Meeting Agenda 3/28/06

Written by: Katherine Wallace on Mar 26, 2006 12:05 AM EST

Hello PDS,

We have a lot of follow-up items this month but we will also have a guest visitor - Lt. Governor Candidate Sam Kelly. We are expecting him at 8:15 pm. We expect to have other candidates visit future meetings. I hope we'll see you there so we have a good turnout for our visitor and also for the important business of determining what roles the Steering Committee will have in the next year. The meeting will begin promptly at 7:00 pm!

The meeting will be held in the 2nd floor meeting room (room 24) at the College Ave Methodist Church at the corner of College Ave and Chapel St near Davis Square. The Church is T accessible from the Davis Square subway stop as well as numerous busses that go through the square including the #87 & #88.


Progressive Democrats of Somerville
General Meeting
Tuesday March 28, 2006
7:00 pm

1) Introductions and Question of the Month (10 min)

2) By Laws Changes (30 min) - We made some changes at our February meeting, but tabled decision on the changes relating to the Steering Committee to this March meeting. We need to make our decision on this now so we will be ready to elect new officers in April. The proposed changes were sent out in an earlier email. If you still need them please let us know and we will send them to you.

3) Campaigns this year (30 min) - What races should PDS endorse in? We have endorsed Deval Patrick for Governor. We have endorsed in our Municipal races and our local State Senate and State Representative races. How important is it for us to endorse in other state-wide races? We have heard arguments for and against. If we endorse in one, do we have to endorse in another? Where do we draw the line? In September and November we will be voting for US Senator, US Representative, Governor, Lt. Governor, Secretary of the Commonwealth, Attorney General, Treasurer, Auditor, Governor's Council, District Attorney, State Senator (2 races), State Representative (3 races), Register of Deeds, Clerk of Courts.

4) Follow Up to prior agenda items (5 min)
a) Op-Ed Group (1 min) - We are looking for a volunteer to take the lead on this. If you are interested, please contact Todd Kaplan at toddskaplan@yahoo.com
b) Budget Process Forum (1 min) - Jen Lawrence xcntry@hotmail.com will take the lead on this with Fred Berman fredlori@rcn.com. We hope to hold the forum in May.
c) Save Our Homes Walk (2 min) - At our February meeting we agreed that PDS would raise money to be a sponsor of this walk for the Somerville Affordable Housing Organizing Committee. The funds raised help those at risk of homelessness to secure housing with quick cash grants. If you would like to help us reach our $250 goal, please bring a check made out to "SCC Save Our Homes" to the Tuesday Meeting. Any amount small or large would be appreciated. We need to turn in our sponsor money next week. The 5k walk itself takes place on Sunday April 30. I along with many PDSers did it last year and it is lots of fun to walk with your friends and neighbors on the route that passes affordable housing landmarks.
d) Convention Training (1 min) - We are looking into holding training on what to expect at the Democratic State Convention with some other groups.

5) Visit from Lt. Gov Candidate Sam Kelley (15 min) - Lt. Governor Candidate Sam Kelley will discuss his candidacy and answer your questions. He recently endorsed Deval Patrick for Governor. This is a getting to know you visit, not part of an endorsement process. For more information on Sam Kelley, and to prepare your questions for him, please visit his website at www.samkelley2006.com/home.asp.... We expect him to arrive at 8:15 pm.

6) Annual Meeting Planning (10 min) -
a) The Agenda (6 min)-Our Annual Meeting is on Tuesday April 25. A big part of the annual meeting is the election of new officers and the Steering Committee. We also do a review of the past year. What else would you like to see happen at the Annual Meeting?
b) Open Steering Committee Positions (3 min) - We will be holding elections at our Annual Meeting on Tuesday April 25. Quite a few of our current steering committee will not be running for reelection so there will be many many open positions with no incumbent running. This is a great way to get involved and help shape the organization and I hope many of you will run.
c) Annual Dues (1 min) - Our annual dues of $10 is due at the Annual meeting (which can be waived by speaking privately with the Treasurer Elena Swaim), so please bring your check or cash on either 3/28 or 4/25 so we can be sure everyone is current with dues.

7) Announcements (8 min)
a) Monday May 8Th. (1 min) - Please save the date! PDS will meet with Congressman Michael Capuano on Monday May 8th. . We hope to discuss what he thinks the role of a group like ours should play in politics, issues and the community as well as how we can build bridges between the perceived "old" and "new" Somerville.
b) World Social Forum in Venezuela (5 min)-
c) Ironweed Film (2 min) - We are considering holding informal gatherings to view socially relevant films. www.ironweedfilms.com...

8) Plus/Delta (5 min)

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Location: Somerville, MA 02144