Johnson County Democratic Party Meeting
August 1, 2023
DRAFT Minutes

Call to Order:
Chair Greg Haas called the meeting to order at 6:03 pm. Everyone pledged their allegiance to the U.S. Flag and all the justice and equality for which it stands.

Agenda:
Under New Business, the topic “Brief Evaluation” was tabled until our Sept. meeting.

Attendance:
Greg Haas, Mary Van Auken, Lois Petersen, Kim McCoy, Linda Wilson, Jim Shell and presenter, Terri Markham.

Secretary Report:
The Minutes of July 11th were approved as written and will be entered into the record.

Treasurer Report:
Dudley provided current financial data that was read aloud by Greg.

Presenter:
Terri Markham of Uprising WY (UWY), a statewide organization targeting human trafficking, presented current fact-based information about human trafficking causes and possible remedies. She explained that human trafficking is an ever-increasing problem everywhere, including WY, and UWY’s focus is on preventing it from happening through education and support for families in crisis. Sadly, very few of us were in attendance to hear this presentation, but information and an opportunity to donate is available on the Uprising Wyoming website: https://uprisingwyo.org/

Announcements:
Lois proposed tentative dates for our fall Adopt-A-Highway trash pick-up – either Labor Day Weekend 9/2-4 perhaps tied to a Dems Labor Day Potluck Picnic in the Park or Sept. 16-17. Greg proposed we offer 2 opportunities on whichever trash pickup weekend we choose so that more helpers can fit this effort into their schedule.

Also, each month, weekly management of the Friends Feeding Friends Mini Food Pantry is being rotated among those who volunteered to help with this effort. Linda Wilson covered this past month and Lois will cover in August.

Greg announced there will be a Sheridan Dems picnic in Kendrick Park on Aug. 8 at 6 pm. JC folks are invited and asked to bring a salad or dessert to share.

There will also be a bicycle event in Sheridan Saturday, Aug. 12, starting at 9 am at Sheridan South Park Natural Area at Brundage Lane. The goal is to foster a bike-friendly community for recreation and transportation. JC Dems are welcome and encouraged to attend.

Old Business:
Greg met with Kim McCoy, our newly appointed Precinct Committee Woman for Precinct 4-8, to explain and answer questions about the job of precinct chair. We are still in need of precinct committeemen and committeewomen in several other precincts, so let Greg know if you are interested.

Upcoming Meetings:
County Officer Round-table Zoom – Aug. 9, 6 pm
State Central Committee meeting 9/9 & 9/10, Newcastle
Next monthly meeting of JC Dems – Sept. 5, 2023 at 6 pm in Bomber Mt. Civic Center Rm 108

Adjourn:
The meeting was adjourned at 7:39 pm.

Minutes submitted by Lois Petersen

Minutes
Johnson County Democratic Party Meeting
July 11, 2023

Call to Order: Chair Greg Haas called the meeting to order at 6:06 pm.

Agenda: There were no additions to the agenda.

Attendance: Greg Haas, Mary Van Auken, Dudley Case, Sharon Case, Lois Petersen, Kim McCoy, Linda Wilson, Vikki Chenette.

Secretary Report: The Minutes of June 6th were corrected for a typo and will be entered into the record.

Treasurer Report: Dudley reported income and expenses for general and scholarship accounts as of 7/1/23 and provided a printed Balance Sheet, adding that the June 17th event put us in good shape.

Announcements: The Strategic Plan Brainstorming Work session will commence right after adjournment. We will have a guest speaker at the next meeting.

Old Business:
Kim McCoy was appointed Precinct Committee Woman for Precinct 4-8.
Lois reported on the rescheduled Adopt-a-Highway clean-up along 16 West on June 10th. In spite of rain, 6 attended. Another clean-up will be scheduled in September.

About 100 people attended the 3rd annual Sheridan County/Johnson County Potluck Gathering on Saturday, June 17th at Kearney Community Hall. All agreed it was a successful, fun, event which provided opportunities to network, learn, engage, raise funds, and enjoy great food and music. A follow-up Zoom meeting was conducted on 6/23, with feed-back from this and participants noted for the future.

Linda, Suzi, and Lois continue to maintain the Friends Feeding Friends mini-pantry at the Cornerstone Pharmacy. Sponsor signage is under discussion.

