United Women's Forum January 13, 2010

UNITED WOMEN’S FORUM Minutes of General Meeting held Jan. 13, 2010
Bella Vida Clubhouse, North Salt Lake

Conducting: Kris Kimball

Prayer: Marilyn Nelson

Pledge of Allegiance: Celestia Himstreet

Announcements: Kris Kimball

· 14 Jan. (Thurs.) – Sutherland Institues hosting a Forum on the Ethics Initiative; call 801 355-1271 or visit www.sutherland.org for details.

· 15 Jan. (Friday) – Independence Caucus Constitutional Evening ; see www.independencecaucus.org for details to register.

· 16 Jan. (Saturday) – Eagle Forum Convention, 9 am to 9 pm.; see www.utaheagleforum.com to register

· 23 Jan. (Saturday) – Common Sense Rally, 5 pm in the Pinnacle Building in Orem; free event with 3 speakers, live patriotic music, delegate training and Constitutional class.

· 30 Jan. (Saturday) – Free Concert at the Capitol rotunda with the Millennium Choir and 500 singers from state high school choirs. Speakers, music, with the concert called, “One Nation Under God”. This 1 hour and 15 minute event will focus on God being the author of our rights, and not the government.

· 31 Jan. – Sunday evening fireside by Dr. Glenn Kimber regarding family organizations, family finances, missions, and community; from 6-8 pm, tentative location is the American Legion Hall in Bountiful at 52 W. 200 South.

· 19 & 20 Feb. (Fri. & Sat.) – Constitution Class begins again ‘God’s Hand in the Building of America’. All 4 sessions will be covered in this 2-day event. Cost is $39.00 and includes your workbook. Friday night hours 6:30-9:30 pm; Saturday, 8:00 am to 6:00 pm. Must sign up and pay in advance. Seminar to be held in the American Legion Hall in Bountiful, 52 W. 200 So.


Training: Kris Kimball

· Democracy or Republic – showed a short YouTube video on this subject. This was a great civics review lessons. Highlights include 1)Explanation of the different forms of government, with ‘oligarchy’ being the most common one in the world; 2)the proper amount of government makes everyone more free; 3)Democracy is the rule of the people, can include at its worst, ‘mob rule’; 4)the word ‘democracy’ does not appear in any of our country’s founding documents; 5)Republic is government by the Law and is how our country was founded; 6)the “essence of freedom is the proper limitation of government” It can be viewed by going to YouTube and entering ‘democracy vs republic’.

· Current Ethics Initiative signature campaign – Kris gave us a handout to explain this to us and the pitfalls of it. Some sites to visit to become more educated about it include www.le.Utah.gov and www.strengthendemocracy.org and www.utahnsforethicalgovernment.org It is vital that people do not sign this petition without knowing what they are signing. It is found in some local businesses.

Training: Dalane England

Dalane’s handout was titled “How to have fun LOBBYING your Legislature”! With the Utah State Legislative session scheduled to begin on January 25, 2010, she presented a wonderful starter course for citizens like us to become involved. One of her main points was to let us know it is not difficult or scary to be involved, either from home or going to the Capitol in person. For starters, of course, the website to bookmark is www.le.utah.gov

Some things covered were:

· Sending Emails: Put the title and number of bill in the ‘subject’ line; include YES or NO on the subject line too; when mailing several legislators, send ‘BCC’ using a generic greeting, i.e. ‘Dear Representative’ or ‘Dear Senator’; if mailing separately, cut and paste and add their name.

· Check your email for all Representative and Senator addresses – they will be sent; then cut and paste into your contact list.

· Park in the northeast parking lot or on the street where not prohibited; if you arrive before 7:30 a.m., you can usually get a spot in the east parking lot.

· UWF members can meet at the Eagle Forum spot in the southeast corner of the Cafeteria, which is in the East building.

· For locations of meetings, the East Building is the Senate Building and will have ‘S Rm#; the West Building is the House Building and will have ‘H Rm#’ and rooms in the Capitol itself will say ‘C Rm#’.

· In Committee meetings, take notes then go back and share information. They are from 8:00 to Noon and 2:00 to 4:00.

· Floor time – take notes then share information. They are 10:00 to Noon and 2:00 to 4:00.

· Website has tons of information and is user-friendly. Video and audio feeds are available for many events.

· There is a ‘Tracking’ service on the site that allows you to list bills that you want email reminders about and updated information on that will alert you in your email.

· There is also a ‘What’s Happening Today’ feature that can be very valuable.

· Phone calls and written notes are also valuable to do

Kris and Dalane will be there throughout the session on many days and are happy to meet you or even carpool. Sometimes going with someone else may make you feel more comfortable going when it is unfamiliar at first. Kris also will only email lots of information during the session to those who request it. If you want to be included in that, just let her know.

Lunch: provided by Jennifer Bertin, Hillary Diven and Janet Seamons

Next Meeting: February 10, 2010 at the Bella Vida Clubhouse, North Salt Lake