Weekly Call To Action - October 17, 2021

​Take Two Actions Now:

Last Chance to Comment on Redistricting 

​This is the last week you can weigh in on the redistricting of our Congressional Districts. We only get this chance once every 10 years! Written testimony is due to the commission by Oct 22. 

You can see all 4 Commissioner proposed maps here: Commission Proposed Congressional Maps. The League of Women Voters map here.
The Sims and Walkinshaw maps keep CD10 close to what it is now.
The Graves map moves us completely out of CD10 and splits Thurtson between CD8, CD6 and CD3. The Fain maps split the Thurston between CD10, CD6 and CD3. 

What criteria must be considered in redrawing district boundaries?
Personalize your comments if possible. Read guidance from the League of Women Voters: How to write effective testimony. Written testimony is due to the commission by Oct 22.

League of Women Voters recommended talking point: Keep Olympia, Tumwater, and Lacey in CD10 with South Pierce County. 

Action 1: Submit a Comment:
​
It is helpful if you would modify the script to make it more personal and say why keeping our voting district community-based is important to you.

• ​​Submit Your Comment Online using this web form
  OR
• Submit Comment By Email
  You can email your public comment in any language to: comment@redistricting.wa.gov. 

Email Subject Line: Congressional District Testimony

Script: I'm [NAME] from [CITY], [ZIP] . Please keep Thurston County in CD10. 

The cities of Olympia, Lacey, and Tumwater form strong communities of interest together in commerce, interlocal agreements and political advocacy groups. Keeping communities of common interest together is more important than district competitiveness.

The Graves and Fain maps each split Thurston County into 3 Congressional Districts. I urge you to keep Olympia, Lacey, and Tumwater together in CD10 with South Pierce County as recommended by the League of Women Voters.​

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Have You Called This Week?

​Time is running out for Democrats to pass Voting Rights and the Reconciliation Bill. Every day of delay gives the GOP more time to spin their lies claiming that these crucial investments are just “wasteful spending” or that the election was “stolen”. Republicans are dead wrong, but more and more of the country is listening to their falsehoods. 

Action 2: President Biden, Representative Strickland, Senators Murray, and Cantwell need to hear from each one of us EVERY WEEK so they know how we stand. You can make one weekly call to each of them about several issues at once. 

• President Biden, Phone: 202-456-1111 or Contact Form 

• Senator Patty Murray, Phone: 253-572-3636 or Contact Form 
• Senator Maria Cantwell, Phone: 253-572-2281 or Contact Form 

• Marilyn Strickland, Phone: 202-225-9740 or Contact Form 
  • Email all three MOCs at once using Democracy.io. 

Script: I'm contacting (President Biden, Senator, Representative ______) so that he/she knows where I stand. These are my priorities:

We must pass the Freedom to Vote Act and to do so, the Senate needs to remove the obstacle of filibuster. The GOP cannot be allowed to continue to overturn our Democracy. This matters more than anything else.​ We must pass the Reconciliation Bill. Investing in Families, Infrastructure and Climate Change is urgent and cannot wait.​

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Be an Informed Voter​

​Voting Information You Can Use

Ballots were mailed out on Wednesday (October 13), so be on the lookout for yours. Be sure to inform yourself of the various candidates and ballot measures in your community, and then VOTE! 

ACTION: First and foremost, vote!

• We recommend you vote “Maintain” on all advisory votes on your ballot. Advisory votes are the result of a Tim Eyman initiative. 
• Confirm your Thurston County voter registration status online or by calling the Auditor's Elections team at 360-786-5408.
• If you want to be sure that your ballot is received in time, you can deposit it in one of the many drop boxes around Thurston County, find the one closest to you.
• And you can track your ballot to make sure that it’s received. If for any reason you don’t receive a ballot, contact the Auditor's office by Phone: 360-786-5408 or Email: elections@co.thurston.wa.us.
• If you have a disability, check out the Accessibility page. 
• If you are an overseas or service voter, you can access your ballot and get information on how to submit it.

And remember – there are good candidates out there who need help getting the vote out, so please lend a hand if you can, either by working on a campaign or by encouraging others in your community to vote for good candidates.​

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​Supporting Our Candidates

​Sign Waving

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​An invitation from Carla Wulfsberg to join her and others at two waving events in Tumwater for Port Candidate Joel Hansen and Tumwater Council candidate, Peter Agabi.

Saturday, Oct. 23, 11:30 - 1:00 - corners of Henderson Blvd and Yelm Hwy (park behind the Briggs YMCA, enter lot from Yelm Highway). Bring a yard sign for Joel Hansen. If you don’t have one, not to worry. I’ll have signs on hand. Please sign up below.

Sunday, Oct. 31, 11:30 - 1:30 - corners of Henderson Blvd and Yelm (Enter to park from Yelm Highway at the Briggs YMCA). Wear a Halloween costume and bring a yard sign if you have one. If not, I’ll have signs on hand. Please sign up below.

Please Sign Up for sign waving events. You’ll get reminders and a notice if, for some reason, the date has been cancelled. It's easy to sign up. You will NOT need to register an account or keep a password. Click this link for the SignUp sheet. It’s easy. You’ll see my initials, CW, as the Site Coordinator for those two dates. Ask your friends to sign up too. If neither of those dates works for you, feel free to choose other dates.

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“I Just Voted For You!”

​Ever wonder if all those postcards we write make a difference? Besides research showing increases in voter turnout especially in off year elections, Port Commissioner Candidate Joel Hansen shared this experience with an OI member: I was out doorbelling in Lacey today and a woman came to her door and immediately said "I just voted for you, you sent me a postcard!"

We sent 4,374 postcards for Joel written by over 70 people. And some of those folks aren't even OI members but friends, family and neighbors recruited by OI members. Well Done, good and faithful writers, well done!​

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​Community Service

​Join Grassroots Bread Bakers and Donate Loaves

​
​​Bakers throughout Thurston County are donating bread to the Thurston County Food Bank twice a month. They are part of a well-run bread baking organization, Community Loaves, founded in April 2020 by a passionate bread baker, Katherine Kehrli of Seattle. Today, there are over 1,000 bakers from Bellingham to Eugene, Oregon donating bread to their local food banks through Community Loaves. The motto of Community Loaves is, “We’re breader together.”

You are invited to bake nutritional honey oat bread twice a month in your own kitchen that will be donated to the Thurston County Food Bank. Since January 2021, the number of bakers in Thurston County has grown to 86 and with a whopping 3,232 loaves donated this year to folks in need! The goal is to donate another 1,500 loaves by the end of the year. Hope you’ll consider joining the TC grassroots baking brigade.

It’s easy to get started. Here’s how.

• First, sign up and attend a Community Loaves orientation on Zoom. You’ll learn everything you need to know including the recipe (a nutritious honey oat formula), how to order a Starter Kit, and where and when to deliver your loaves. 
• You’ll sign up to deliver your loaves to one of four “Hubs”: Westside, Eastside Olympia, Southeast Olympia or a Lacey hub. The Hubs are private homes of Community Loaves bakers where you’ll deliver your loaves to their front or back porches twice a month.
• Need some help to get started as a baker? A Community Loaves mentor is available to you by phone or via a Zoom class. They’ll troubleshoot any problems you might have and offer advice and support. 
• Read all about this amazing community effort and how it works.