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December 2021 Newsletter

Contents

 
- President's Note
- Meeting Notice
- Ways and Means
- Campaign Activities
- Americanism
- Caring for America
- Membership
- TFRW Wins
- VRW Meeting Minutes





 

Meeting Notice

 
Wednesday, December 15th, 2021
Houston Racquet Club, 10709 Memorial Drive 

10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. Check-In / Mix & Jingle
11:30 a.m. Program and Lunch
$30.00 Cash/Check only when paying at the door
$30.00 CC/PayPal payments can be made online
Champagne Cash Bar ($10  each)
NOTE:  The “no-eat” option is not available

 Kindly notify us of dietary restrictions when you  R.S.V.P.


 
Reminder
Please R.S.V.P. by Friday, December 10th, before 12:00 (noon)
Reservations for the monthly luncheons must be made prior to noon on Friday preceding the meeting.   The Racquet Club requests a headcount on this day so they can make adequate preparations for our lunch. 
Cancellations after December 10th will be billed.
Thank you.

President's Note


Tis’ the Season for Gratitude, Hope, and a Maserati That’s Ready to Roll!

 

Deanna Harrington, President

As the tenure of our club’s current leadership team comes to an end, I wholeheartedly look back over the past two years with deep gratitude, as well as great hope for Village Republican Women’s future.  Despite all the obstacles and roadblocks that crossed our path over the past two years, our club achieved more than I could have hoped for even in so-called normal times. 

 

The first thing our current board did when we came into office two years ago was to have a “Vision” meeting for our club.  We came together as a group and each of us articulated goals for Village as an organization.  The personal “Vision” of Village that I had in my head was for us to transform VRW into a fine-tuned Maserati (red, of course) that would be in top form to perform at its peak heading into the 2022 election cycle. 

 

I’ve been in the politics game a long time and consider my official start date to be January 1990 when I went to work as a freshman in college for former Tennessee Senator Howard Baker’s newly established Washington, DC law office.  Over the years, I’ve been especially blessed to work for some outstanding politicians, and along the way, I picked up on some simple truths of politics.  1.  Politics is hard, and therefore it must be fun.  2.  You get a lot more done when you don’t care who gets the credit.  3.  Be kind.  4.  Everybody is going through something, so be helpful when you can.  5.  Always be grateful.

 

With that, I am extremely grateful for our board and club membership.  No doubt, we went through some tough, historic times, but we never ever lost our kindness and support of each other.  We got a whole lot done and had a good time while we were at it!

 

In the spirit of one of our devoted, hardworking members, Jodie Dornak, I’m going to borrow her tagline to close out 2020 and 2021, “Onward!”  The Grand Prix of 2022 may be a tough course, but Village is ready.  Let’s see what this RED Maserati can do! 

December Luncheon

We look forward to seeing you at the VRW Champagne Holiday Luncheon!
R.S.V.P.

Ways & Means



Remember VRW In Your End Of Year Giving
 

 

Julie Jaehne, 3rd VP Ways and Means       
The 2022 Election Year has already started. Help us fill our campaign purse so we can provide support in getting all Republicans elected and keeping Texas Red. You can easily contribute here by clicking the "contribute" button below or mailing in a check.

All donations will go towards our fundraising campaign for membership education, campaign support activities, civic engagement, and outreach. 

You can also print out the Fill the Purse Form and share it with friends and neighbors. Thank you
Contribute Now

Campaign Activities

 

 

Get Involved!


Anne Trousdale, Campaign Activities


 

Political Activities

Upcoming Elections

•    Joint Runoff election for school boards is December 11, 2021. 
•    Early Voting is from Nov. 29 to Dec. 7. 
•    Working in a runoff election gives you experience with the new voting machines. Harris County GOP is looking for clerks, election judges, and poll workers. 
•    Harris County GOP website has their school board picks for each school board district.
•    City Council District G election will be on January 25, 2022. 
•    Filing for the Primary ballot starts November 13. The deadline is December 13.

4th quarter Campaign Hours are reported January 15. The deadline is January 10. Please report your hours for October to December. annet9119@gmail.com

WHAT COUNTS?
•    Time spent preparing for and attending meetings and special events. You may also count travel time to and from. TFRW convention Oct. 13-16. 
•    Club officers and committee members may count time spent on required duties.  Club board meetings count.
•    Working Voter registration
•    CHAT 10/8
•    Time spent at club monthly meetings do not count. Any time you spend working at the meeting IE working the sign-in or membership table etc. counts.
•    Judicial signings
•    Meet the candidate forums, events, fundraisers
•    Webinars, zoom meetings
•    Pachyderm meetings, Concerned Women of America, any group supporting conservative ideals.
•    Volunteer time at HCRP
•    Campaigning for a candidate
Do you know who your precinct chair is? Your precinct needs help with block walking, getting neighbors to vote. Take action and get involved. Volunteer for a candidate.

