2020-11NovemberPerspective

AAUW Petaluma November 2020 Perspective

November 2020 -- Volume 66, No. 4

CALENDAR OF UPCOMING EVENTS

Upcoming AAUW Petaluma events (see articles below for more information)

Nov. 12 - November program: "Schooling during the Pandemic," 7 p.m.

Nov. 18 - Deadline for box lunch orders for virtual Holiday Luncheon

Dec. 5 - Holiday Luncheon via Zoom, 12 p.m.

ZOOM events related to AAUW mission (see article below for more information)

Nov. 7 - Women in STEM talk: "My Journey in Life and Chemistry," 10:30 a.m.

SINCERE THANKS TO OUR NEWSLETTER SPONSORS

AAUW Reminder: Virtual Meetings Only

COVID-19 is still all around us, and the safety of our members and staff remains AAUW’s top priority. We strongly advise states and branches to avoid holding any in-person meetings or events and to comply with local and state guidance.

November Program

Schooling During the Pandemic

November 12 at 7 p.m.
via ZOOM Webinar

Join us for a ground-level view of teaching and learning during the pandemic. Five educators will share with us what their day looks like, how they collaborate with others, the benefits and drawbacks to digital learning, and what they perceive to be the long-term effects of digital lessons on learning and socialization. We will find out what is going well and what is difficult.

Teachers on our panel include Amanda Dowdy, sixth grade teacher at McNear, Laura Bradley, Media Production at Kenilworth, and Shereen Jackson, English at Petaluma High School. Two principals, Catina Haugen from Valley Vista Elementary and Mary Reynolds from Miwok Elementary will round out the panel.

We will also hear from the School Support Committee on ways members can assist teachers and students during this very unusual school year.

Because this is a webinar format, you will not be able to ask questions of the panelists during the meeting. If you have questions to ask our educators, please send them in advance to Stefanie Capps at [email protected] or Kris U’Ren at [email protected]

You will receive the ZOOM link Wednesday, November 11. Please share it with interested friends!

Stefanie Capps and Kris U’Ren

Facebook Reminder

Please follow our AAUW Petaluma Facebook page. You will be automatically updated on events. If you "like" and/or "share" the post, it will go out to a wider audience!

Kris U'Ren.

SINCERE THANKS TO OUR NEWSLETTER SPONSERS

212 2nd Street, Petaluma CA 94952

707-763-2727

petalumacoffee.com

Sheila Bride, Founder and CFO

[email protected]

Holiday Luncheon
Saturday, December 5 at Noon
Via ZOOM
The Zoom room will open at 11:45 AM for socializing

Deadline for ordering box lunch: Nov. 18
Deadline for lunch payment: Mail by Nov. 26

Don’t despair! Even though we will be at home and not physically together for our traditional holiday luncheon program, we will still be able to sip and eat and laugh and visit as we celebrate the season together. We have plans to make this a very special occasion.

First off, this will indeed be a luncheon. We have made arrangements to provide delicious box lunches from Preferred Sonoma Caterers. And we have arranged for a wonderful speaker, Leslie Riley, who will entertain and enlighten us on choosing a positive perspective while we munch our lunch. You will learn more about Leslie in the December Perspective.

We will have time to visit before and after the meeting in addition to several break-out rooms during the meeting. We strongly encourage you to dress for this occasion in your favorite holiday finery.

Lunch Details

Decide which of the scrumptious box lunches you wish to purchase for the luncheon (see choices below).
Email your sandwich choice to Stefanie Capps at [email protected] no later than Wednesday, November 18.
Put a check in the amount of $22.00 made out to AAUW Petaluma in the mail by November 26. Send to Stefanie at 1210 B Street, Petaluma, 94952.
Your lunch will be delivered to your door by our volunteers on the morning of the luncheon, if you live in the Petaluma area. If you live outside the area and wish to purchase a lunch, contact Stefanie Capps.
You may wish to purchase a lunch for your spouse or partner!

Note: You do not need to purchase a box lunch in order to attend the luncheon, but we request that you RSVP if you plan to attend..

Sandwich choices

Turkey with basil pesto, provolone, tomato and balsamic glaze
Roast beef with white cheddar and horseradish
Vegetarian with asparagus, portobello, chevre and balsamic glaze

All lunches will come with a sandwich, pasta salad, a chocolate chip cookie, and sparkling water..

President's Message

Fires, smoke, bad air, political chaos, pandemic, deep divides throughout the country-- feels like 2020 has been around long enough! And yet, we will need to get through these problems in the coming months, and perhaps years.

