AAUW MISSION

Mission: AAUW advances equity for women and girls through advocacy, education and research.

VISION STATEMENT

Vision: AAUW will be a powerful advocate and visible leader in equity and education through research, philanthropy, and measurable change in critical areas impacting the lives of women and girls.

Sunday, January 7, 2018


Grand Rapids Timberline
    

NEWS FOR AND ABOUT
AAUW GRAND RAPIDS
BRANCH MEMBERS

EDITOR: Arlene Wheaton, Arlene@honeybearwoods.com (218) 232-4989

Volume 42, Issue 4           January 2018
 


January 15 Lunch Meeting & Program

**NOTE: Time change to noon hour vs. evening for January & February meetings.

Location: United Methodist Church, Grand Rapids
REGISTER/SOCIAL: 11:30-12:00 AM  LUNCH: 12:00 PM     BUSINESS MTG:  12:30 PM          PROGRAM: 12:40 PM
MENU:  Soup, salad, bar & coffee
COST: $10
Reservations due to Deanna Ensley by end of business day, Fri., Jan. 12. Call 218-301-0315 or email deannaensley@yahoo.com

TOPIC: Between the Trapeze Bars
Speaker: Megan Kellin, local business owner

Serial entrepreneur and bootstrapper extraordinaire, Megan Kellin understands the ebbs and flows in business and the power of enthusiasm. Mom to two awesome kids and proprietor of multiple thriving start-ups, including Lake Time Magazine and Lake Bride Magazine, The Lake + Co. Shop, be.Media House and Hotel Rapids. Her professional background in PR and global travels have elevated her community leadership and passion to promote, collaborate and ultimately support the spirit of business through narratives and reconstruction in the north country.
New Member Corner

We will hold a New Member Orientation immediately following the January lunch meeting. The orientation will begin around 1:15.   If you have not attended an orientation previously, please attend.

If you have a guest at the meeting, she is welcome to attend also. All Board members are encouraged to attend.

Welcome Four New Members!
We are pleased to welcome these new members who have joined our Branch in the past month or so.
                    Dianne Anderson
                    Deena Scherkenback
                    Lily Winter
                    Alida Zimmerman

Fundraiser THANK YOU

Thank you to all our members for your generous support for our scholarship fund.   We raised $902 at our December meeting from this auction! Your creative dessert items made it fun to bid! This is the highest amount raised to date, so I want to thank each of you for your support and generosity to make this fundraiser a success!

Mid-term AAUW Membership Dues

From Jan. 1 until Feb. 28, the AAUW membership dues will be reduced by 50% ($75/2 = $37.50).  From March 1 until fiscal year end, the dues will return to $75, but that amount will cover the remaining months of this fiscal year and all of next year.

For any questions, feel free to contact Cheryl Vogel, treasurer, 763-229-8098 or cherylvogel@mediacombb.net

State Convention coming to Grand Rapids

We have just recently been approached by Minnesota AAUW to host the 2019 AAUW State Convention. Our Board has approved the idea. The likely location will be the Timberlake Convention Center.  Deanna Ensley and Cyndy Agle are working on the preliminaries at this time. Deanna will be attending the AAUW State Board Meeting in Apple Valley on January 19-20 to get this officially blessed and to gather all the appropriate information, direction and expectations. Deanna and Cyndy spoke with MN AAUW President Jan Benson on Jan. 3 to cover many details and questions.

Deanna plans to recruit a planning committee within the next few weeks, (Cyndy will be away until April), and then schedule the first 2019 Grand Rapids AAUW State Convention Committee meeting in early February.  Please contact Deanna if you you are interested in this committee…Deanna or Cyndy may be contacting you. Thank you for your cooperation and interest!

Deanna Ensley, 218-301-0315, 360-333-0228 Cell/text deannaensley@yahoo.com
Cyndy Agle 218-360-9743 Cell/text cyndy.agle@gmail.com

** INTEREST GROUPS **
Are you interested in starting an interest group?  Great!  Any member may start an interest group.  An interest group can meet monthly, weekly and for any length of time.  The members determine their own agendas and arrangements for meetings The meetings are open to all AAUW members and their guests.  The member directory has more information about the current active interest groups. Contact program co-chairs Joanne Bakken or Marilyn Rossman with questions.
EXPLORING OUR COMMUNITY
Field trips to various places of interest. Dates & times TBD. For more info, contact Co-Chairs: Cyndy Agle, 360-9743, cyndy.agle@gmail.com or Janis Johnson, 326-3595, janisjohnson@yahoo.com
LITERATURE – Wednesday group
This group meets at 10:30AM on 2nd Wednesday, Grand Rapids Area Library River Room, September-May.  Contact is Barbara Zimmer, 327-0911 or kbzimmer@q.com
Jan. 10: Dead Wake by Erik Larson
Feb. 14: The Underground Railroad  by Colson Whitehead

LITERATURE – Monday group
Group meets on 1st Monday at 10:00 AM at Grand Rapids State Bank Annex.  Contact is Jan Hill, 246-979 or jmhgkh@paulbunyan.net
Jan. 8: La Rose by Louise Erdich; Leader is Jan Hill.
PUBLIC POLICY
The group will meet on Jan. 11, 4 to 5:30, at the KAXE Meeting Room.  Our guest will be Sandy Layman, our representative to the Minnesota Legislature. We will be having a conversation about our AAUW members and Sandy’s ideas and issues for our legislature this year and long range. 

