February 2025
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| | President's Message
from
Emily Bridson | | | | Greater Tucson League Members,
I’m happy to report that the Board of Directors had a successful retreat just a few short weeks ago. We discussed proposed updates to the bylaws and reviewed how our committees are structured. As a volunteer organization, we want to make sure everyone who raises a hand to volunteer can contribute in a meaningful way to advance our mission. Our goal at the retreat was to see what worked well this past year and what could be improved.
Save the date for our Annual Business Meeting: Friday, April 25th, at Pima Community College’s Desert Vista campus, starting at 10:00am.
All LWVGT members are welcome! There are many good reasons to attend, not the least of which is that those in attendance will have a say in proposed changes to our bylaws. We will also recognize LWVGT members with awards for their important contributions. An inspiring keynote speaker, Dr. Delores Duran-Cerda, Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs at Pima Community College, will join us to share some of her insights as a leader in higher education.
Please mark your calendars and plan to join us. You will get a chance to learn more about our organization, have important input into the organization, meet new friends, and enjoy spending time with those who care about our mission of empowering voters and defending democracy.
| In recognition of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, we held a National Day of Racial Healing program on January 18th. Thank you to our partners, the Tucson Branch of the NAACP and the YWCA, for their leadership and collaboration with our team. We were able to bring the community together to listen and learn from each other while continuing to work together for the good of all.
An important event you can attend is Legislative Day, scheduled for Thursday, March 6th. On this day we will travel to the state capital to speak with our legislators. We have reserved a bus to transport us safely from Tucson to Phoenix and back. You can sign up to reserve a space on the bus HERE. We hope to have a large showing from LWVGT as we lobby for public schools, climate change solutions, and affordable housing, just to name a few concerns.
The following day, Friday, March 7th, the Issues & Eggs Breakfast Forum will be held at the DoubleTree by Hilton-Reid Park, beginning at 8:00am. Our annual fundraiser will explore the connections between domestic violence and housing for this vulnerable population. As evidenced by letters to the editor in local newspapers and questions raised at candidate forums, both are issues of concern to our community. You can register to attend our Issue & Eggs event HERE.
Let’s start the year right by leaning into kindness, hope, and action.
Thank you for all you do,
Emily Bridson
LWVGT President
presidentlwvtucson@gmail.com
| | | Opportunities to Serve!
LWVAZ
| LWVAZ has the following open positions for 2025-2027:
President-Elect (May 2025-May 2026); President (May 2026-May 2027)
Treasurer (May 2025-May 2027)
Secretary (May 2025-May 2027)
Nominating Committee Chair (May 2025-May 2027)
If you are interested in learning more about these positions or if you would like to be considered for one of them, please contact the Nominating Committee at: leonardconsult@aol.com. Please share this notice with League members whom you admire and feel would be excellent additions to the State League Executive Team. Complete job descriptions are available from the Nominating Committee.
Warm regards,
Connie Cornelius, LWVAZ Secretary | LWVUS has changed the way membership dues are handled. As a result, LWVAZ needs to modify its bylaws and may have other bylaw issues to consider. The Bylaws Committee needs members to help and is seeking at least one member from each local League. The Bylaws Committee will be conducting its first meeting soon and is looking forward to having help from your League. If interested, Michele's contact information is below.
Thank you,
Michele Garrick Nave
303.526.1520
lwvmgn@gmail.com |
DEI Outreach Committee
January 30th, 2025
| | Nancy and Neil Norton tabled at the YWCA Women's Business Conference. They collected contact information from 20 people interested in the LWVGT!
Nancy and Neil's commitment to building community relationships and making connections on behalf of the LWVGT is greatly appreciated.
Thank you!
| | |
National Day of Racial Healing
Photos from January 18th, 2025
| Thanks to the NDRH Committee members and everyone who helped make this a successful event.
You can read a wonderful article about the program, and see more photos at Tucson Spotlight HERE. | Gun Violence Prevention Committee | HB2512: Don't Let A Good Bill Die
The LWVGT Gun Violence Prevention Committee has identified a bill that addresses many of the issues we identified over the past several months related to the challenges of removing firearms by perpetrators of domestic violence. Current law prohibits the possession of firearms for those who are convicted of domestic violence or are under a protective order. However, there is no clearly enforceable mechanism to secure firearms after a judge has ordered them to be surrendered. HB2512 provides concrete steps toward achieving this goal.
This bill has been assigned to a committee, but needs a hearing. We are asking all LWVGT members to contact Rep. Nguyen, Chair of the House Judiciary Committee, urging him to hold a hearing for HB2512.
| Membership Renewals Start Monday, February 3rd, 2025
• When the new membership portal launches February 3rd, you will receive an email to log in to the portal, but you will not be asked to renew again until a year after your most recent renewal.