Some time ago I was in a job that I loved but working for a boss who was not a good fit for the department. It took some time, but I eventually realized that it made sense to focus on the things I could control and let go of the others. I find today that I am waiting for things to be "normal" or at least better and that, in the waiting time, I am avoiding doing things that I could do. That in turn is frustrating, to say nothing of the resulting last minute deadlines that have to be met.

So if you too are dealing with "procrastination malaise," realize that you have company. Do what you can each day and try not to be hard on yourself if it doesn't seem like enough. We will get through this together.

Rory Keller, Co-President

SINCERE THANKS TO OUR NEWSLETTER SPONSORS
In honor of Mrs. Helen M. Loorya

SCHOOL SUPPORT UPDATE

HELP!

Students and teachers in Petaluma need all the help we can give them!

As reported in the October Perspective, our board has determined that the most effective way to deliver help is through collaboration with Mentor Me and its parent organization, Petaluma People Services Center. PPSC’s Executive Director Elece Hempel and its Youth Services Director Yensi Jacobo tell us that help is particularly needed in these three areas:

MENTORING: Students who are having trouble engaging in online instruction benefit greatly from regular online interaction with a caring adult.
CHILDCARE FUNDING: While safe, in-person academic support is being set up on the east and west sides of town for various “cohorts” of elementary school students, quite a few families cannot afford to pay for their children’s supervision/day care in the period after 3 pm.
FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR FOOD: Hunger is an issue for low-income families where parents have been furloughed or lost their jobs, or where one parent now has to stay home to take care of young children.

If you would like to know more about becoming an online mentor, check out Jean Reed’s article below.

If you are unable to serve as a mentor, but would like to support PPSC’s programs that assist students and their families, you can:

Mail a check to PPSC at 1500 Petaluma Blvd S, Petaluma, CA 94952. On your check, please note: “AAUW” and The PPSC fund that you prefer (for options, see next bullet point).
Donate online to one of the funds listed on PPSC’s donation page (https://petalumapeople.org/donate/) or to PPSC’s new Childcare Assistance Fundraiser (click here).

The online donation platform does not offer any way to note your AAUW affiliation, so if you donate online, please let Karen Johnson know (click here for her email address). No need to state the amount of your donation. After we give PPSC the names of donors, PPSC will tell us the total donated by AAUW’ members..

School Support Committee

Note on ZOOM meetings

For security reasons, ZOOM links are not included in the Perspective.

PROGRAMS - The ZOOM link will be sent to all members in an email the day before the event.
SECTIONS - Sections will send the link directly to section members. Be sure to RSVP so that you get the ZOOM link.
NEW MEETINGS – Contact Kathy Schmidt to set up a new ZOOM meeting.
ZOOM BY PHONE – For audio only, call 669-900-9128, enter Meeting ID and Passcode when prompted.

SINCERE THANKS TO OUR NEWSLETTER SPONSERS

We miss seeing you in the theater!
Check our website for
digital streaming
cinnabartheater.org

Report from a Mentor (To Be)
By Jean Reed

I decided that I wanted to participate in the MentorMe program. I completed three

hour-long trainings where I met some of the school site coordinators who will be my

support team while I provide guidance for a student in our community.

The first training summarized the benefits to students – basically, the presence of a supportive friend.

The second hour included tips on how to be a good mentor – show up, listen, and pay attention.
The final session covered some do's and dont's – don’t do their homework; do have fun!

I sent in my application last week with three references. I’ve scheduled fingerprinting and expect to be matched with a mentee early next month. I’m looking forward to

bringing a young person into my life for an hour or so each week – all via ZOOM, of

course.

MentorMe is not a tutoring service. It’s a chance to walk alongside a student as a

role model – not as a parent, not as a teacher, but as an outsider who can give support to help a student succeed. I encourage you to consider becoming a mentor. Sign up for

training or call 707-778-4798.

PUBLIC POLICY

Did you miss the Candidate Forums?

Want to see them again?

If you missed the City Council Forum, you can still catch it! Click one of the links below to watch. Public Policy Co-chair Pam Granger deftly managed 8 candidates.

YouTube link
Facebook link

School Board Forum - behind the scenes

If you missed the Petaluma City Schools Forum, you can still catch it! Click this link to watch.

The photo shows the four candidates, the moderator Pam Granger, and also the timekeeper Stefanie Capps, who was visible to the candidates, but not to the webinar viewers.