Upcoming Meetings:

• Comms Call – Tuesdays 7:00pm
• County Officer Round-table Zoom July 12th
• CCC 8/1 at 6:00pm
• State Central Committee meeting 9/9 & 9/10, Newcastle.

Adjourn
The meeting was adjourned at 6:43 pm.

Johnson County Democratic Party Meeting Minutes
DRAFT
June 6, 2023
Bomber Mtn Civic Center, Room 108

Call to Order: Vice Chair Mary Van Auken called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm.

Agenda: There were no additions to the agenda.

Attendance: Mary Van Auken, Dudley Case, Sharon Case, Lois Petersen, Kim McCoy, Vikki Chenette.

Secretary Report: The Minutes of May 2nd were accepted as published on the website.

Treasurer Report: Dudley reported income and expenses for both general and scholarship accounts as of 6/01/23 and provided a printed statement showing amounts received via Act Blue and other donations to the general account this past month. Some tickets for our joint June 17th event have been purchased online, with proceeds split evenly with Sheridan County Democrats.

Old Business: The William D. McIntyre Memorial Scholarship committee met on May 9th to make small revisions to the 2024 Guidelines, Rules, and Application. Dixie McIntyre will join the committee as an Honorary Member. It was decided not to hold a raffle as our fundraising has provided for next year’s awards. Following discussion, a motion was made that raffle ticket stub date not be used for contacts and should be destroyed. Motion was seconded and passed by unanimous vote.

Lois reported on the rescheduled Adopt-a-Highway clean up along 16 West on June 10th from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Meet at the picnic tables where the road widens on the left side as you head towards the mountain. Bags and vests will be provided, bring gloves and pick-up tools if you have any. Several people have said they are planning to attend.

Plans for the 3rd annual County/Johnson County Potluck Gathering, themed “HERE for GOOD” to be held Saturday, June 17th at Kearney Community Hall, were also shared by Lois. Volunteers still needed for some key tasks, live and silent auction donations, and getting the word out to everyone using a variety of media was emphasized. Vikki reported on the silent auction, and Lois stated David Myers from Sheridan will act as auctioneer for home-baked goods and other live auction donations.

Suzi, Lois, and Vikki have recently maintained the Friends Feeding Friends mini-pantry at the Cornerstone Pharmacy.

Topics at the recent State Central Committee meeting included Messaging, miniVan and Votebuilder, Goal-Setting, Under-35 Engagement, and Voter Registration.

New Business:
A motion was made, seconded and passed unanimously that due to the July 4th holiday the next meeting date will be July 11th.

Adjourn
Mary adjourned the meeting at 7:00 pm.

Johnson County Democratic Party Meeting
May 2, 2023
Call to Order:
Greg Haas called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm.
Agenda:
There were no additions to the agenda.
Attendance:
Dudley Case, Sharon Case, Lois Petersen, Lorajane Kessler, Vikki Chenette, and Greg Haas.
Secretary Report:
The Minutes of April 4th were accepted as published on the website.
Treasurer Report:
Dudley reported income and expenses for both general and scholarship accounts, and informed us about current earnings for certificates of deposits at local banks. Lois moved with Dudley seconding that $1,000. be transferred from the scholarship account to a CD earning 4% interest for one year at First Northern Bank. The motion carred by unanimous vote. Chair Announcements:
Greg reported on a press release issued by the state party chair, upcoming release of a new WDP logo, the Comms Call at 7pm tonight, and
May 10th 6pm Roundtable State Central Committee Zoom Meeting.
Old Business:
Two William d. McIntyre Memorial Scholarship awards of $500.00 each will be awarded to Karcee Maya of Kaycee H.S. and Karina Mysse of Buffalo H.S. A third student was selected as runner-up should either student change their stated educational plans. Twelve students applied for the scholarship this first year. Nancy Mayer’s ticket stub was drawn to win the raffle quilt on April 29th at the Kaycee Library. Dixie McIntyre will be invited to join the scholarship committee as an honorary member. The Chair thanked the committee members Dudley, Vikki, Lois, and Lorajane for their outstanding work establishing, fundraising, promoting, and conducting the scholarship awards.
Lois reported ongoing plans for the 3rd annual County/Johnson County Potluck Gathering, themed “HERE for GOOD” to be held Saturday, June 17th at Kearney Community Hall, with both counties represented on the planning committee. Many food, beverage, and decoration donations have been made already. She attended a recent event at the hall and heard their good new sound system. Focus is on getting the word out to all party members, independents, friends, and family and soliciting silent and live auction items highlighting baked goods, services, and unusual items. Lois made a motion that up to $400.00 be available for printed material expenses, Dudley seconded it and the motion passed.
Our Adopt-a-Highway clean up date, weather-permitting, is Sunday, May 14th from 2:00-4:00 p.m. Lois will send out more information.
Friends Feeding Friends, no report.
New Business:
Greg has been hosting our website. Vikki moved that JCDP pay the $100.00 annual fee to shift our website over to a server owned by WDP going forward, seconded by Dudley. Motion carried.
Announcements from the Floor:
Upcoming Meetings:
State Central Committee, May 27th and 28th.
Johnson County Dems, June 6th at 6:00 pm.
Adjourn
Greg adjourned the meeting at 6:59 pm.

