April 2008 Club Newletter:

MEETING NOTICE - WE WILL BE ENDORSING FOR THE JUNE 3, 2008 PRIMARY:
We will hold our general membership meeting on Monday, April 21 st, at 7:30 P.M. in the Ken Nakaoka Community Center Room A, 1670 W. 162nd Street, Gardena. (The Gardena Recreation Department has scheduled a sports banquet for the auditorium and has moved us to Room A, which is also on the ground floor. We suggest you come early, as seating may be limited.)

All members are very much encouraged to attend, as we anticipate endorsing for County Supervisor District 2, District Attorney, State Assembly Districts 51, 52, 53 and 55 and Senate District 25 seats, Congressional Districts 35, 36 and 37 some Superior Court Judge positions, County Central Committee seats and perhaps other June 3rd primary candidates of interest to our members.

Candidates, or their representatives or club members who support specific candidates may speak briefly and answer questions prior to each vote. Members who want more information on our endorsement process are encouraged to check our ByLaws on our web site.

We will not be taking positions on Propositions 98 and 99 until our May meeting when we will have a program on those issues.

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ACTIVE CLUB MEMBER JIM SCHAEFER PASSES AWAY MARCH 17th:

We regret to announce that our club member, Jim Schaefer, passed away after a brief illness resulting from complications from a March 18 operation.

Jim and his wife Jan were active club members and had attended our March 17 club meeting.
Jim was a Carson city commissioner, County Central Committee alternate, and was very active in the campaigns of club members Jim Dear, Harold Williams and Julie Ruiz-Raber, among others.

At a large memorial service held recently it was clear that he touched the hearts of many, including family, friends, neighbors, coworkers and political volunteers. Jim Schaefer will be greatly missed by all of us in the GVDC.

APRIL 13th - 23,000 DEMOCRATS STATEWIDE SELECT DELEGATES FOR DENVER:

Local Clinton delegates are Cynthia Marroquin-Henley, Carl Henley, Teresa Bird, Janice Hahn, Jeffrey Millman, Silissa Uriarte Smith and Jeffrey Millman.

Obama delegates are: Bobbie Anderson, Steven Bradford, Eric Lee, Kathleen Paralusz, Benjamin Arnon, Yvonne Wheeler, James Johnson and Rex Richardson.

(These are 35, 36 & 37 C.D. results.)

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January 2008 General Meeting Minutes (Draft):

Gardena Valley Democratic Club Monthly Member Meeting 2008 March 17

Notice: this was a regular meeting in the regular meeting room. Notice of business to be transacted was given in the club newsletter.

Call to Order: President elect Don Dear determined that more than the required quorum of twelve members were present and called the meeting to order at 7:37 PM.

Agenda: The President presented an agenda for the meeting. Motion to accept the agenda was made by Jim McGreevy, seconded by Olivia Verrett, carried without opposition.

Executive Board Report: A proposal had been made at the February Executive Board meeting to award a "Democrat of the Month" citation to selected contributors to Democratic issues. The Board resolved to proceed with this project with Terry Kennedy appointed chair of an ad-hoc committee to oversee the awards.

First Vice President: Wilbur Sato announced that next month's meeting would be occupied with endorsements for the June 3 elections, however Robert Rankin, a superdelegate to the Democratic National Convention, will speak briefly on his role in the presidential selection process.

Second Vice President: Terry Kennedy announced renewal from Roderick Wright, Wilma Wilson, William Wilson, Ingrid Tsukiyama, Mimi Miretti, applications from two new members: Luetta Watson and Toni Alario. Upon motion by Terry Kennedy, seconded and carried without opposition, the two new members were voted in and welcomed. [During the meeting, others would apply, pay their dues, and be voted in.]

Recording Secretary: Draft minutes had been distributed with the newsletter. Rosalie Preston offered minor corrections. These were incorporated and, upon motion by Jan Schaefer Seconded by Muriel Montoya, and carried without opposition, the minutes were approved as corrected.

Treasurer: Susana Medina reported a bank balance of $1352 and undeposited receipts of $1024, for a total cash asset value of $2376. The undeposited receipts included a $1000 gift from Normandie Casino.

