Open the Floodgates
And Stuff Your eMailbox
Your email box may soon be stuffed full with League business, but there’s a good reason. We want to keep you informed at both the state and local levels…informed about upcoming events…informed about volunteer opportunities…informed about legislative actions…informed about upcoming elections.
So, our apologies in advance. We just want to give you every opportunity to contribute to our cause, and give you all the information you need to do that.
Jim Calvert
Editor.
| Word from Above
Missouri League of Women Voters President Marilyn McCleod
“You have no doubt heard about the launch of the Reproductive Freedom Initiative Petition on the news. I am pleased to let you know that LWVMO has endorsed this petition.”
Please read the full details on the State League’s website here!
Please read an article about this issue here!
| Monthly Membership Meeting
Luana Chaires, Digital Relational Organizing Manager with the League of Women Voters, will present information on LWV's non-partisan digital platform where anyone who believes in the League's mission can directly connect and take action on issues impacting their communities.
Luana Chaires holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from St. Edward’s University. Luana’s experience includes working in state and federal elected representatives’ offices as a constituent caseworker where she developed a passion to ensure every citizen had fair and equal representation.
When: February 10, 2024 Social Time starts at 9:30 a.m., and then at 10 we get to work
Where: Zoom here! Meeting ID 836 0146 0078 | | New Member Orientation
Mix and Mingle at Waldo Pizza
Just joined the League? Whether you joined in the last week, or in past months, please join us on Saturday, February 17th at Waldo Pizza from 4-5 in the south room.
When: February 17, 2024 4:00 pm
Where: Waldo Pizza, South Room, 7433 Broadway St
Mix and Mingle at Stockyards Brewing Co.
There will be New Member Orientation, followed by a Mix and Mingle. All members and their guests are invited to attend. You'll meet other new members, as well as League officers and current committee chairs, learn about the League, and how you can fit in.
When: March 23, 2024 New Member Orientation 3:00 pm, Mix and Mingle 4:00 pm
Where: Stockyards Brewing Company, 1600 Genessee St #100from 3-4pm at Stockyards Brewing Company (1600 Genessee St #100)
Email Laura with questions here!
| | Committee Meetings
Find Your Committee Meeting
Membership Committee Meeting
When: February 6, 2024 4:30 pm - 5:30 pm
Where: Zoom here! Meeting ID 883 9933 0170
Social Media Committee Meeting
When: February 6, 2024 7:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Where: Zoom here! Meeting ID 837 7993 9328
Vote411 Committee Meeting
When: February 7, 2024 12:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Where: Zoom here! Meeting ID 829 0479 6116
Get Out the Vote (GOTV) Committee Meeting
When: February 20, 2024 4:00 pm - 5:30 pm
Where: Zoom here! Meeting ID 810 3585 7136
Technology Committee Meeting
When: February 29, 2024 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Where: Zoom Here! Meeting ID 833 9544 4641
Forums Committee Meeting
When: March 4, 2024 6:30 pm
Where: Zoom here! Meeting ID 894 9507 9328
LWVKC Calendar
| Candidate Forums
School Board Forums in the Works
The Forums Committee, with 2 Independence City Council Primary forums completed, is already busy planning their next round of forums before the April 2 school board elections. Interest is high this year in school district governance and 4 of the 9 districts we are looking at have over 6 candidates vying for only 2 or 3 seats. As always, we encourage you to attend all of these forums but also encourage you to send in questions particular to your district and/or schools in general. Also, ask the students you know to send in questions….DEI? Book censorship? Dress codes? School security? If you are wondering about it, so are others.
Send questions here!
|  | Sunshine Laws:
Cornerstones of a Healthy Democracy
Sunshine Amid the Storms
“Sunshine Amid the Storms,” will features Dan Margolies, recently retired journalist with KCUR-FM, in conversation with First Amendment lawyers Bernie Rhodes of Lathrop GPM; and Jean Maneke of The Maneke Group, as well as a representative from the Missouri Attorney General's office.
The panel will begin with a brief explanation of Sunshine Laws that were written in 1973, and that generally provide for public access to government meetings,documents, and decisions.