All members of our Grand Rapids Branch are invited to attend. Please reply to Marilyn Rossman if you would like to attend. The meeting room at the KAXE radio station is probably limited to 20 people at most.  If we have more than that we will meet at the Library or other larger accommodations. Attendees will have an opportunity to give their three most important issues for this 2018 session. And we will listen to Sandy’s opinions and major issues. This is all in a semi-structured way in order to have all listen and learn.   

Some of the regular attendees with the Public Policy Group have been reading All the Single Ladies book.  If you have not started with the book and want to read something else about the issues important for women, please do so.  If you want suggestions, call Marilyn, 326-6775 or mbro@paulbunyan.net We will use our reading for discussion at our Feb. 9 meeting.

WALKING & TALKING
Group is flexible and open to all members. The social contact is important and the pace varies; if you are looking for speed-walking and a serious workout, this is not your group. Currently we meet on Tuesdays at 1 PM.

We walk for 1 to 1 1/2 hours and then have coffee. As the weather cools the day and time will switch to Tuesday afternoons at 1 PM.  Switch is decided by the group. We walk in the Grand Rapids area on trails and neighborhood streets. Location changes from week to week as chosen by the group. Group is notified by email of next location. To join the group, call or email Karen Karls, 326-2053, k.karls@yahoo.com

 “In the 21st century, women will change the nature of power, rather than power changing the nature of women.”

― Bella Abzug, former New York Congresswoman


________________________________________________________________________
Scholarship applications for AAUW Scholarship
From Sarah Copeland

Scholarship applications for the AAUW Anniversary Scholarship (Grand Rapids Branch) are available starting January 15. Women interested in continuing their education should apply online through the Community Foundation website at: www.gracf.org

ISD 318 Referendum vote postponed

In followup to the presentation on the ISD 318 elementary schools referendum at our October program meeting, here’s an update:

At the School Board meeting on Nov. 14, ISD 318 Superintendent Joni Olson recommended that the Board target April 10, 2018 for a referendum vote on the facilities plan developed by the Elementary Facilities Taskforce, rather than a February date that was under consideration.

Read more in Nov. 15 Herald Review article at: http://www.grandrapidsmn.com/free_press/isd-moving-closer-to-april-public-vote-on-elementary-school/article_1c6d8d1c-ca0f-11e7-80a4-17a890bf883d.html


JANUARY BIRTHDAYS – Best Wishes!

1 - Kathleen Possai   2 – Marney Smith     9 – Margaret Koch   
10 – Janet Stejskal   25 – Alexandra Zimmerman
 27 – Marian Barry Louise Koglin Fideldy, Karen Wennen 
28 – Brenda Ruud

AAUW GRAND RAPIDS BOARD MEETING
November 20, 2017, United Methodist Church

Members present at the Grand Rapids AAUW branch board meeting were Cheryl Vogel, Jan Miland, Marj Lavalier, Marva Jean Hutchens, Deanna Ensley, Cyndy Agle, Nancy Raymond.

Marj made a motion, seconded by Cheryl, that Cyndy give the caterers, Linda
Wheeler and Sandy Washburn a Christmas gift of $25 each. Passed.

Of the several guests at the November meeting, two have joined already with more probable. It was suggested that we have another $5 per guest at the April meeting.

Lauren Larson from Visit Grand Rapids, was in attendance to help with our planning for the September 15, 2018 regional meeting that we are hosting. She handed out the official visitors guide and said anyone can visit www.visitgrandrapids.com for any information. A suggested schedule of the day might look like this: 9:30 registration/coffee, 10:00 tour of Keisler House, 11:00 speaker, 12:00 lunch.
Other suggestions were: have table hosts, $25 registration to include post card of the picture, Grace, tours in the afternoon of the Historical Society , Reif Center and other places.

Lauren will put together a welcome bag to be given out at the registration table. She will also talk to caterer, Barb Shack, to get a price for food.  It is suggested we get the first mailing out soon for save the date and then the next mailing in May.

Jean Hoshal sent word that she had received an email about our branch selecting an honored member for $750 to be sent to a state fund. After discussion, we decided it would be better to do something locally to honor women. A committee would choose a member or a community member or members. A donation in their name or names would be given to our scholarship fund.

Marva Jean will make a sign-up sheet for volunteers to help with the AAUW NE Minnesota regional Saturday event. It will be available at the December meeting. The next board meeting will be Monday, January 22, 2018, 3:45 pm, at the United Methodist Church.

$902 was raised for scholarships at the December 4, 2017 event.

Respectfully submitted, Jan Miland, Secretary

AAUW GRAND RAPIDS BRANCH MEETING
November 13, 2017 United Methodist Church

Marva Jean Hutchins opened the November 13,2017 Grand Rapids AAUW branch meeting with the introduction of many guests. Marilyn Rossman passed out blank cards for members to write questions for the speaker, Representative Sandy Layman. Marva Jean thanked the caterers. Jan Mary Hill mentioned that the picture book, pre-school bookshelf she keeps supplied needs more books, which can be given to her.

The next board meeting will be Monday, November 20, 2017 at the United Methodist Church.

Cyndy Agle reported that the December 4th meeting, fundraiser and Christmas party is set to go at the Eagles.

Travel treasures were brought by Janis Johnson, Kathy Pliska and Jane O’Leary. The money raised is for scholarships.

President Marva Jean, introduced the speaker, Representative Sandy Layman. She had asked Sandy to tell her story and how her life’s journey prepared her for dealing with political issues. The question cards were collected for another time.

Respectfully submitted, Jan Miland, secretary

ADVANCING EQUITY FOR WOMEN & GIRLS – FOR MORE INFORMATION
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION  www.aauw.org

AAUW MINNESOTA www.aauwmn.net
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