SHR4Bernie Monthly Meeting Minutes - 11/9/15

The November meeting of South Hampton Roads for Bernie was held on Monday, November 9th, this time at Mary Lou’s house in Chesapeake.  Six people total were in attendance, and the meeting began at approximately 6:06 PM.

Introductions were the first item on the agenda.  We went around the table and each person spoke a little bit about themselves and how they came to know about Bernie.

We then moved to giving some updates on our election day experiences.  Mary Lou spoke on how she and a couple of other volunteers gathered petition signatures for Bernie at two polling places in Chesapeake for nearly the whole day and that they did pretty well.  She said she gathered about 108 District 4 signatures from her alone.  Jennifer brought up how she volunteered for the Virginia Beach Democrats and was able to gather some.  She also mentioned volunteering with an avid Hillary supporter who had told her she’d yet to be contacted by Hillary’s campaign to help with petitioning, even though she’d had experience gathering for Hillary before.

Erica mentioned the election day experience of Leslie, a member of Norfolk for Bernie, who gathered signatures at a polling place in South Norfolk.  Leslie came across a member of the Chesapeake Democratic Committee, a self-proclaimed Hillary supporter, who was very disruptive to Leslie’s group’s attempts to gather signatures for Bernie.  Their group did stay until the polls closed and managed to gather almost two sheets of signatures despite the woman’s attempt.  And then Erica talked about her experience passing out sample ballots for the Virginia Beach Democratic Committee and that she had no issues whatsoever also petitioning for Bernie and ended up with about a page and a half of signatures.

At this point, we shifted gears to discussing other events that had recently happened in our area.  On Sunday, November 8th, Mary Lou, Erica, and one new volunteer named Leigh went to Chesapeake Central Library to gather signatures.  Because there wasn’t much interest since Great Bridge is a particularly red area, the group moved to the Greenbrier Library location and had much more success there.  Future events will probably be held at that library in the future.

Next, Erica spoke briefly on an event she lead on Saturday, November 7th at the Virginia Beach Central Library.  Group member Mike had joined her there as well as three other volunteers.  Two other Bernie supporters turned up in the beginning to sign petitions.  Overall, they gathered signatures for about an hour and a half before it began raining and the event was called.  Erica determined the group gathered about 25-30 signatures in total.

Jennifer then talked a bit on her event at TCC Norfolk, which was once again a great spot for signatures.  After that event was complete, Jennifer was able to mail in 265 (good!) signatures, the majority of which were District 2, to Bernie’s campaign in D.C.  She estimates that District 2 will now be off of the campaign’s list of districts to help, and District 4 should not be far behind.

We also mentioned that if anyone has pictures of any events or meetings, they should send those pictures to Bernie’s campaign by emailing them to photos@berniesanders.com.

Next on the agenda was discussing the calls that the campaign has been attempting to get together nationally and for each state.  As of now, these weekly campaign calls are back on, and Virginia’s state calls will be happening each Thursday night at 7 PM.  Members who are able are encouraged to sign up here to attend these calls and report summaries so other group members who can’t make them will know what was said.

Erica also talked about a new tool the campaign has just released named “Call for Bernie”.  This tool will essentially help each local area or group contact and recruit a much larger pool of potential volunteers that have signed up to help on Bernie Sanders’s main website and get these volunteers out to local events we already have scheduled.  She recommended having a “phone banking” event with other South Hampton Roads for Bernie members to get started on contacting this database and recruiting more people not just to events but to our local groups as well.

We then moved on to talking about events we have happening in the next week or so.  On Saturday, November 14th, Mary Lou mentioned that she will be hosting a debate watch party at her home.  We also touched base on how we are shifting away from having one large debate watch party and that we should consider holding smaller events, but many more of them in our area.  That way the campaign can see just how active South Hampton Roads is for Bernie.

Mary Lou then spoke briefly about the new group newsletter that Erica has been emailing out to those who have signed up to receive it.  The newsletter consists of one monthly summary of events and activities that happened and will be happening in the South Hampton Roads region as well as a weekly list that gets sent out on Sunday nights detailing events happening within the next week that volunteers can sign up for.  Anyone interested in receiving these emails should visit this link to sign up. (Note: Emails may end up in your spam folders, so be sure to check on Sunday nights/Monday mornings just in case and mark them as not spam if they’re there!)