At one point YouTube said there were 341 viewers – great visibility for AAUW!
Note: Technical difficulties prevented recording audio at 17:47 and 45:19 minutes. We apologize to candidate Ellen Webster.

SINCERE THANKS TO OUR NEWSLETTER SPONSORS

OCTOBER BOARD MEETING HIGHLIGHTS

Membership is 137 members which is exactly the number used for the 2020-2021 budget. Remember, new members are always welcome!
Public Policy reported that about 200 people attended or streamed the Candidate Forums. Members wrote 150 Get-Out-The-Vote letters. Well done!
The School Support Committee reported on volunteer opportunities. See the article above for how you can contribute.

Co-President Jean Reed

Finance Report

As of September 30, 2020, the Branch checking account balance is $5,857.68, and the Branch savings account balance is $5,597.29.

Corey Benjamin, VP Finance

WOMEN IN STEM
My Journey in Life and Chemistry

Saturday, November 7, 2020

Time: 10:30 Chatting; 11:00 Presentation

Cost: Free

RSVP by November 5.

Here is the link for reservations starting September 28, 2020. For more information visit the website at www.calacs.org or email [email protected].

The Women Chemists Committee of the American Chemical Society's Northern California Section invites AAUW members and friends to this event:

Dr. Nancy Falk, a Research Fellow at the Clorox Company in Pleasanton, will give

an online presentation about her career as a surfactants and detergents chemist. Nancy will talk about her journey from her childhood in a rural Washington State community through her education and her technical career in the cleaning products industry, touching on some relevant technologies used in the industry. She will also reflect on work-life balance, technical society roles, outreach, and mentoring

Anne Taylor

SINCERE THANKS TO OUR NEWSLETTER SPONSORS

Phone: (707) 763-1515

Fax: (707) 765-0256
Email: [email protected]

SECTION SPOTLIGHT: ART AND HISTORY

If you missed John Sheehy's October 15 presentation on Helen Putnam, co-sponsored by AAUW Petaluma and the Petaluma Library, you can view it on YouTube. John Sheehy's very interesting account of Helen Putnam's life was accompanied by many photos of Petaluma's development over the years.

Click here to watch John Sheehy's presentation on youtube..

PUBLIC POLICY
California Update

This has been one unpredictable legislative season! We started the season with 34 bills selected for AAUW support. With COVID-19, racial injustice, and wildfires dominating the political landscape, we lost a lot of those bills right off the bat, then added several that were introduced in the last month. Of the final 21 AAUW-supported bills, 16 were signed, including all five of our racial justice bills and the three noted below. For more information go to “Capitol Track” on the AAUW-CA website.

SB 973 Employers Annual Report of Pay Data, which AAUW has sponsored for two years, requires a private employer that has 100 or more employees to submit a yearly pay data report that contains wage information on employees by race, ethnicity, and sex.

SB 1383 Family and Medical Leave Expansion covers all employers with 5 or more employees (down from 50) and aligns the definition of family to include grandparents and grandchildren, siblings, parents-in-law, and adult children.

SB 803 Peer Support Services establishes statewide training and certification standards for specialists with lived experience with mental illness and substance use disorders to help people currently experiencing those hardships.

Gold Book Notes

The GOLD BOOK was mailed to all members at the beginning of October. Please be reminded that the Branch directory is for use only by AAUW members and may not be used for recruiting or solicitation for other purposes.

Has your address or phone number changed since the Gold Book came out?

Be sure to notify Co-VP of Membership Dee Short (click here for her email address), so the national database can be updated
If you would like, we can publish your new address and/or phone number here in the Perspective, so that fellow members can manually update their Gold Books. Contact a newsletter co-editor: Anne Taylor (click here), Sandy Smethurst (click here) or Barbara Guggemos (click here),

SINCERE THANKS TO OUR NEWSLETTER SPONSORS

Leah DeBerardinis, D.D.S.

511 Hayes Lane
Petaluma, CA 94952 hillcrestdentalgroup.net
(707) 763-2654

SECTIONS

Call Patty Shribbs at 769-8961
with general questions or
ideas for new sections.
[email protected]

ACTIVE ZOOM SECTIONS

NEW! CONNECTED IN PLACE GROUP
Opportunity to chat and socialize
Meets 1st Tuesdays
Date: 11.03.20
Time:10 a.m.
Chair:Jean Reed, [email protected]
RSVP with Jean

NEW! TED TALKS DISCUSSION GROUP
Meets 3rd Tuesdays
Date: 11.17.20
Time: 3 p.m.
Topic: TBD
Co-Chairs: Stefanie Capps [email protected]
Mary Ann Kendall, [email protected]
RSVP with Stefanie Capps.