• You will be given the option to sign up to auto-renew annually, and your membership will last a year after your last renewal. Once you have access to the portal, you will be able to update your own information, including contact information.
• When it comes time to renew, you will receive an email reminder. Dues will no longer be a fixed rate but will be pay-what-you-can. The recommended dues amount for all members across the country will be $75.00, but members can pay any amount (minimum $20.00), including the current dues rate.
• Under the new system, a percentage of dues will go to the state and national League. This means that when you renew, if you would like to make an additional contribution directly to LWVGT, as some members choose to when they renew, this will need to be separate from choosing a higher dues amount. A higher dues amount benefits the LWVUS as a whole and allows us to offer the option of lower dues to increase our member base, but does not exclusively support your local League.
• There will still be the option to renew by check for members who are not comfortable paying online but members who are able to access the portal and renew are encouraged to do so. | Technology and Website Committee
| | The new LWVGT Mobile App is now available!
Once logged in, you can browse the app as you would the website with added functionality like Mobile Channels, Meet Up, Direct Messaging, and Push Notifications.
| | | | Issues & Eggs Breakfast Forum 2025
"Safe Lives, Safe Homes: Examining the Connection between Domestic Violence and Housing"
When: Friday, March 7th, 2025
Where: DoubleTree by Hilton Tucson
445 S. Alvernon Way, Tucson, AZ
Time: 8:00am-10:30am
Issues & Eggs Committee Meetings
When: Friday, February 7th, 2025, 3:30pm-5:00pm
Where: LWVGT Office Conference Room
800 N Swan, Suite 126
Tucson, AZ 85711
When: Tuesday, February 18th, 2025, 10:00am-11:30am
Where: LWVGT Office Conference Room
800 N Swan, Suite 126
Tucson, AZ 85711
| | |  | Registration is open for the LWVGT 12th Annual Issues & Eggs Breakfast Forum!
The registration page is HERE.
The subject for this year’s event is addressing domestic violence and housing for this vulnerable population. The 2025 panel includes: Laura Conover, Pima County Attorney; Anna Harper, Emerge Center Against Domestic Violence; Chad Kasmar, Tucson Chief of Police; and Diana Sheldon, Sister Jose Women's Center.
LWVGT members can purchase a table for 10 for $500. This discounted price is exclusively for LWVGT members. Support this important event and the LWVGT by purchasing a table! Consider sharing a table with a fellow League member.
Because of the importance of the topic, we expect that this year's event will be even more successful than last year's. To ensure attendance, purchase your table, or individual tickets today!
NOTE: If you are a LWVGT member buying a table of 10, enter '1' in the 'Member-Table of 10" and then enter '9' in the Member GUESTS -table of 9. Click NEXT until you are on the page to enter your guest's information. | Deadline to drop off your donations for raffle prizes will be announced soon.
It's possible that over the holiday season you received a lovely gift (or two) that you don't really need. If so, please consider donating it to our Issues & Eggs raffle. You'll be able to drop off any lovely items at the LWVGT office. The address and office hours are HERE.
We will have multiple raffle baskets, and you'll be able to purchase additional tickets. |
Voter Registration
Tucson Festival of Books
March 15th and 16th, 2025
|  | | The Tucson Festival of Books is coming up on March 15th and 16th. LWVGT has always had a booth at this wonderful event, and 2025 is no exception.
We need 16 people to take two-hour shifts over the weekend. You will provide basic information about voter registration and the LWVGT. Perhaps you can sign up new members!
|  | There will be two people for each shift. If you have never been to the festival before, you are in for a treat. Authors in all genres give talks and participate on panels. Information is available online about the authors, vendors, and location at this link: Tucson Festival of Books.
Before or after your shift you can attend sessions, browse the booths and watch free entertainment. It is the best event in Tucson for anyone who loves books. The volunteer link that includes days and times for shifts is on the LWVGT website HERE.
| | |
Getting to Know
Gun Violence Prevention Committee Chair
| | The Voter: Tell us about your background.
Kathy Aros: I’ve lived in Tucson and in Benson, and then back to Tucson. I’ve taught piano, flute, and guitar, I’ve run a delicatessen. After that, I worked as a case manager for various organizations. After retiring I joined the League in 2016.
The Voter: What prompted you to join the LWVGT?
Kathy Aros: Politics and the election. 2015 was the first time I’d gotten myself really involved. I volunteered for Voter Registration, as an office desk volunteer, and other committees. I became LWVGT President in 2020 exactly one month after COVID hit.
The Voter: Tell me about your current role as Committee Chair for the Gun Violence Prevention Committee.