Americanism


Thank You To Our Volunteers!!



 

Mary Grace Landrum, Community Engagement and Americanism

 
As we end the year, let me thank our tireless Voter Registrars for their efforts this year.  Hopefully, our efforts will enable us to bring more Republicans into office in 2022.   Here’s a shout-out to Judy Brett, Ronnie Cowell, Jodie Dornak, Kathleen Herzog, Marilyn Kent, Beverly Roberts, Anne Trousdale, and Eleanor White.  Thank you for volunteering at our Voter Registration drives.
 
Remember, if you completed VDVR training in 2021, your certification is good through 2022.  If you would like to join this fun group and help us, register voters, go to ​https://www.harrisvotes.com/VoterRegistration/Deputy and complete the online training.   Let’s keep registering voters.                                                                                                                                                                                                        

Caring For America
See the source image
In the spirit of giving and providing hope for neighbors who have been less fortunate this year, our members and guests donated a total of  $1130. in grocery gift cards to the West Houston Assistance Ministries at our October and November meetings. 

WHAM will distribute gift cards to their needy clients in December.  Thank you all for your generosity!!
 
If you would still like to support WHAM, we will collect non-perishable food items at our December meeting.  Please place your donations on the table in the back of the room.                                                                                                                                                            

Membership

Who wants a super cute pair of James Avery elephant earrings?!?!?



Laura Carlson, 2nd VP Membership


 

Now is the time to renew your membership for 2022!

Don’t miss out on another exciting year at Village Republican Women.  And don’t forget if you renew before or at our Wednesday, December 15 Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday! luncheon, you will be entered into the drawing for these lovely elephant earrings!!  

Renew your VRW membership online now at Village Republican Women or bring your checkbook/cash ($60) to the Christmas luncheon.
Also, if you renew before the Christmas luncheon, you will be entered into a drawing! Please note you need to be present to win!
 
Here are the different ways to renew your VRW membership:
  1. Download and Print the membership form, fill it out and bring it and your check with you to our luncheon on November 17th. The Membership Application is HERE, or
  2. Mail-in the membership form with your check to our P.O. Box address listed on the form, or
  3. Click below to be redirected to the online form.
Join Today

Looking For That Perfect Gift?

Give the gift that will give back all year! The gift of a VRW membership for 2022. We have lots of exciting things in store for our members, in the coming year, we invite you to join our award-winning club on this exciting 2022 journey, and bring a friend!
Questions? Email 2nd VP Membership Laura Carlson at membership@villagerepublicanwomen.org or call her at 281-222-5015.

 2021 Membership Year In Review

Our membership has grown exponentially in 2021. We added 95 new members and welcomed backed 131 members. Thank you for making my first year as membership chair an amazing year! I really appreciate everyone for making me feel at home in the club and helping me have a successful year.

We had six CHAT (Chicks Having an Awesome Time) events in 2021 for welcoming new members, developing new skills, learning about Critical Race Theory, and meeting local representatives. Thank you to the members who hosted these events and thank you to members that participated. We hope to continue to have CHAT events in 2022.  

2022 is going to be a BIG year for Republicans and we want to make sure we have a voice. Now is the time to renew your membership for 2022. Renewing now will ensure you continue to receive information about upcoming events and issues. All members appreciate the valuable information and benefits we gain by being actively involved in this vibrant organization.

VRW Wins Big at TFRW

Village Republican Women Brings Home A BIG Win!

 
Recognized at the TFRW convention for Achievements that Define Excellence and TFRW Objectives 2020-2021

VRW November Meeting Minutes


VRW November Minutes



Nolia Rohde, Recording Secretary

VILLAGE REPUBLICAN WOMEN

Minutes of VRW General Meeting

November 17, 2021


President Deanna Harrington called the meeting to order at 11:32 a.m.

The invocation was delivered by Penny Remick.  Veterans who were in attendance led us in our pledges to the flags.

Mrs. Harrington welcomed everyone and introduced elected officials, candidates, and guests.  Minutes from the October 22, 2021 meeting were approved. 
 