NEW! TRAVEL SECTION (meeting every other month on first Mondays via ZOOM)
Date:Monday 12.07.20
Time: 11 a.m.

Program: Travelling in France
Co-Chairs: Wendy Porter, 795-9354, [email protected]
Cathy Burton, 763-9082, [email protected]
RSVP with Wendy

Saturday Night Drama Reading

(open only to those members who participated in the spring ZOOM mtgs) Only 10 books are given to us each month.
(If a second group wishes to gather with the same plays, please let Patty Shribbs or Kay know.}
Meets second Saturdays (except Oct.)
Date: Saturday, 11.4.20
Time: 7 p.m.
Place: ZOOM
Play: Tiny Beautiful Things, based on the book by Cheryl Strayed (adapted for Stage by Nia Vardalos))
Chair: Kay Hardy, [email protected] or 981-7171

Evening Modern Literature
Meets 4th Mondays (except in November)
Date: 12.07.20
Time: 7:15 pm (Meet & Greet) before discussion at 7:30
Place: ZOOM with Barbara Ryan
Book: The Lying Game by Ruth Ware
Chair: [email protected] or 781-3722
RSVP: with Barbara Ryan, [email protected]

Morning Modern Literature Group
Second Tuesdays
Date: 11.10.20
Time: 10 a.m.
Place: ZOOM
Book: Joan of Arc by Mark Twain
Co-Chairs: Anne Trujillo or Maureen Sheridan Scott
([email protected] or [email protected])
RSVP: with Maureen Sheridan Scott, [email protected]

Dining Section “Eclectic Gourmet”
(ZOOM Cocktail Hours to be substituted)
Please contact Anne if interested.
Chair: Anne Taylor,: [email protected] or 774-6586

Walking Group- Fridays after work
Meets most Fridays
Weekly Walking Challenges posted by email
Chair: Contact Rory Keller, [email protected] or 763-2072

SECTIONS ON HOLD

OUT TO LUNCH BUNCH (ON HOLD)

ART AND HISTORY (ON HOLD)

NEW AND PROSPECTIVE MEMBERS (ON HOLD)
Open to all new and long-time members interested in meeting each other and learning about activities that interest you.
Chair: Patricia Souza, [email protected], 762-4173

HIKING GROUP (ON HOLD)
Date: TBD
Time: 9:15 a.m.
Meeting Place: 124 Howard St. (Bring packed lunch and any gear needed, esp. water) Confirm attendance with Anna.
Chair: Anna Taylor, 763-7952
[email protected]

GARDEN SECTION (ON HOLD)
Date: TBD (Some virtual on-line events offered)
Contact Chairs for further info
Co-Chairs: Patricia Souza, 762-4173 [email protected]
Diana Brown, 774-4968, [email protected]

ALL BRIDGE SECTIONS ON HOLD

The following sections have
reached capacity:
Craft Group
Several Dining Groups

SINCERE THANKS TO OUR PERSPECTIVE SPONSORS

We miss seeing you in the theater!

Check our website for

digital streaming.

cinnabartheater.org

E x e c u t i v e B o a r d

ELECTED OFFICERS
Co-Presidents: Rory Keller and Jean Reed
Co-VPs, Program: Kris U'Ren and Stefanie Capps
Co-VPs, Membership: Pat Riley and Dee Short (Membership Treasurer)
Co-VPs, Funds: Sandy Benson and Karen Johnson
Vice President, Finance: Cory Benjamin
Secretary: Cathy Netz

APPOINTED OFFICERS, GENERAL

Hospitality: Norma Jean Walsh

Institutional Memory: Pam Granger

Parliamentarian: Barbara Guggemos

Public Policy; Pam Granger
Sections Coordinator: Patty Shribbs

SRJC Liaison: Doris Tolks

SSU Liaison: Patricia Webb

Tech Trek Coordinator: Michele Meyer

APPOINTED OFICERS, MEMBERSHIP
Database: Rory Keller
Membership Concerns: Kathy Schmidt
New Members: Patricia Souza

APPOINTED OFFICERS, COMMUNICATION

Facebook: Kris U'Ren

Gold Book Editor: Shayne Miller
Perspective Co-Editors: Anne Taylor, Barbara Guggemos, Sandy Smethurst
Publications Sponsors: Barbara Madick

Publicity: Stefanie Capps
Social Media: Stefanie Capps
Webmaster: Ray Hendess