Johnson County Democratic Party Meeting
April 4, 2023
The meeting was conducted via Zoom

Call to Order:

Greg Haas called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm and welcomed new officers in attendance.

Agenda:
There were no additions to the agenda.

Attendance:
Dudley Case, Lois Petersen, Vikki Chenette, and Greg Haas. Linda Wilson joined the meeting in-progress.

Secretary Report:
The Minutes of March 7th were reviewed and accepted as published on the website.

Treasurer Report:
Dudley said he received records from previous Treasurer Suzi, and he reported the general account and the scholarship account balances. Lois made a motion that pending confirmation that such changes are acceptable practices, Dudley may change our accounts to interest-bearing accounts. Linda seconded the motion, which was approved by unanimous voice vote. Greg recommended that Vikki as new Secretary should be given the bank account login and password.
Chair Announcements:
Greg reported Casper Star Tribune is interested in doing an article about the new officers at the county level around the state.

Sheridan College in Johnson County will hold their annual scholarship benefit, Golf for Knowledge, on May 26th at 2:00pm.

Old Business:
Dudley, Sharon, Lois, Frank, and Greg will attend the rescheduled Nellie Tayloe Ross Dinner April 15th.

Dudley reported for the William D. McIntyre Scholarship Committee which has met to review applications received as of the March 31st deadline and will meet again April 11th. Fundraising has gone well and the quality and number of scholarship applications is high. Lois said she has been in touch with Dixie McIntyre, and she has agreed to pull the winning raffle ticket at the Kaycee Library at a date to be determined.

Lois reported on initial plans for the Sheridan County/Johnson County Gathering to be held Saturday, June 17th at Kearney Hall, with both counties represented on the planning committee. Lois asked Greg to investigate the required proof of insurance. Vikki made a motion for approval of $250.00 for the hall rental fee. Dudley seconded the motion, which carried by unanimous vote. Lois will fill out and return the rental agreement. Vikki asked everyone to save the date and tell friends as soon as possible.

Greg has obtained verification that Dudley can serve as both our treasurer and State Committeeman. Lois serves as our State Committeewoman. Lois moved that we elect Dudley Case as State Committeeman. The motion was seconded by Linda and passed unanimously.

New Business:
None

Announcements from the Floor:
Lois reported on a request for public comment regarding a Sheridan County land exchange to go before the Office of State Lands.

Greg updated us on the lack of state comms director and encouraged the use of the slack channel.

Dudley mentioned we should have 32 precinct committee people but only have eight.

Upcoming Meetings:
County Officer Roundtable Zoom meetings, 2nd Wednesdays of the month, 6:00pm; communication options for all officers; trainings for secretaries and treasurers and fundraising topics coming up.

Adjourn
Greg adjourned the meeting at 6:59 pm.

Johnson County Democratic Party Central Committee Meeting
March 7, 2023
Bomber Mountain Civic Center, Room 108

Call to Order:

Greg Haas called the meeting to order at 6:01 pm.

