Following is the first newsletter from Monday.
One way we’ll involve you is to keep you informed. This is the first of the weekly newsletters I’ll be sending to you and all our supporters - updating you on what’s going on with the campaign and what you can do as a critical part of this dynamic, grassroots effort.
Things are moving fast and furious since we opened the state headquarters in Austin.
Here are just a few highlights!
· Nearly 2,000 individuals have visited our web site and pledged to vote against the Constitutional Amendment. You can help us build on that success by getting five of your friends to visit our web site www.NoNonsenseInNovember.com to pledge to vote AGAINST the Constitutional Amendment and get involved!
· More than 115 organizations from all over state have endorsed us, including the Green Party of Texas, American Veterans for Equal Rights, Potter/Randall Democratic Club, and Soulforce San Antonio. One of the most recent additions to our list of coalition members is Democracy for Texas bringing with them 25,000 activists! Check out the web site for a complete list and watch as our numbers continue to grow!!!
· We have staffers on board in Austin, Dallas and Houston, with San Antonio and Fort Worth staff soon to follow.
· The Austin/Travis County effort is being headed up by Ken Stewart and Celia Israel. Ken is an active member of the Austin community and has worked on numerous local campaigns. He currently serves as president of the Stonewall Democrats, as a Council Member on the Austin HIV Planning Council and as a precinct chair in Travis County. Celia is the owner of a local public affairs consulting firm and has represented a variety of businesses and Hispanic entities at the Texas Legislature. She’s an active volunteer in various nonprofits and political campaigns, and ran for public office herself. In addition to working with Ken in Travis County , she will coordinate our statewide outreach to the Hispanic Community. Ken and Celia are setting up offices even as you read this. You’ll be able to find them soon week at 1210 Rosewood; their phone number is: 512-236-0843.
· Reed Bogle is already hard at work as our Dallas Area Regional Coordinator. Reed has been a full-time volunteer with GLBT organizations ever since she moved to Dallas almost four years ago. Her focus has been shifting more and more to political volunteerism, so she’s in a great position to get others involved in grassroots activism. Reed serves on the Board of LGRL and Stonewall Democrats of Dallas. Folks can find out more about what’s going on with Dallas area campaign by e-mailing Reed at Reed@NoNonsenseInNovember.com
· Two local activists are heading up our field operations in the Houston area. Kathryn Chace McNiel and Emily Langdon will serve as Houston Area Regional Campaign Coordinators, organizing voters in one of the state’s largest metropolitan areas. Kathryn has more than twenty years experience managing political advocacy, fundraising and communication campaigns. A Houston native, she is an active member of the Houston community, serving on the board of directors of the Montrose Clinic and the Citizens Environmental Coalition. Emily, a graduate of the University of Houston, is a founding member of the Houston Equal Rights Alliance and most recently worked on the Howard Dean campaign. Houston should have its office open by mid-August.
· The BIG news is that we’ll soon have our statewide database ready. This robust tool will give us critical information we can use for block walking and phone banking. The database project has been really fun – and challenging - to work on. It is really important to our “get-out-the-vote” efforts and will make us extremely effective.
· Another element critical to our effectiveness is that we deliver a consistent message. We’re getting results from our early polling and starting to incorporate what we’ve learned into collateral items, such as speeches, talking points, flyers and other tools you will be able to download to help you speak up against the Constitutional Amendment. Once those items are ready, we’ll let you all know, and we’ll activate our Speakers Bureau, with a very pro-active outreach effort.
· I am already out there talking to folks every chance I can. It was great to go live last week on "Lambda Weekly" with a whole hour devoted to talking about the campaign on the KNON-Dallas talk-radio show. Next week, I am speaking to the North Texas GLBT Chamber of Commerce. Thanks to everyone who’s already helping to get the word out! The buzz is starting, and we are fueling it!
It’s great to have you with us as we work together to stand up for all Texas families and defeat the Constitutional Amendment in November!!
And, as always, please feel free to respond by email or using the links provided at www.NoNonsenseInNovember.com to send us your concerns, ideas, actions and your money … we need all of those resources to mount a successful campaign!
Glen Maxey
Campaign Director
Posted by Karl-Thomas Musselman at August 13, 2005 01:11 AM
| TrackBack