Join the panel discussion
When: March 11, 2024 6:30 pm
Where: Shook, Hardy, and Bacon Law Office, 2555 Grand Blvd
Zoom here!
| Observer Corps
Quarterly Report- Fourth Quarter 2023
Observer Corps members attend public meetings in person or online and alert LWVKC leadership of any issues that may require action on the part of the League. One of the perks of working with the Observer Corps is developing a much greater understanding of how effectively our local governments work – the issues, the resources, and the personalities. Observers do just that – we do not speak for the League, we observe on behalf of the League. The elected and appointed officials we watch know we’re there.
Check out our 4th quarter report featuring reports on Library Boards in Cass County and North Kansas City; School Boards in North Kansas City, Lee’s Summit, Center, Hickman Mills, and Blue Springs; Board of Police Commissioners; Cass County Commission and the North Kansas City City Council; and the KC Human Rights Commission. Election authorities are preparing for an active 2024 election year as well as conducting November 2024 elections. We observed the election authority in Cass County (County Clerk Jeff Fletcher), the election boards in Clay, Jackson, and Platte Counties, and the Kansas City Election Board.
Read the entire report here!
| A Call to Action
Be the Good News
Keeping up with news can be exhausting in this new era of competing narratives from competing news sources. Even some of the news agencies we’ve known for decades have devolved over time into trolls looking for shiny objects. Legitimate news agencies with editorial boards, legal departments, and fact checkers face demands to bring profit to shareholders, something virtually impossible without the traditional ad revenue generated by print media. And so many of those actively engaged in politics have siloed themselves into a feedback loop that gives them no other perspectives.
So, how does the League operate in this environment?
Read the entire essay here!
You are our best asset. You joined the League because you care about voting rights and social justice. Your passion can be infectious, but only if you spread the word.
Jim Calvert
Editor
| Listen and Learn
Listen to Anne and Rachel's Legislative Update podcasts
New Legislative Session, New Podcasts
Have you missed listening to Rachel and Anne tell you what will happen in the Missouri State house in the coming week? Well, they've missed you too! They are back but they are on a whole new channel. You can listen online at Spotify here! Red Circle here!, or search on your favorite podcast provider.
This is a re-launch of the podcast so you will need to follow the LWVMO Missouri State Legislative Update even if you follow Talk Talk Vote.
Thanks for listening!
This is a re-launch of the podcast so you will need to follow the LWVMO Missouri State Legislative Update even if you follow Talk Talk Vote.
Thanks for listening!
| Suggestion Box
Your Chance to Talk Directly to the League
Do you have an idea for a future meeting topic or guest speaker? How about a great design for a “Get-out-the-vote” poster? Or maybe you’ve been wanting to present a Powerpoint on redistricting.
Now’s your chance!
Put a suggestion in our suggestion box and you just might have the next great idea that we will share with the state and national organizations. Then, you will be famous. And more importantly, you will have made a difference.
It all starts by filling out the form and submitting it to our suggestion box here! | We Want Your Blood
A Poke and a Sting to Save a Life
Save a Life Today
The CDC has updated its Covid-19 guidelines as they shift from pandemic response to endemic management. Though Kansas City still remains a high-risk area, we have decided to change our focus from Covid-19 vaccination to the tremendous need for blood donors. Two agencies collect blood in Kansas City, The American Red Cross and The Community Blood Centers. Please consider providing this gift of life as one of your community service projects. The websites are listed below.
The American Red Cross may be found here!
The Community Blood Centers may be found here!
| To volunteer, join a committee, register for a special event, or view the Member Roster, please log in to your member account on our League website lwvkc.org:
- Click on "Member Login" in the upper right corner of the website lwvkc.org. The "Login" page will appear.
- Enter your User Name and Password. If you are on a device you own, check the box "Remember me on this computer" so it will remember your User Name and Password for next time. Click the "Login" button.
- Or, if you forgot your Username or Password, click the "Forgot my Username / Password" button on the "Login" page. The "Forgot Username/Password" box will appear.
- Enter your email address and first name and click the "OK" button.Your Username and a temporary Password will be emailed to you. Be sure to use the email address you provided to the League!
| Democracy looks like the League of Women Voters | |