Attendance :

Kim McCoy, Suzi Black, Dudley Case, Sharon Case, Mary Van Auken, Lois Petersen, Kelli Roadifer, Linda Wilson, Greg Haas

Agenda:

Linda asked that JC-FFF report be added to Old Business.

Dudley made motion to accept agenda as amended. Suzi seconded motion. Motion passed.

Credentials:

Greg explained that, under the Bylaws and WY statute, precinct committee men and women are the only people who can vote in the election of officers.  Officers cannot vote unless they are also precinct committeemen or women.  All registered Democrats can make officer and state committeeman and woman nominations.

Voting members present are Greg Haas, Mary Van Auken, Dudley Case, Suzi Black, Lois Petersen and Linda Wilson. Mitch Black and Vikki Chenette are also voting members but are not present at the meeting.

Secretary Report:

The minutes were approved as written with one correction that Greg made online.

Treasurer Report:

Suzi reported that the amount of funds in the Scholarship account and the JC Dems general account.

Chair Announcements:

Nellie Tayloe Ross Event was postponed until April 15 and will be held in Cheyenne.

Hot Springs Mardi Gras was held in Thermopolis on February 19 at 4:00 pm.  There was potluck Cajun food and Mayor Adam Estenson was the keynote speaker.  The event was non-partisan and open to everyone.  Greg said there was a really good positive atmosphere to the whole event.  Kim Bartlett also spoke at the event.  Only local issues were addressed at the event.  The following week the GOP hosted a very negative event.

Legislative Update:

Greg said the 2023 legislative session is finally over. Voter registration deadlines will be earlier next year.

Kim said we should be proactive as far as legislative bills go rather than be reactive.

Old Business:

William D. McIntyre Scholarship Committee report – Dudley

Lois got almost a full-page ad into The Mini about the scholarship.  And Vikki created a quilt flyer which will be displayed below her quilt in the library.  The library staff will sell the raffle tickets and collect the money.  The Quilt Show will run the entire month of March.  Lois has already picked up $160 from the quilt raffle sales.

The committee has received two applications by mail. One from a student in Kaycee and one from a student in Buffalo.

The next committee meeting will be March 15 at 1:00 pm in the library. The application deadline is March 31 and the scholarship awards will be made on May 1.

JC-FFF report – Linda

Food will be distributed from JCFFF warehouse by JC Dems to mini Food Bank Box #5 at the Cornerstone Pharmacy. Sponsor signs will be put on each box.

JCDems is committed indefinitely to helping JC-FFF with food distribution to this box. This is a 1 to 2 times per week commitment.

New Business:

Officer Elections – Nominations and Votes:

Chair

Suzi nominated Greg and Greg accepted. He was voted in by acclimation.

Vice Chair

Lois nominated Mary and Mary accepted. She was voted in by acclimation.

Secretary

Lois nominated Vikki and Greg said Vikki told Lois that she would accept the nomination. Vikki was voted in by acclimation.

Treasurer

Lois nominated Dudley and he accepted. He was voted in by acclimation.

State Committeewoman

Suzi nominated Lois and Lois accepted. She was voted in by acclimation.

State Committeeman

There were no nominations. The position is vacant for now.

Greg said we need many more precinct committeemen and women for the County Central Committee.

Announcements from the Floor:

1. Lois talked to Danielle Arnoux (Chair, Sheridan) about a Sheridan Dems/JCDems event and she is agreeable to holding the event. Lois, Vikki and maybe Jim Shell have volunteered to help with the event. And Mary volunteered her daughter, Casey, to also help with the event.

   A date and location are still needed for the event. Maybe around Summer solstice or end of May. Vikki thinks they may be able to get the Fire Ants band.

2. Dudley said on April 6, 2022 JCDems had 372 members, but on March 4, 2023 we were down to 161 members. This is mainly due to JCDems switching parties to vote for Liz Cheney. Dudley suggested reaching out to these people and find out if they will rejoin JCDems. Kim suggested sending a letter to the people who changed parties asking them to reregister as Democrats. Greg is skeptical that spending much energy on those voters is wise at this juncture; they are less likely to become precinct committee people, for example.
3. Dudley said according to a Zoom meeting he attended, David Frum said Democrats had the best midterm election since the 1930s. The Dems held the Senate and also held all the state legislatures and governorships they did before the election. And Dems also picked up four state legislatures they didn’t have before the election.
4. Greg thinks we need to get more Dems on the election ballot, and we need to be more welcoming to people to get them to participate in JCDems.
5. Greg mentioned needing a club for electioneering and finding candidates in the next few months.
6. Kim thought that CCC meetings should be announced in the County Bounty. She will check on how much it costs to do an announcement.