At this point, Susan mentioned some ideas she’s been thinking of in order to help spread the word about Bernie in her circles.  She said that, one, she will potentially be flyering her own neighborhood, and two, that she will be gathering more information on going to predominately African American Lutheran churches in the area to see if she can speak about Bernie in those locations.

We also mentioned three other upcoming petitioning events in the next week as well as another meeting, this time for Virginia Beach for Bernie Sanders.  The first petitioning event is happening on Tuesday, November 10th, from 12 PM to 2 PM at the Kempsville Library Blood Drive.  The second is at TCC Norfolk on Thursday, November 12th, from 12 PM to 2 PM.  The third petitioning event will be at the Virginia Beach Central Library on Sunday, November 15th from 2 PM to 4 PM.  And the meeting for Virginia Beach for Bernie Sanders will be on Thursday, November 12th from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM, but this time at Sal’s Pizza on South Independence Boulevard in the Kempsville area instead of at the Oceanfront.

And as always, anyone who has an idea of a location for an event is encouraged to create the event at map.berniesanders.com.  We will do our part to push the event on all of our social media channels to get volunteers out to help!  But it’s important to not only list the events on Bernie’s main website but to also RSVP for the events through the site.  That way the campaign can see just how active our area is in events and support for Bernie.

Mary Lou then brought us to our next agenda item -- what do we do next as a group after petitioning collecting is complete?  Some ideas that were suggested were to flyer at locations like libraries or bus transfer stations to help spread the word about Bernie.  If we do go to bus transfer stations, it’s suggested that people of color make up a good portion of the volunteers, especially since we need more outreach in minority communities for Bernie.  Our area is perfect for this kind of outreach since it’s so diverse, so we have a really great opportunity to help the campaign in this aspect.  

Susan suggested passing out some free trade candy with each flyer at the bus stations.  We also said we should bring up topics like Bernie’s support of a $15 minimum wage as well as his positions on criminal justice reform, free public college tuition, shifting to single-payer health care, immigration reform, and, in particular for women, Bernie’s stance on parental leave for parents.

Mary Lou said that the bus transfer station in Chesapeake at Robert Hall Boulevard would be a great location since there are typically a lot of people waiting around.  She said that she’ll look into the bus schedules to determine the best time to be there, although rush hour was also suggested as a good time.

It was then suggested that we look into having events in public areas around or on colleges and universities, which thankfully we have already been attempting, particularly at TCC Norfolk.  Jennifer said the Chesapeake TCC campus may also be a good place to flyer (or even petition).  Erica said that in order to have an event on the ODU campus, we would need to be sponsored by an ODU organization, although the ODU Democrats would most likely be more than willing to help.  She also mentioned that there is also a Bernie presence at Virginia Wesleyan as well.

Susan then recommended we have a Bernie presence at the upcoming Fair Trade Festival on December 5th and 6th in Norfolk, even if it was just a voter registration drive since the festival is particularly non-partisan.  She said that she would find out if the festival would be okay with the registration drive and if we would be able to pass out Bernie literature or wear Bernie swag while holding the drive.

Next, Mary Lou spoke on voter registration and how we should all watch the 30-minute training video on how to register voters in Virginia.  That information can be found here, the voter registration forms are here, and information on who is eligible to register to vote can be found here.  We can also suggest anyone with updated driver’s licenses to go to vote.virginia.gov and either register or update their registration information in mere minutes.

Some locations we brainstormed as a group to hold more events in the future included the Greenbrier Library in Chesapeake, South Norfolk, around the mass transit stop next to the MacArthur Center and Bean There Cafe, and potentially a bus transfer station in Norfolk.  Mary Lou agreed that she would look into holding an event soon at the bus transfer station at Robert Hall Boulevard in Chesapeake.

Erica then updated the group on her request to hold a booth at the NEON Holiday Market in Norfolk on Saturday, December 12th.  Unfortunately it was denied, although it may be possible to flyer in public areas outside of the event.

Mary Lou also mentioned possibly having an event in the public areas around the upcoming Chesapeake Holiday Craft Show on Saturday, November 21st and Sunday, November 22nd at the Chesapeake Conference Center, but Jennifer was unsure that there was anywhere we could legally flyer and petition.

