November President’s Message

By Cathy Locke and Karen Burley

We are now fully into Fall! We hope you are enjoying the nice weather and the Halloween displays. Our program year is chugging along. Those who attended the Oct. 18th public policy were enlightened about redistricting and did an interesting exercise in gerrymandering. Plus we welcomed two new 50-year members: Pat Morehead and Cherril Peabody! Look for the meeting recap elsewhere in this newsletter.

We will not have a program in November so we can focus our planning efforts on the Winter Luncheon in December, which we’ve merged with the Author’s Luncheon. Be sure to register before the Dec. 3rd deadline!

Monthly programs are a good way to introduce prospective members to the branch and they can then apply for membership at a discount. We had a number of guests at the October program. Start inviting friends and colleagues now to the December luncheon.

Also, consider volunteering to the branch-level committee that we are exploring as a way to extend the benefits of public speaking to local high school students. Learning to tell a good story and learning how to influence people are great tools to have in your toolkit as you enter the workforce or head off to college.  I believe we have a couple of interested members but we need a few more. Could that be you?

Finally, we’ve been talking about “watch parties.” We are looking for folks to host watch parties in their homes on April 18 to participate in the AAUW CA Annual Event held online on Zoom. If you attended in the past you know that it’s not just watching – there will be breakouts and opportunities to engage. Please consider hosting because as they say “the more the merrier!”  Contact Kathleen Deaver, whose contact information can be found in the Membership Directory, to find out more. Remember: the most interesting watch party and the host will win a prize!

Volunteers Sought to Relaunch Speech Trek Program

If you are interested in helping high school students develop public speaking and critical thinking skills, we want to hear from you.

After two decades, AAUW California ended the statewide Speech Trek program in spring 2025. But some branches are continuing to offer local and regional competitions. Sacramento branch members over the years have been generous in their financial support for Speech Trek, and $4,366 remains in the branch Speech Trek fund. Needed now are volunteers willing to recruit and coach student speakers, and to run the local contest. Former committee members are willing to provide materials and share their expertise to help a new committee organize a competition for Sacramento-area students in 2026-27.

If you would like to join this effort, please contact Shari Beck by Nov. 15. Shari’s phone number and email address are in the Membership Directory. The Speech Trek funds were donated specifically for a student public speaking program. If members of our branch are not interested in continuing a local competition, the monies may be passed on to other branches to support their Speech Trek contests. In our area, the Roseville-South Placer and Auburn branches are conducting local contests, with Auburn opening its event to Nevada County students as well. Auburn also is pursuing a grant to help support a regional competition.