Kathy Aros: First, here’s a little history. In 2019 I attended a LWVAZ convention in Prescott, AZ. There had just been a mass shooting at a school and at the time, the LWVAZ didn’t have its own position on gun violence or gun safety. I proposed at the convention that the League undertake a two-year study, and they approved it. Because the proposal was initiated by a Greater Tucson member, it was assumed that we would take the lead on the study.
The team that we put together put in thousands of hours. We debated, we argued, we created documents, we created surveys, and we presented programs to individual Arizona leagues. We arrived at a comprehensive gun safety position statement. We presented that at the 2021 LWVAZ convention, and it was approved unanimously. With the gun safety position in place, it was no longer a study team, and it moved to the LWVAZ Advocacy Committee.
Unfortunately, we had limited opportunities to use our position to be very active and the group gradually disbanded. Then, in 2023, a small number of Greater Tucson members regrouped and decided to pursue gun violence issues. At that time, we focused on straw purchases and prohibited purchasers. In 2024 the team began what we called ‘listening sessions.’ And we did that with politicians, law enforcement, judges, medical professionals, and groups serving clientele touched by gun violence. Our point in doing this was to learn about the main barriers in Pima County to improving the safety of Pima County residents. We also wanted to know what legislation would be the most helpful to these different groups.
| The connection between firearms and domestic violence is important. More than half of female homicide victims are killed by a current or former intimate partner. Firearms are used in more than 50% of these homicides. That’s what we’re focused on, and we’ll be bringing this information to the upcoming Issues & Eggs event on March 7th. Register HERE.
The Voter: Why is this committee important to you?
Kathy Aros: I have invested a lot of time and effort. The people who were on the team back then and the people who are on the committee now are so passionate about this issue. They really are change agents. The only thing I’m really doing is wrangling. I am not the leader; I am a team member. I organize and schedule the meetings and am the point person. But it’s the rest of the team that is doing everything. Kudos to them!
They are so eager to effect some positive change. It’s important to me because it’s so important to them.
The Voter: What have you learned about yourself through your advocacy, your volunteering, your tie with LWVGT?
Kathy Aros: I like to think I have become a better person through the League. The League has been instrumental in educating me about so many different things that I never took the time to think of before. For instance, I’m involved in both LWVGT Book Clubs: the DEI Book Club and the LWVGT Book Club. The groups are fairly small, but the conversations are wonderful and very lively. It’s a safe space for everyone to throw out ideas and opinions. I’ve learned so much! I so enjoy feeling like I’m constantly learning.
The Voter: If members are interested in joining your committee, when and how do you meet?
Kathy Aros: Reach out directly to me. The more the merrier! We’ve been meeting weekly on Mondays on Zoom. But after Issues & Eggs we may be meeting bi-monthly. kathyks1@aol.com
The Voter: How do you recharge and refresh, so you don’t burn out and continue the work that’s so important to you?
Kathy Aros: I try to play the piano every day. I’m in a wine tasting group. I have two big dogs that require a lot of my attention.
| | | How You Can Make an Impact
and Support
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)
|
Honor and Support DEI by Exploring
Black History Month
February 2025
|
A few local resources
African American Museum of Southern Arizona HERE
Pima County Public Library HERE
University of Arizona Events HERE
Tucson Unified School District Resources HERE
The Dunbar Pavilion, Tucson, AZ HERE.
Black History Month at the Smithsonian HERE
National Museum of African-American History & Culture HERE
PBS Unveils 2025 Black History Month Lineup HERE
| We want to hear from you!
All committees and members are encouraged to submit articles and information to be published in The Voter. Photos of events are also welcome. However, be sure that LWVGT members allow their photo to be used.
Please note the 20th of the month is the final deadline for the next issue. However, exceptions can be made if your event happens late in the month. The editor may reach out to Committee Chairs requesting summaries and photos for events that occur late in the month.
Submissions are welcome at To submit an article for The Voter
| | Elected Officers
President: Emily Bridson
President-Elect: Betsy Boggia
Secretary: Barb Colvin
Treasurer: Patricia Tapke
Voter Services: Linda Maccabe
Public Programs: Teresa M. Jenkins
Membership: Kate Stewart
Advocacy: Lovely Ganthier | | Board-Appointed Directors
2024-2025
Sadie Shaw
OPEN
OPEN
Elected Directors
2024-2026
Bob DeLaney
Isabel Georgelos
Linda M. Longlet
2024-2025
Teleia Taumanu
Grace Marie Theesfeld
OPEN
| | | Click HERE to find The Voter and other newsletters.
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Official Address
800 N Swan Suite 126
Tucson, AZ 85711
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