booth. The cost is the same as last year at $200. Two fair passes are provided with a booth, but additional fair passes can be purchased if needed. Season passes are $20 until June. Motion to approve reserving a fair booth was submitted by Robin Plattenberger, seconded by Robert Spenner and passed unanimously.

Platform Committee: Steve Maxon
Andrew Allison reported that the 2nd District Platform has been drafted and is ready for the convention. The 2nd District process is different from Washington County. The group breaks into subcommittees on the first day and then are fully involved on the second day.

Next Meeting: The next meeting will be Tuesday, May 10th at 7:00pm at Art Domestique.

At 8:10 pm, Robin Plattenberger motioned to adjourn. It was seconded and passed unanimously.

Attendees: Lorraine Williams, Richard Gilmore, Robin Plattenberger, Sonya Housholder, Peter Morrison, Shirley Pfeifer, Kay Ciha, Robert Spenner, Ron Carey, Kitch Shatzer, Kimberly Davis, John Greener, Isabella Santoro, Mary Krier, Ryan Siskow, Doris Park, Steve Maxon, Nan Stark, Ben Griggs, Andrew Allison.

Monday, June 20, 2016

Washington County Democrats Minutes - March 8, 2016

The Washington County Democrats met at Art Domestique on Tuesday, March 8, 2016 with 15 people present. Vice Chair Richard Gilmore called the meeting to order at 7:07 pm and the Pledge of Allegiance was recited.

The minutes of the February meeting will be distributed for approval at the April meeting. Kay Ciha gave the treasurer’s report with updates to membership fees, donation and the Candidate Fund. New bills received include the Washington High School ($63.78) for janitorial services following the caucus. Motion to pay the bill was seconded and approved unanimously.

Report of the Vice Chair:
Richard reported that the meeting was rescheduled to resolve some concerns regarding the County Convention. There has been confusion from IDP due to incomplete paperwork from precincts and both Kalona and Ward 1 precincts currently have too many delegates identified. Per IDP rules, the number and identification of delegates must be resolved prior to the convention or that precincts preference group(s) will not be seated upon registering at the convention. Additionally, the Ward 1 caucus summary does not include the Clinton preference group alternates. Kay Ciha motioned for the secretary to contact delegates to resolve issues. Richard Gilmore amended the motion for the secretary to contact both caucus chairs and preference captains to resolve delegate issues. Kay Ciha motioned to approve the amendment. Doris Park seconded. Approved by unanimous vote.

The Platform Committee is done with an excellently prepared Consent Calendar for the convention delegates to consider. A consent calendar lists new and significantly revised planks as well as planks recommended for striking by the Platform Committee.

The Rules committee is doing well, Credentials committee will be meeting this week and Arrangements committee is finalizing materials for use at the convention. The Credentials and Arrangements committees will compare lists to create a single document. Sandra Johnson will be checking with library staff during daytime hours to learn how to run their AV system for displaying the agenda and planks.

2nd District Convention:
The 2nd District Convention will remain on April 30th despite discussion to move it to another day that doesn’t conflict with Passover. There may be a planning meeting on April 2nd at the Washington Public Library. Pete Morrison will provide more information as it becomes available.

New Business:
Karen Gorham inquired about the caucus review initiated by IDP. Al Bohanan shared that the committee is chaired by Dave Nagle. He doesn’t expect significant changes. The review committee is considering the possibility of absentee ballots for caucus voting or additional satellite locations. This year was the first for satellite locations in Iowa City at Oaknoll among other sites. These sites worked out very well.

Peter Morrison motioned to adjourn the meeting at 8:00pm. Seconded by Jim Gorham. Motion passed.

Attending: Richard Gilmore, Robin Plattenberger-Gilmore, Sonya Housholder, Carol Ray, John Greener, Jim Gorham, Karen Gorham, Kay Ciha, Doris Park, Al Bohanan, Sandra Johnson, Ferd Marie, and Harold Frakes.

Washington County Democrats Minutes - February 9, 2016

The Washington County Democrats met at Art Domestique on Tuesday, February 9, 2016 with 21 people present. Chairperson Lorraine Williams called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm and the Pledge of Allegiance was recited.

The minutes of the January meeting were approved as distributed and will be posted on the blog. Kay Ciha gave the treasurer’s report with updates on membership fees, donations and the Candidate's Fund.  Bills paid include the Washington Evening Journal ($140.40) and Kalona News ($100) for caucus ads.


Report of the Chair:

Lorraine requested feedback on the caucus – what worked, what didn’t, and what should be changed in the future. At the Washington High School, maps were positioned at each entrance as well as in each of the precinct rooms. It was suggested that more maps be positioned at entrances due to the number of attendees scrambling to find their precinct locations. Most precincts, to save time, made motions to send all submitted resolutions to the platform committee without discussion at the caucus. Additionally, several precincts reported a challenge in keeping attendees in the room in order to discuss committees. There was a misleading belief among some that the caucus was only to count votes and wouldn’t last more than 30 minutes.

New Business:

The County Convention is scheduled for March 12 at the Washington Public Library with a prompt start time of 10:00 am. We will have rooms on the second floor to use. Washington County has a total of 65 delegates. Lorraine asked for volunteers for Arrangements, Credentials and Rules committees.

RAGBRAI will have an overnight stop in Washington on July 29. We’ll need candidate promotional materials for distributing and possibly a fundraiser item to sell to riders. Do we want to help coordinate lodging arrangements? It was suggested that we check with Johnson and Jefferson Counties on their processes in the past as RAGBRAI hosts. We should plan to have 150 names.


2nd District Convention Update:

The 2nd District will have a planning meeting at the high school on February 20 at 2pm in order to review and approve the site as the location for the 2nd

District Convention scheduled for April 30. The Washington County Democrats will be responsible for providing lunch on convention day.


Legislative Briefing:

The next legislative briefing will be Saturday, February 20, 10-12pm at the Washington Courthouse.

Committee Reports:

Affirmative Action: This committee is chaired by Gary Murphy. Committee members include Jackie Amigon, Sandra Johnson, Isabella Santoro and Harold Frakes.

Candidate Development: There are three supervisor positions up for election this year. Incumbents are Stan Stupes, Bob Yoder and Jack Seward. There are three candidates for the sheriff position, all republican.


Community Events: No report at this time.


Platform Committee: Steve Maxon will work with Platform Chair Matt Schaefer to schedule a meeting. Paper resolutions collected from caucus packets were given to Steve.



Meeting adjourned at 7:50 pm. The county convention will replace the routine March meeting.



Attending: Lorraine Williams, Richard Gilmore, Robin Plattenberger-Gilmore, Sonya Housholder, Robert Spenner, Sayre Bachman, Kay Ciha, Isabella Santoro, Edward Conway, Elizabeth Harris, Kate Glinsman, Nan Stark, Fred Stark, Kimberly Davis, Patty Roe, Mike Roe, Terry Philips, Lynette Hultman, James Morrison, Martha Dahlin, Doris Park, and Steve Maxon.