JUNETEENTH CELEBRATION POSTPONED
UNTIL JUNE 22 DUE TO FLOODING
| NAACP’s JUNETEENTH 2024 CELEBRATION
POSTPONED TO JUNE 22 @ 10:00-4:00
River Park Community Center
LWVCC will join the NAACP’s Juneteenth Celebration at River Park Community Center from 10 AM to 4 PM. We will be sharing information on League priority issues. For more information contact Cynthia Cave. |  | JUNE 19TH ELECTION FORUM
SPONSORED BY THE COLLIER COUNTY FORUM COALITION
June 19 @ 5:00-8:00
1455 Pine Ridge Road, Naples, 34109
NABOR (Naples Area Board of Realtors) and NBG (Naples Better Government) are set to host a multi-faceted Forum on June 19th. The Forum will feature candidates for three upcoming elections, with a separate session to be conducted successively for each of the following elections:
- The School Board
- Supervisor of Elections
- Property Appraiser
The Forum will be moderated by award-winning NBC-2 Chief Political Correspondent Dave Elias. It will begin promptly at 5 pm at the Naples Conference Center on the NABOR campus, 1455 Pine Ridge Road, Naples, 34109. Look for additional information on the candidates who will present, as it becomes available.
Contact: Patricia Aiken-O'Neill, Forum Coordinator, Voter Services Committee, for more information.
| FLORIDA LEAGUE FOUNDER HONORED
 On June 7, 2024, Governor Ron DeSantis announced the selection of 3 notable women to the Florida Women’s Hall of Fame. Each year, the Governor selects three nominees from recommendations presented by the Florida Commission on the Status of Women.
According to the Governor's website, one of the 3 women selected was May Mann Jennings. Jennings was the First Lady to Governor William Sherman Jennings, who served as Florida’s 18th Governor. She was a founding member of the Florida State League of Women Voters, the precursor to the League of Women Voters of Florida, and served as President of the Florida Federation of Women’s Clubs. Jennings is known as the “Mother of Florida’s Forestry” due to her efforts to lobby the Florida Legislature for the establishment of the State Board of Forestry, which today is known as the Florida Forestry Service. She also spearheaded the effort to have Royal Palm State Park established in 1915, which later became part of the Everglades National Park. Her legacy has earned her a reputation as one of Florida’s original suffragettes and conservationists. Jennings championed causes for women’s suffrage, better treatment of children and prisoners, education funding, historic preservation, and highway beautification which still leave their mark on Florida today. The Collier County League is proud that May Mann Jennings' accomplishments have been recognized in Florida. | SAVE THE DATE:
KNOW YOUR BALLOT QUESTIONS
On August 14, 2024 at 2 PM by Zoom, the Education Committee will host an informative meeting for all members of LWVCC and guests on three important questions on your November ballot. A panel of experts will discuss Collier County Public Schools’ tax neutral referendum on budget flexibility and two state amendments: Question 1 on Partisan School Board Elections and Question 4 on Reproductive Rights. More information and a Zoom link to come. Questions: email education@lwvcolliercounty.org. | UNDERSTANDING OUR FLORIDA GOVERNMENT
Understanding Our Florida Government is a series by League ambassador Sandy Parker. Sandy is the founder and publisher of Sparker's Soapbox, whose mission is to encourage and facilitate informed voting in Collier County. Learn more at sparkers-soapbox.com
An informed voter needs a basic understanding of the judicial branch of Florida’s government because Florida voters elect all judges. This Sparker's Soapbox primer reviews the Florida court system and the jurisdictions, qualifications, terms of office, and compensation of judges at each level. You will also learn about the people currently holding judicial office and gain tips to help you make informed decisions when voting for judges.
| LWVCC at NAPLES PRIDE ‘24
The League of Women Voters of Collier County hosted a booth at Naples Pride in Cambier Park on Saturday, June 8th. What a fabulous day and an outstanding community event! The League was able to engage with the community and share resources. Due to our convenient placement near the Supervisor of Elections booth, we were able to direct citizens to their booth to check registration status, register to vote, etc. Our trivia wheel was a fun, educational experience for lots of kids!
| RETURNING CITIZENS POSTCARD PARTIES
June 13 & 20 @ 1:00-300
Returning Citizens and GOTV Postcard Writing Initiative
What a great time we had last Thursday writing postcards for Returning Citizens and Get Out The Vote (GOTV) ! We plan to continue postcard writing parties throughout the summer. If you have some time on a Thursday afternoon please come join us ~ it’s a great way to spend some time with other League members and get some good work done! You can register on the Event Calender.