Upcoming Meetings:

Next Monthly JCDems CCC Meeting – April 4, 2023 at 6:00 pm in Room 108.

All County Officer Round Table – Zoom – March 23, 2023 at 6:00 pm.

State Central Committee (SCC) Meeting on April 16, 2023 in person in Cheyenne

Nellie Tayloe Ross Banquet & Trainings – April 15, 2023 in person in Cheyenne

Suzi mentioned a Friends of the Library book sale March 23 thru March 25, 2023

SCC meetings will be at the end of May and early in September

Adjourn:6:54 pm

Call to Order:

Greg Haas called the meeting to order at 6:03 pm.

Agenda:

Vikki asked that a Scholarship Committee Report be added to the agenda, and Greg did this.

Attendance :

Kim McCoy, Jim Shell, Vikki Chenette, Lois Petersen, Suzi Black, Dudley Case, Sharon Case, Lorajane Kessler, Mary Van Auken, Greg Haas 

Secretary Report: 

Greg mentioned one correction that he would make to the minutes online about the Blue Bison Event. Other than this change, the minutes were approved as written.

Treasurer Report:

Suzi reported that the amounts in the Scholarship account the JC Dems general account.

Chair Announcements:

1. There has been a changeover in WDP staff. Ryan Greene is the new Executive Director, Erin O’Doherty is still the Data Director, Rachel Leger is the new Deputy Director, and Greg Haas is the new Organizing Director.
2. Artemis Langford is now sending out legislative update newsletters by email to keep Wyoming Democrats apprised of what is going on in Cheyenne.
3. JCDems should also be checking Slack for legislative updates. Greg has started a “county-party-leadership” site on Slack.
4. Better Wyoming has a training session on how to navigate and find information on the Wyoming Legislature’s website.
5. Greg is hosting legislative update meetings on Zoom. The next meeting is tomorrow, February 8 at 3:00 pm. Greg will send out an email with the Zoom link. Also check Slack for meeting Zoom links.

Old Business:

1. Adopt-a-Highway – Lois

   The location of this site has been changed from I-90 to Highway 16 West near the Veteran’s Home property and covers a two mile stretch of the highway on both sides of the highway.

   Two pickups per year are required. One is the Spring and one in the Fall.

   A social event after the cleanup will take place, such as a picnic.

2. Lunch

   JCDems will continue to explore the possibility of luncheons from the late Spring to early Fall.

New Business:

1. Legislative Actions – Greg

   Greg proposed that a few people from JCDems should follow our State Rep. Barry Crago and our State Senator Dave Kinskey’s day-to-day involvement with current legislation being considered in the Wyoming House and Senate. Basically, to track their committee work, floor work and voting records on various bills of concern to Democrats. Suzi volunteered to help with this.

Announcements from the Floor

Outreach

Vikki said we should start an outreach to the Sheridan County Democrats about holding a joint social event with them this year. Lois said she would contact the Sheridan Dems.

Scholarship Committee Report

Dudley mentioned that the committee decided that it would like to give two five hundred-dollar scholarships this year. Vikki volunteered to talk to Michelle Dahlberg, a high school counselor, about the scholarships. Lois and Lorajane were going to talk to Greg about some small changes to the Scholarship website.

Vikki then explained that the library director was willing to display Vikki’s sunflower quilt at the upcoming quilt display at the library and the librarians would sell raffle tickets and collect money for the quilt during the quilt display.

The next Scholarship Committee meeting will be on Wednesday, February 15 at 11:00 am at the library in Study Room C.3.

Sergio Maldonado

Suzi read the thank you card that JCDems received from Sergio Maldonado for our donation to his campaign. Greg mentioned that Sergio is writing a book about his experiences running for office.

Abortion Bill

Lois said the abortion bill will probably pass in the legislature, so it would be a good idea for people to write the Governor about their opposition to the bill.