Committee Reports

California Democratic Party Pre-Endorsement Caucus: Richard Schwartz reported on the Region 14 caucus of March 15 at the Crystal Casino in Compton. The contest for California Senate district 25 resulted in no endorsement, as no candidate received 70% of the vote. The candidates (in decreasing vote order) were Roderick Wright, Kevin Biggers, Mervyn Dymally, and Don Dear.

Guest Speaker

California state Senator Mark Ridley Thomas arrived and was introduced by Don Dear. He spoke to the club about his candidacy for Los Angeles County 2nd District Supervisor and requested our endorsement. He spoke of his long career in public service and he identified issues of medical care (including the need to re-open Martin Luther King hospital), crime and public safety as the most critically important to our communities. He also spoke about the need to eliminate easy access to guns and his success in crafting animal control legislation. Further interesting discussions with the Senator continued during a ten minute recess.

Committee Reports (continued)

Los Angeles County Central Committee: Jan Schaefer reported on the March 11 Central Committee meeting. At that meeting, the endorsement process of an Assembly District meeting was challenged and partially overturned.

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How to Be A Delegate to the National Convention: Toni Alario reported on the several possible paths to becoming a delegate to the Democratic National Convention. Application forms can be downloaded from www.cadem.ora.

Sunshine Committee: In the absence of chair Doris Griffin, Muriel Montoya reported activities of the Sunshine Committee, including sympathy cards to the family of Lucille Green.

New Business

Terry Kennedy: Three new memberships were received during the meeting from Mark Ridley Thomas, Jerome Isaiah, and Theresa Holman. Upon motion by Terry Kennedy, seconded by Richard Schwartz, and carried without opposition, the new members were accepted into the club.

Tibet: Wilbur Sato moved that we send a letter to our congressional representatives protesting the loss of civil rights by the people of Tibet and alleged genocide taking place there. Motion was seconded by Muriel Montoya and carried without opposition. The letter will be written by Wilbur Sato.

New Members: Muriel Montoya moved to add Drexel Johnson and Mary Jones as new members. They had applied for membership and paid their dues at the last meeting. Motion was seconded by Terry Kennedy and Carried without opposition. Ms. Montoya also moved that we send a letter of thanks to Normandie Casino for their recent generous donation to our club. Motion was seconded by Bea Bernstein and carried without opposition.

Gardena City Council: Wilbur Sato moved that we send a letter to the Gardena City Council recommending the appointment of Dan Medina to fill the vacancy left by the resignation of Oscar Medrano. Motion was seconded by Danny Juarez and carried without opposition.

Reports from Candidates

Approximately 24 members of the club are running for County Central Committee in various Assembly districts. It is the policy of the club to endorse all club members, even when there are more than seven in a district. Don Dear is a serious candidate for California Senate seat 25.

Reports from Elected Officials

Carson City Councilman Harold Williams, Hawthorne City Councilman Danny Juarez, and West Basin Municipal Water District President Don Dear gave briefings on their respective jurisdictions ..

Announcements

More New Members: Terry Kennedy moved that Lleweyn Fowlkes, Joan Jacobs, Jonathan Ketch, Fernando Ramirez, Wilma Bradford, and Daniel Tabor, who had applied and paid their dues, be admitted to membership. Motion was seconded by Julie Ruiz-Raber, and carried without opposition.

Impeachment: Toni Alario announced a talk at UCLA Law School on the legal causes for impeachment of President Bush; Olivia Verrett announced the attendees for the coming NAACP event, and Julie Raber announced a peace march event.

Adjournment

Julian Burger moved, and Terry Kennedy seconded that we adjourn in memory of Lucille Green who graced us with warmth, wisdom, wit, and cookies for many years and who is sorely missed. Motion carried without opposition and the meeting adjourned at 9:36 PM.

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(Click anywhere on the following images to go directly to the Claifornia Democratic Party website page giving information about the 2008 Democratic National Convention. If this doesn't work then click on the "2008 Democratic National Convention" link on the right side of the CDP home page.)

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(Click anywhere on the following image to go directly to the Claifornia Democratic Party website page giving information about the 2008 Democratic National Convention. If this doesn't work then click on the "2008 Democratic National Convention" link on the right side of the CDP home page.)

Recent Club Newsletters:

-- August 2007 -- July 2007 -- June 2007 -- May 2007 -- April 2007 -- March 2007 -- February 2007 -- January 2007 -- December 2006 --