The League of Women Voters of Florida is committed to helping Returning Citizens regain the right to vote after completing their sentence. Our League is assisting LWVFL in mailing postcards to returning citizens with the information to call the legal assistance hotline to receive pro bono assistance to learn their voting status. This year we have completed 2500 cards through our postcard writing parties, a big Thank You to all who participated.
We are also writing postcard for our GOTV initiative to remind voters who have not participated in recent elections the importance of voting ~ we 4000 thousands to do! Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact Tina Palmese or Paula Schwerin.
For those of us that have been part of this, it is truly a rewarding experience!
| CIVIL CITATION CONVERSATION ON
WGCU RADIO GULF COAST LIFE
In early May, LWVCC Juvenile Justice Chair Libbie Bramson and Caren Langevin, Juvenile Resource Center Supervisor, Collier County Sheriff’s Office spoke about Civil Citation with Mike Kiniry, host of WGCU’s Gulf Coast Life.
Civil Citation is an alternative to arrest for common youth misbehaviors (misdemeanors). It is an opportunity for kids up to 18 years to avoid formal arrest and a criminal record that can have negative consequences for the rest of their life. The Citation typically involves apologizing to the victim, performing community service for a specific number of weeks, and attending counseling. Collier County is one of the State leaders in implementing this program. The completion rate in Colllier County has consistently been 90 to 95%, and the recidivism rate between 4 to 5%.
For more information and the broadcast recording go to Gulf Coast Life. | MISSED THE COUNTY COMMISSIONER CANDIDATE FORUMS?
An article describing the May 8 candidate forums for County Commission Districts 3 and 5 has been posted to our website with links to the forum recordings.
| 
2024-2025 LWVCC HANDBOOK & BYLAWS AVAILABLE
Log in to the LWVCC website. Select Member Resources/Document Quick Links. Select the document from the list of LWVCC Documents. |  PLASTICS POINTERS
Plastics Pointers is taking the summer off and will resume in the fall. In the meantime, you can find lots of ideas at Plastics Free July, an international movement with over 100 million participants to reduce your use of plastic during the month of July. Their website is loaded with information and their frequent Instagram posts are inspirational. You can sign up online to take the challenge and be counted in their statistics on the impact of the challenge. Or you can just go to “Resources” then “Assets” to download an Action Picker to keep track of some strategies. Happy summer, and don’t forget to keep thinking of creative ways to reduce your use of plastics! |
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UPCOMING EVENTS |
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June 22 @ 11:00
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Juneteenth Celebration
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June 19 @ 5:00-8:00
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Candidate Forum
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August 14 @ 2:00
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Know Your Ballot Questions
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Visit the LWVCC Calendar for event details
| ONLINE REIMBURSEMENT FORM IS NOW AVAILABLE
Board members, committee chairs, and others who need to submit reimbursement requests can now do so via our Submit Online Forms page. | UPCOMING COMMITTEE MEETINGS
Because LWVCC committee meetings are for members and their invited guests unless stated otherwise,
members should log in to the website to register
to get the Zoom links for committee meetings and other events. | Gun Violence Prevention Subcommittee Meeting
June 18 @ 4:00-5:00
Zoom | DEI Committee Meeting
June 19 @ 3:00-4:00
Zoom | Reproductive Health Subcommittee Meeting
June 20 @ 4:00-5:00
Zoom | Board Meeting
August 7 @ 9:30-12:00
Zoom | MISSED AN ISSUE OF THE VOTER?
NEED TO CATCH UP ON THE NEWS?
Check out our updated News & Newsletters page, which has all our latest news and links to current and back issues of The Voter and The LWVCC Update.
| Empowering Voters. Defending Democracy.
The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan political organization that encourages informed and active participation in Government. We influence public policy through education and advocacy. Our goal is to empower citizens to take an active role in shaping better communities worldwide. The League of Women Voters of Collier County does not support or endorse any candidate or political party.
| League of Women Voters of Collier County
P.O. Box 9883Naples, FL 34101
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