Upcoming Meetings

1. Legislative updates meetings will be held on Mondays at 6:00pm and Wednesdays at 3:00 pm on Zoom. Greg will host meetings. See Chair Announcements above.
2. Hot Springs Mardi Gras Celebration – February 19,2023

   This event will be held from 4 to 6 pm at the Community Federated Church Community Hall in Thermopolis. No alcohol will. be allowed.

3. Nellie Tayloe Ross – February 25, 2023

   This event is being held in Cheyenne and Lois and Frank will be attending the event.Lois also mentioned that the event coordinators are looking for auction items. So please consider donating auction items. Lois will take any auction items to Cheyenne when she and Frank go.

4. JCDems Reorganization & Monthly Meeting – March 7, 2023

   The elections will be held at 6:00 pm followed by the monthly meeting.  Dudley will handle Credentials Committee duties.

   Greg mentioned that Suzi is stepping down as Treasurer and that Dudley is interested in stepping down as Secretary and running for Treasurer. So, the Secretary’s position will be open and so will the State Committeeman position which had previously been held by Bill McIntyre. Greg said he will run again for the Chair position, and Vikki said she would be interested in the Secretary position.

5. Reversing Roe

   Empower Sheridan will be holding a free screening of Reversing Roe, a 2018 American documentary film, on Saturday, February 25 at 2:00 pm in the Thorne-Rider Campus Center at Sheridan College. There will also be a moderated post-film discussion. This event is open to everyone.

6. JCDems Clubs

   Greg talked about the possibility of starting a couple of JCDems Club such as a lunch club, book club, candidate search club, etc. with the goals of building community among Democrats, raising money and helping get people elected. Greg will hold a post-meeting discussion about this topic.

Adjourn

Greg adjourned the meeting at 6:59 pm.

Johnson County Democratic Party Meeting

January 4, 2023

Bomber Mountain Civic Center, Room 108

Call to Order:

Greg Haas called the meeting to order at 6:14 pm.

Attendance :

Greg Haas, Mary Van Auken, Vikki Chenette, Suzi Black, Dudley Case, Sharon Case, Lois Petersen, Linda Wilson 

Secretary Report: 

No changes to the minutes were suggested and minutes from December 6, 2022 were approved.

Treasurer Report:

Suzi reported the amounts in the Scholarship account and the JC Dems General account.

Chair Announcements – Greg

WDP Activities:

David Martin is no longer an employee of WDP.

WDP Secretary (Mandy) will take on social media job.

Greg has interviewed for the WDP Executive Director position. A second round of interviews will be held next week.

Greg will be helping with organizing 2 of the 3 dark counties in Wyoming – Sublette and Weston Counties.

Erin O’Doherty got the new state voter list today.

The Democratic voter registration went down before the primary election but has gone back up since the election. 

Nellie Tayloe Ross Dinner Event will be held on February 25 and 26 in Cheyenne.

Blue Bison Event will be held on May 27 and 28 in Riverton.

End of Summer Event will be held September 9 and 10 in Newcastle.

Women’s Caucus Meeting will be held tonight at 7:30 pm.

Old Business:

1. Newsletter – Lois

Eleven newsletters were returned as undeliverable.

$120 was spent on stamps and $26 on copying.

Everyone thanked Lois for all her work on the newsletter.

2. Adopt-a-Highway – Lois

Lois has the safety vests and trash bags.

The location will most likely be just north of Buffalo on I-90 around the Lake DeSmet area.

JC Dems will get a sign after 2 cleanups are done.

3. Precinct Committee People – Greg

We still need to sign up more people.

4. JC Dems Lunch – Greg

Jim Shell is apparently interested in organizing lunches like we had last year.  Previous lunches were held at the golf course and Bozeman restaurants. 

New Business:

1.  JC-FFF (Johnson County Friends Feeding Friends) – Linda

This organization bags food every Wednesday.

The group decided to sign up to help on September 20 at 5:30pm in the basement of the dentist’s office.

JC-FFF also holds a 0.5K race in June.

2. JC Dems Office Elections – Greg

County party elections are held in March and state party elections are held in April.

It was decided to hold our next election on Tuesday, March 7 at 6:00 pm.  The regular March meeting will be held at 7:00 pm.

