DFA Link meeting – ballot initiative review

The DFA Link meeting on August 13, 2018, will feature a presentation of California State ballot initiatives by members of the Club.  A straw poll will be held, which will become an endorsement recommendation to the August 27, 2018 business meeting.

Members and guests gather for potluck at 6:30 PM, and the program begins at 7:00 PM.

The meeting will be at:

Learn more about California State ballot initiatives at:
http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/ballot-measures/qualified-ballot-measures/

Ballot numbers, titles, and current presenter assignments are available at:
Ballot-Proposition-Inventory.pdf

The presentations and Straw Poll results are available at:
Ballot Proposition presentations

DFA Link meeting with Steve Chessin of Californians for Electoral Reform

The DFA Link meeting on July 9, 2018, will feature a presentation by Steve Chessin of Californians for Electoral Reform.

Proportional Representation: What is it, why do we need it, what does the rest of the world know that we don’t?

Steve Chessin, President of Californians for Electoral Reform, will discuss methods for choosing representatives that are different from the ones commonly in use in the United States today, methods used by most of the established democracies and most of the emerging democracies around the world today, and that have been used, at one time or another, in the United States as well.

Members and guests gather for potluck at 6:30 PM, and the program begins at 7:00 PM.

The meeting will be at:

Learn more about Californians for Electoral Reform at:

https://www.cfer.org

Annual Picnic and Election of Officers

Join us for a fun day in the park!

Our annual potluck picnic and election of officers will be held on June 30, 2018 at Ponderosa Park, Area 2, in Sunnyvale, at 11:00 AM.

Last year we had 19 candidates, elected officials, or their representatives speak. It’s always a fun and informative event.

Election of officers will occur at 12:15 PM, and our honored guests will be invited to speak beginning at 12:30 PM.

Don Mayall Memorial Fund

This special fund to support the Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley was established in September 2017, three months after Don’s passing (June 28,2017).

You can contribute to the fund at: secure.actblue.com/donate/deanclub-mayall

Don was a charter member of our club, having been, along with his wife Carolyn Curtis, an enthusiastic supporter of Howard Dean’s candidacy for president, from March 2003. When we tabled at the Palo Alto farmers market, campaigning for Howard and registering voters, he’d tell Carolyn he didn’t want to engage (words to that effect), but soon would be deep in amiable conversation, usually with a gent his age.

Don was always available to staff the sign-in table at club events. The quintessential morning person, he’d lit-drop and doorhanger on predawn election mornings, until voting by mail put an end to that folk rite. Don was the club’s fourth treasurer; a statistician (labor market analysis) by trade, he was meticulous and dedicated, establishing a two-year budget and seeing to it in meetings that we kept to it. He trained club members in how to lobby legislators, having lobbied for conservation issues (including in Washington), and regularly went to Sacramento with us for healthcare and campaign finance reform. He always presented at our ballot initiative information sessions, with cogent and witty PowerPoints. Don and Carolyn were on Jerry McNerney’s election committee 2004-6, and present at Jerry’s headquarters that victorious election night in 2006. Don also represented the club on the county Democratic Party endorsement committee. In all meetings, he always got right to the point, but was never dismissive, small-minded, or inconsiderate of what others were saying. When he spoke, people shut up and listened.

Besides the club, Don’s other main focus was conservation, serving on the local and state level of the California Native Plant Society, specifically the botany and preservation of nearby serpentine areas. He and Carolyn first grew close working to preserve Edgewood in the early nineties (since 1993, Edgewood County Park and Natural Preserve), and Don went on to lead the efforts to keep Coyote Ridge, a major serpentine area south of San Jose, free of development. On Don’s office wall is a photo of him and Jerry McNerney in a wildflower meadow on Coyote Ridge, at that time in Jerry’s district. He and Carolyn enjoyed many trips to wildflower areas and transformed Don’s yard in Palo Alto into a native plant phantasmagoria.

More about Don at www.donaldmayallmemorial.com/gallery-1.

We miss him.

2017 Accomplishments

The Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley did it again.  We are so proud of our 2017 accomplishments!  We are proud of all we’ve done and continue to do. The Dean Democratic Club continues to be one of the most active, involved Democratic clubs in Santa Clara County.

2018 Annual Goals

At our working meeting on January 22, 2018, the Dean Club will set our Annual Goals for the coming year.  Members will discuss the results of the December brainstorming session, categorized the goals, and prioritized the categories and their top goals.

Categorized Goals are available at:

Categorized Goals 2018

Results of the brainstorming are available at:

December 2017 Brainstorm

Water in the Platform

The 2016 draft state party platform was posted today at http://www.cadem.org/our-party/standing-committees/body/2016-CADEM-DRAFT-PLATFORM.pdf. It contains the following text:

Water
• Implement a comprehensive science-based water plan that includes managing each watershed (including groundwater) as a unified whole and upgrading the Delta levee system;
• Fully protect all water sources from contamination and guarantee sufficient water for the basic human needs of drinking and sanitation;
• Motivate efficient, sustainable, safe use of water and hold all users accountable for their consumption; implement and enforce regulations regarding groundwater use including full usage documentation; and,
• Ensure allocation and management of water to sustain ecosystems, fisheries, recreation, and endangered species.

Our club was involved in writing the text, negotiating with the platform committee, and soliciting support. The club passed a resolution in favor of the platform change submission.

Dean Club on Social Media

Visit the Dean Club’s Facebook and Yahoo groups.  If you like what you see there, join the groups.  They’re a great way to stay connected with Dean Club activities.