October 2017
Getting Women Into Office Matters!
At its October meeting, WIRE hosted Close the Gap Founder Mary Hughes, who spoke about
why it is critical to have more women in elected and appointed office. "We can't solve the big problems that face our nation and our world, with only half the human talent engaged in the solution," Hughes reminded the group. Research from Rutgers' Center for Women and Politics confirms that women govern differently from men; they are more goal oriented and less partisan. As a result, women can more readily develop areas of compromise that enable solutions to our most intractable problems.
Hughes also reminded the group that unlike men, most qualified women will not self-nominate for public service. They need to be recruited and told they'd make a significant contribution in the role. This is why WIRE's mission is so vital.
WIRE in the News
Carol Mayer Marshall was recently featured in InMenlo discussing the genesis of her idea to form an organization to help more women get elected and appointed. Concerned that women are not adequately represented in policy-making, Carol declared,"We need to do something. WIRE is the result.”
Success Stories
WIRE has already been actively supporting women in their efforts to win leadership positions in our target counties. Here is a list of recent Candidates and Appointees:
IdaRose Sylvester - Mountain View Environmental Task Force, newly appointed
Lauren Segal - Palo Alto Utilities Advisory Commission, newly appointed
Karen Grove - Menlo Park Housing Commission, newly appointed
Jennifer DiBrienza - Palo Alto School Board, elected
Sue Monk - Palo Alto Planning and Transportation Commission, newly appointed
Susan Ellenberg - Currently running for Santa Clara County Supervisor
Are you interested in exploring appointed or elected opportunities near you?
Contact Carol for more information. CarolMMarshall@me.com
We're Making Progress
Since WIRE's July meeting, we've made significant progress. Still, there's much more work to be done. Here's what we've been working on:
1. Compiling a database of all elected and appointed offices in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.
2. Creating a job description for City Captains.
3. Developing logo, stationery, and a website.
4. Scheduling a candidate forum hosted by Vicki Veenker in early January.
5. Compiling a list of at least 50 women’s organizations in our counties. The goal is to contact these organizations to introduce WIRE and begin to build alliances.
6. Completing limited marketing efforts while in the start-up stage.
7. Developing a mailing list of over 100 people.
Want to Get Involved?
We need help. Contact us if you can volunteer in the following areas:
Be a City Captain, help manage the database of elected or appointed offices, or help with website/logo design, marketing, or the volunteer committee. Email us at wireforwomen@gmail.com.
Follow us on social media: WIRE for Women on Facebook; Follow us
on Twitter.
Forward this newsletter to ten friends.
If you haven't already, please fill out the member survey and join the mailing list here.
Upcoming Events
We'd like to hold a holiday gathering for late November or early December. If you could offer your home for the event, let us know. January 2018 candidate forum led by Vicki Veenker.