Greg is throwing his hat into the ring for County Chair again and Suzi has indicated she would like to step down as Treasurer.

3. Phone banking for Weston and Sublette Counties – Greg

Greg needs help calling Democrats in those counties to help set up a Democratic Party in each county.

4. Appreciation for Meeting Space – Greg

Vikki made a motion to donate $100 to Sheridan College’s Golf for Knowledge to show our appreciation for the college letting us use a room for our JC Dems monthly meetings.  Lois seconded the motion.  Motion passes.

Announcements from the Floor:

None

Upcoming Meetings:

Suzi made a motion to hold the JC Dems monthly meetings on the first Tuesday of each month at 6:00 pm rather than 7:00 pm.  Mary seconded the motion.  Motion passed.

WDP is selling tables at the Nellie Tayloe Ross Dinner at a discounted price.  And there will be on online auction and buyers will pay for shipping if they do not attend the event or Greg can picking up winning bids for any of our members who do not attend the event.

The Scholarship Committee has decided to meet on Wednesday, January 18 at 11:00 am in the Johnson County Library.

For other meetings see Chair Announcements above.

Adjourn:

 Greg adjourned meeting at 7:30 pm.

Johnson County Democratic Party Meeting

December 6, 2022

Bomber Mountain Civic Center, Room 108

Call to Order:

Greg Haas called the meeting to order at 7:02 pm.

Attendance :

Greg Haas, Suzi Black, Mitch Black, Dudley Case, Sharon Case, Lois Petersen, Linda Wilson, Mary Van Auken

Secretary Report:

No changes to the minutes were suggested and minutes from November 2, 2022 were approved.

Treasurer Report:

Suzi reported on the Scholarship account and on the JC Dems general account.

Chair Announcements/Reports:

1. Campaign Finance Reports – 2022

Greg has put these Johnson County and Buffalo reports on the JC Dems website. Greg reviewed a few of the reports that reported contributions and expenditures.

2. WDP Activities:

a. Sarah Hunt is resigning as Executive Director of WDP. She will be working until the second week of January.

b. In Uinta County all the Democratic officers changed their party affiliation in the last election and thus all lost their party officer positions. They are holding elections on December 7 for new, temporary officers until March.

c. Election debriefings – Greg lead 2 of the 4 debriefings. Many said that the election preparations must start earlier. There is another gathering tentatively scheduled for election debriefing on December 17.

d. The Nellie Tayloe Ross Dinner will be held on February 25 in Cheyenne. Tickets will be available starting in January.

Old Business:

1. Thank you cards and Sept. 5 picnic follow-up

Greg handed out a sheet with three sample messages.

Greg said he would like to get a list of members who were invited to the picnic and the results of those invitations.

2. Adopt-a-Highway

Lois gave a report and continues to gather information about this project.

Lois would like to get a location to clean up that is near Buffalo or between Buffalo and Sheridan. Some suggestions were made about locations.

New Business:

1. Railroad Workers

Greg felt that JC Dems should take a position in favor of paid sick leave for the railroad workers. But no one made a motion to that effect, so the issue was dropped.

2. Phone banking tool

Greg briefly explained what this tool can do.

Announcement from the Floor:

1. JC Dems Newsletter

Lois handed out a sample JC Dems newsletter that she and Vikki Chenette had created. Lois asked for feedback on the sample newsletter. The newsletter was well received.

Linda made a motion to send out the newsletter with any necessary corrections and adjustments to the members using the new December 9, 2022 members list from WDP. Suzi seconded the motion. After some discussion the motion passed.

Lois made a motion that JC Dems spend up to $300 on mailing of the newsletter. Linda seconded the motion. After some discussion the motion passed.

Greg said he will get the new members list from Erin O’Doherty.

2. Linda Shell

Sharon mentioned that Linda Shell had recently had knee surgery and a pacemaker put in. Lois volunteered to send out a get-well card to Linda.

3. Johnson County School District

Dudley asked if anyone knew a staff members or school board members who might help get green energy projects into the schools. If so, please contact Dudley. The Sheridan Area Resource Council and the Powder River Basin Resource Council are looking into this issue up in Sheridan and here in Johnson County.