Mrs. Harrington reminded us to calculate our 4th quarter Political Activities hours, formerly known as Campaign Activities hours, and to report them to Anne Trousdale.
 

On behalf of Caring for America Chair, Mary Grace Landrum, Mrs. Harrington reported that last month we collected and were able to purchase five $60 cards and four $45 Cards for West Houston Assistance Ministries.  As our final Caring for America project of the year, we will collect canned goods for the WHAM food pantry at our December luncheon. 
 

On behalf of Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays luncheon chair Kathy Taylor, Mrs. Harrington invited people to join us for our December 15th luncheon.

Mrs. Harrington delivered the following summary of her presidency of Village Republican Women:
 

January 2020 got off to a normal start—Steve Munisteri was our speaker and he looked into his crystal ball to forecast the political landscape leading up to the 2020 presidential election.  In February, we hosted an RPT Chairman Debate between James Dickey and Allen West.  It was moderated by Jacquie Baly.  Then our March, April, and May general meetings were canceled. 

Despite that, we were moving forward with our Centennial Celebration of the Women’s Right to Vote and our bold Campaign Activities plan.  We quickly became laser-focused on philanthropy and actively promoted ways to help our community through donating to non-profits, reaching out to our neighbors, and shopping local small businesses and restaurants.

 

I’m so proud of our leadership team.  Throughout this COVID-19 crisis, they persevered in keeping active and offering opportunities for our Village members to be engaged.  Over the Summer, we persevered.  We kept our newsletter going, hosted a CHAT for Mary Nan Huffman, and even launched a new website.

 

Fall 2020—Game on.  Our Centennial Celebration of the Women’s Right to Vote.  It was the first major political event in Houston during the pandemic.  The Westside Headquarters opened by Nancy Scott and other Village members was ready for business.  Village went BIG on supporting the entire Republican ballot.  We launched and branded a multi-tier election season campaign to vote the entire ballot that involved popular yard signs, t-shirts, a magazine ad, and an impactful paid social media campaign.

 

By the end of 2020, We were together.  We were in person.  And we were grateful.  As our speaker, WHAM CEO Mark Brown, reminded us, “In God We Trust.”

 

January 2021—Woohoo—A new year!  Not to be outdone by 2020, 2021 promptly rocked our world with the big freeze.  Undeterred, Laura launched a series of popular CHATs.  We went to Austin for TFRW Legislative Day.  We marched forward with our Eggcellent Easter Basket Brigade and delivered BIG TIME with Easter cheer for WHAM.

 

April 2021—Happy Anniversary to US!  60 years. 

 

Heading into the summer of 2021, Our club exceeded our own membership enrollment goals.  In the fall, We hosted the campaign kick-off event of the 2022 election season—our Candidate Round-Up—live music and all and got a lot of judicial petitions signed.

 

We won national and state-level awards at NFRW and TFRW Conventions.  And here we are now—November 2021.  I can’t tell you how much I truly appreciate and love all of you.  We’ve been thought a lot the past two years— historic riots, a historic election, historic pandemic, historic freeze, historic everything it seems, but we are battle-worn and ready for whatever comes next.

 

With that, please help me recognize our leadership team for the past two years:

 

Theresa Kosmoski

Laura Carlson

Julie Jaehne

Ellie Skelton

Nolia Rodhe

Nancy Scott

Joanie Bain

Eleanor White

Anne Trousdale

Sonia Rivera

Carolyn Hodges

Mary Grace Landrum

Beverly Roberts

Susan Mathews

Penny Remick

Susan Brown

Carolyn Toriggino

Kathy Taylor

Fran Marintsch

 

Theresa Kosmoski, VP-Programs, introduced our guest speaker, Senator Paul Bettencourt.  Senator Bettencourt spoke to us about accountability.  Some of the topics he covered included competence/incompetence of people in responsible government positions, inflation’s effect on balancing a budget, and the success of the last Texas legislative session, including the preservation of girls’ sports.  His last request was for us to help Crime Stoppers.

 

After Senator Bettencourt spoke, Harris County Commissioner Tom Ramsey, Precinct 3, updated us on Commissioner’s Court, and former State Board of Education Chair Donna Bahorich updated us on the textbook curriculum review that is currently ongoing.

 

The meeting was adjourned at 1:00 p.m.

 

Respectfully,

Nolia Rohde

Recording Secretary

“Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other.”
–Romans 12:10



Sonia Rivera,
Newsletter / Website Chair


Email Questions and/or Comments to Sonia Rivera at 
webmaster@VillageRepublicanWomen.org
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