Mary Lou also asked the group if we should be doing activities like holding up Bernie signs on overpasses in order to get more name recognition out there for Bernie, but the group came to a consensus that one-on-one conversations with people at flyering, voter registration, and petitioning events will probably be our best course of action instead.

And then at 8:01 PM, the November meeting of South Hampton Roads for Bernie came to an end.  The next meeting date and location are TBD.

South Hampton Roads for Bernie Meeting Minutes - 10/19/15

The fifth official meeting of South Hampton Roads for Bernie was held once again at the Cutting Edge Cafe in Chesapeake, VA and began at approximately 6 p.m.  

We began with introductions, but instead of saying something we like about Bernie this time, we offered up brainstorming suggestions for events we can hold in the future in order to gather petition signatures and flyer.  Our many suggestions were to flyer/petition at: Hampton Roads Organizing for Action (OFA) against gun violence on Thursday, Oct. 29th at 6 p.m. in Greenbrier Mall at the Green Turtle; Kwame Alexander appearance on Tuesday, Oct. 27th at Chesapeake Central Library from 3:45 to 5:45 p.m.; bus transfer stations (on hold for now); college campuses (Erica and Jennifer will be flyering Thursday from noon to 3 p.m. at the TCC campus in Norfolk!); Norfolk State Homecoming on November 7th (Kiala will find out more details); a financial planning meeting Kiala suggested that she will find out more details for as well; holding our own music festival for Bernie (Jennifer will look into this and Dana F. will get in touch with someone at O’Connor Brewing Company to see if this event could be held there); the FilFest 2015 (although it may not be possible since it’s being held on private property); the Anthem Wicked 10K in Virginia Beach on Oct. 31 (race begins at 8 a.m.), for which someone suggested passing out personalized Bernie Sanders water bottle labels to the runners; the Naro Cinema in Norfolk during evenings in which they showcase issues movies with speakers; and potentially Pints for Pups in Norfolk on Sunday, Nov. 15th from 1-4 p.m.

Mike C. also suggested that we hold more voter registration events.  Some people were unclear on what all it takes to be able to register people to vote in the state of Virginia, so here is the link to that information, including the 30-minute online training certification, and here is a link to the printable registration forms. And if a potential registree has an updated driver's license, they can go to vote.virginia.gov and register there in minutes!

Dana F., one of the leaders with Norfolk for Bernie, mentioned that Norfolk for Bernie’s next meeting will be on Oct. 28th at 7 p.m., with the location to be determined.  Possible suggestion choices, including churches and libraries, were given to her.  When that information is updated, it will be made available on the Norfolk for Bernie Facebook page as well as on our own South Hampton Roads for Bernie page.

We then moved on to discussing name recognition for Bernie.  We should all be wearing shirts, stickers, buttons, etc. whenever we can as well as using bumper stickers and yard signs if possible.  Bringing Bernie up in personal conversations in our own individual circles is also very important, so don’t forget to talk him up!

Mary Lou gave an update on petition totals as of October 11th, which are as follows: District 1 - 236; District 2 - 286; District 3 - 394; District 4 - 228; District 5 - 379; District 6 - 148; District 7 - 169; District 8 - 628; District 9 - 197; District 10 - 321; District 11 - 1345.  As of right now, the campaign itself will be focusing on Districts 1, 2, 4, and 6 to help gather petitions there.

We also slightly touched on the process of gathering petition signatures.  If you don’t already know about this process, check out this Youtube video and this Google Slides presentation to learn how!  If you have any questions, feel free to ask on the South Hampton Roads FB page.  And to help find voter’s districts during petition gathering events, check out these links below:
http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/ (requires zip code, possibly address)
http://whosmy.virginiageneralassembly.gov/ (requires address, has interactive map)

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/VA (lists representatives, has interactive map)

vote.virginia.gov (requires name, DOB, and last 4 of SSN)

In national campaign news, Bernie is polling at around 28 or 29 percent, is ahead 5 points in New Hampshire, and is running neck and neck with Hillary in Iowa.

