Emailing - League of Women Voters Jacksonville First Coast

The Voter

June 2025

President’s Message

Moving Forward As A Board

Each year, our members gather for our Annual Business meeting to weigh in on how we will invest our League funds, how we will govern our chapter and who will be entrusted to lead our organization. We appreciate all the members who were able to join us for this year's meeting!

This year we are excited to have Victoria Bryant-Riggins join us as our Treasurer and have our outgoing Treasurer Hattie Kaufman decide to remain on the board as a general board member. We are also excited to have Michelle Charron Hollie remain on the board and have Juanita Powell-Williams join the board. Their biographies were provided to our members prior to the business meeting and we hope that you will take the opportunity to meet and get to know them at future League events.

Our first function as a new board will be board orientation which we conduct each year with the full board. During this time, we review our League history, nonpartisan policy, study and action guidelines, and develop our League Luncheon speaker's list for the coming year. While we will be focusing on the year ahead of us, we will also take time to say goodbye to our departing board members Emily Ray, Deb Miller, and Angela DeMonbreun.

Emily has attended the Duval Voting Rights Coalition meetings and kept us informed and engaged on local election concerns and opportunities. Deb Miller served as our Director of Technology for eight years and was a key player in our migration to Club Express, developing our website, maintaining our social media presence, and ensuring

our board was able to utilize all of our technology and communicate with our membership. She has also been our Vote411.org Coordinator since we first began using the online nonpartisan voting guide and we are thankful that she has agreed to continue in this role.Angela DeMonbreun is our longest serving board member (13 years), is a past LWVJFC President and has served as our Environment / Natural Resources Director. She has represented our chapter in our community liaisons and spoken at a number of events over the years. Her work as Chief Operating Officer at Solar United Neighbors has afforded us an inside view of clean energy and the move to improve solar energy in Florida. We wish all of them well in the future work and will continue to call on them for their expertise and League knowledge.

Lanelle Phillmon

President, LWVJFC

News & Events

Action Needed to Save Solar Energy

Last week the House of Representatives passed a budget that repealed several important solar policies. This included tax credits for homeowners who install solar. The budget now moves to the Senate for a vote so we need Senator Rick Scott and Senator Ashley Moody to hear from as many of their constituents as possible.

The Senate plans to vote on the House’s budget bill by July 4. This means we only have a few weeks left to save critical solar policies. The non-profit Solar United Neighbors Is asking constituents who have benefited from solar energy to share their story by meeting with their senators. They will provide talking points and best practices for your meeting and help you share your solar story. The meetings can be done virtually or in person. Schedule a meeting and sign up for a training session to prepare you for your meeting.

You can also call your senator’s office and let them know you support solar energy and oppose these cuts. You can reach Florida Senators Rick Scott and Ashley Moody through the Capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121 or via 5calls.org.

Ideas for Guest Speakers

Each year our board reviews our Local Program and invites speakers to address our members. These speakers serve to educate and engage us on issues that impact our local community. We are asking our members to provide suggestions for speakers that the board can consider during our upcoming planning meeting. We ask that you consider issues being worked on by our Chapter and areas of education that could benefit our members. When making a suggestion keep in mind that we are a nonpartisan political organization meaning we neither endorse nor oppose political parties or candidates but focus on the issues. We appreciate your input.

Speaker Suggestion Input: https://forms.gle/Pg4rVTnVAndVSZTx7

Deadline for input is June 30th.

Just a reminder that our "Lunch with the League" at Seasons 52 is on hiatus over the summer and will begin again September 3, 2025.

What Should We Focus On In The Coming Year?

Our Local Program serves as our compass to guide us in the work we will commit to in the coming year. It is developed by our chapter members and reflects the issues, challenges and opportunities that exist in our four counties. Each year, we update the program to ensure it reflects the current areas of focus for our time and energy.

We will hold two in person Local Program development meetings on June 14th and July 19th at different locations (see registration link). We hope you can attend at least one.

For those who are not able to attend in person, you are welcome to offer your input via email at lwvjaxfc@gmail.com (put LOCAL PROGRAM INPUT in your subject line) or via the space provided in the registration link below.

Registration link: https://forms.gle/tUbTMvhULkCQR53M9

We ask that you contribute input that reflects the work YOU are willing to do with committees and not work that you would like to create for others to do.

All suggestions will be considered by the new board members, and a recommended program will be put before the general membership via newsletter within 60 days of the annual meeting and voted on by the general membership within 100 days of the annual meeting.

Save The Date!

We will host a luncheon on Sunday, August 17th at the UNF - Adam W. Herbert University Center in observance of the Anniversary of the 19th Amendment Ratification. We are working out the details of the event but hope you will save this date to join us.

Get Out And About And Do Some Good!

While our chapter does not have any immediate events planned with our environmental partners, we hope that over the summer our members will take advantage of the many opportunities that allow us to support local conservation, resilience and environmental work. Here's just a few organizations that create opportunities to learn and contribute to our community:

St Johns Riverkeeper

https://stjohnsriverkeeper.org/events/

Sierra Club Florida Chapter

https://www.sierraclub.org/florida/northeast-florida/get-outdoors

Groundwork Jacksonville

https://www.groundworkjacksonville.org/events/

Scenic Jacksonville

https://www.scenicjax.org/scenic-places/

1000 Friends of Florida

https://1000fof.org/upcoming-webinars/

Membership Update

New Members - Welcome aboard!

Deborah Jones

Carolyn Godwin

Miriam Dudiak

Janet Shelfer

Wendy Brezin

Interested in being part of the League? JOIN TODAY!

Donors

Donations are always appreciated!

We wish to acknowledge and thank those who made donations this month:

Risa Kaufman, in honor of Hattie Kaufman for Mothers Day

Chase Jones

Dana Welker

Paige Gottlieb

Our website lwvjaxfc.org offers an easy way to make donations to LWVJFC, even if you prefer to pay by check. Click on the red "Donate" button at the top of the Homepage.

Stay Connected

Local

Stay up-to-date on all local upcoming events on the LWV of Jacksonville / First Coast:

• Website

• Facebook

• LinkedIn

Regional
The Regional Facebook Group, LWV Florida North Region Leagues, includes Alachua, Bay, Jacksonville/First Coast, Okaloosa & Walton, Pensacola Bay Area, and Tallahassee.

State
For statewide news and action items, visit the LWV of Florida.

National

The League of Women Voters of the United States

Contact Us!

Phone: 904-355-8683

Email: LWVJAXFC@gmail.com

Postal Address:
League of Women Voters of Jacksonville First Coast
PO Box 330353
Atlantic Beach, FL 32233

The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan political organization encouraging informed and active participation in government. We influence public policy through education and advocacy.

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