Upcoming Meetings:

The next JC Dems meeting will be on Tuesday, January 3, 2023 at 7:00 pm in Room 108 of the Bomber Mountain Civic Center.

Adjournment:

The meeting was adjourned at 8:12 pm.

Johnson County Democratic Party Meeting
November 2, 2022
Bomber Mountain Civic Center, Room 108

Call to Order:
Greg Haas called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm.

Attendance:
Greg Haas, Suzi Black, Mitch Black, Vikki Chenette, Dudley Case, Sharon Case, Lois Petersen, Casey Meyers, Mary Van Auken

Secretary Report:
No changes to the minutes were suggested and the minutes were approved.

Treasurer Report:

• Suzi reported the total amounts in the JC Dems’ general account and in the scholarship account.
• The monies appropriated for the various political campaigns at the October meeting have been sent out to the campaigns.
• Vikki announced that she has received two more donations for quilt raffle in the amounts of $60 and $20, which she gave to the Suzi at this meeting.

Chair Announcements:
JC Dems is required to submit financial reports to the Secretary of State three times a year, and donations to the scholarship fund are considered donations to the JC Dems since the scholarship fund is not part of a separate organization.
JC Dems has received thank you cards from Martha Wright, Kim Bartlett and Hank Szramkowski for our donations to their campaigns.
There will be an ad in this week’s Buffalo Bulletin for Lynnette Greybull’s campaign.

It was decided not to send out campaign postcards due to the election date being next week. Postcards might not arrive in the mail until after the election was over.

The Wyoming Democratic Party (WDP) is making a big effort to get out the vote (GOTV) and canvass before the election.  As a result of this effort it was discovered that there were a lot of wrong addresses and phone numbers in the voter lists, so this is being corrected.

WDP has a texting system which costs $95 to join and Greg paid this cost and is setting up this system for the JC Dems.  Greg offered to train anyone who wants to help out with texting voters.

Minivan and phone banking are also available to help reach voters.

The WDP has voter outreach to three Wyoming counties which have no Democratic leadership.

The Greybull and Labeau campaigns are renting vans to pick up and drive voters on the Wind River Reservation to the polls.

The WDP is also starting to work on the Spring Democratic state and county elections.

Old Business:
Mary will send out thank you cards to the people who have donated to the scholarship fund.

Greg said we need to follow up with the people who attended the September 5 picnic and encourage them to buy a quilt raffle ticket for the scholarship fund if they haven’t done so already.

Lois will send Greg a list of picnic attendees so we can contact those who did not attend the picnic. Vikki, Lois and Greg will work on creating a script that can be used when contacting these members.

New Business:

1. GOTV will use phone banking. Greg joined Martha Wright when she was canvassing for her election. Suzi is calling members of her precinct.
2. Greg is setting up two texting training sessions for the WDP.
3. Greg asked if anyone wanted to be a poll watcher at next Tuesday’s election. Each party trains its poll watchers.

4. Adopt-a-Highway – Lois

   Lois suggested that JC Dems adopt-a-highway. This program requires trash to be picked up along a two mile stretch of highway for two years twice each year. WYDOT would also put up a Johnson County Democratic Party sign along this stretch of highway.

   Greg made a motion for the JC Dems to adopt-a-highway. Vikki seconded the motion. Motion passed.

   Lois will follow up with the Sheridan County Democratic Party to see how they set up their stretch of highway with WYDOT.

5. The Buffalo Pathfinders will hold a 5K walk on November 25 starting at 8 am at the Super 8.
6. Margo’s Pottery & Fine Crafts is having music on Friday nights.
7. The hospital is having an open house on November 16 from 8:30 am to 2:30 pm.
8. The Steel Drum Band has practices on Tuesday nights at 6:30 pm in the Congregational Church.
9. Powder River Basin Resource Council’s Annual Meeting is on Saturday, November 5 at 2:00 pm in the Ramada Inn in Sheridan.
10. Greg suggested creating a JC Dems quarterly newsletter that would cost $500.

Next Meeting:
Tuesday, December 6 at 7:00 pm in Room 108 of the Bomber Mountain Civic Center. Greg asked members to think about whether or not they wanted to change the day and time of monthly meetings.

Adjournment:
Greg adjourned the meeting at 8:20 pm.