Erica and Mary Lou both then gave summaries of the Debate Watch Parties held on Oct. 13th.  Erica held a party at CP Shuckers at the Oceanfront in Virginia Beach.  44 people total attended, and local candidate for the 8th District of the Virginia State Senate Dave Belote gave a speech before the debate began.  Mary Lou was the substitute leader for the party held at Roger Brown’s in Portsmouth where approximately 20 people attended.  Mary Lou also mentioned that she made contact with a regional group that helps disenfranchised voters.  We then moved into a discussion about felon voting information and how to get rights restored, which can be found at this link here.  Location(s) are to be determined for the next debate parties, which will be held on Saturday, November 14th.

Jennifer then offered a brief summary of her event at the Town Pointe Wine Festival on Sunday, October 18th.  She said six volunteers total were present, and so they split up into two groups each and stood at either end of the park to gather signatures and flyer.  They gathered approximately 38 signatures, mostly D2 and D3.  It was generally a success, even if the festival was geared towards older, more wealthy individuals, plus a lot of out-of-towners.

Mary Lou then talked about the October 11th meeting with the campaign in Richmond that she, Jennifer, and Erica attended.  Kevin Keefe, the campaign’s ballot petition manager for every state that requires petitions for their primaries, mentioned at the meeting a couple of notes for future petition gathering.  First, he said that the campaign wants the petitions to be separated by county AND city.  If a mishap occurs and someone from a different city signs the wrong sheet, don't go back up and "split" the cities at the top of the sheet in an attempt to fix the error.  This will get the entire sheet of signatures thrown out, so it's best to leave it alone and let that one signature get tossed instead.  Secondly, Kevin said to NOT send petitions to the address on the back of the forms; instead, they should go to the campaign in D.C.  There are two ways to get the forms to the campaign: you can either mail them to the D.C. address yourself (please make sure you mail certified!) or you can pass them on to Jennifer, Mary Lou, or Erica and they will get them to the appropriate location.  And lastly, Kevin also suggested to go ahead and write “VA” next to the city or county name on the form line.  For example, it should read “Norfolk, VA”, etc.  Mary Lou also mentioned again how important it is for the registered voters to write out full city names and to NOT abbreviate.

Currently for South Hampton Roads for Bernie, collecting petitions for Districts 2 and 4 will be our main focus.  Per the campaign’s request, we will potentially be holding petition gathering events at local polling places on Election Day, November 3rd, 2015.  Details on that will come forward soon, but some suggested polling places (in Chesapeake) included City Hall, Greenbrier Library, Camelot, Taylor Road, and South Norfolk.  Mary Lou will potentially organize an event for Chesapeake, and other people are needed to organize one for Virginia Beach and other areas.  And after signature gathering is complete, will we then switch our focus to voter registration events.

At this point, Ken suggested forming a committee to work on future plans for after Bernie is confirmed to be on the primary ballot.  That way we will be moving forward full steam ahead once petition signature gathering is over and have set plans in place.  Anyone interested in becoming a part of this committee should contact either Mary Lou or Erica.

Someone else made the great suggestion to volunteer for other causes outside of politics as a group while wearing Bernie swag.  This way we can combat any preconceptions people may have about Bernie supporters, especially if we showcase how we are contributing and giving back to our own communities and having a positive impact.  Future events like this should be determined soon and will again be advertised on our Facebook group.

Another idea for petition signature gathering that was suggested was to go to election night parties on November 3rd that the local progressive election candidates will be hosting.  Many of these people would be willing to sign petitions for Bernie and we should potentially tap those groups.  Erica volunteered to find out any information regarding Dave Belote’s party, and other people are welcome to find out any information on other progressive candidates.

Mary Lou then briefly mentioned the next Bernie event coming up, which will be a National Student Town Hall on Wednesday, Oct. 28th at 7 p.m.  It will be live streamed to colleges and universities all over the country.  

At 7:30 p.m., the fifth meeting of South Hampton Roads for Bernie officially ended, with the next meeting time and date to be determined, most likely on a Tuesday evening.

#VA4Bernie's September Race to 400

Hi everyone!

There is now a competition going on to see which Virginia district can reach 400 valid petition signatures first, also known as #VA4Bernie’s September Race to 400!

The goal of this competition is to get all of us around Virginia to keep track of and report our exact numbers of VALID petition signatures.  That way we know where any weak districts may be and we can focus our efforts in those locations to ensure we reach the proper minimums to get Bernie on the ballot.

Each District Petition Leader will be in charge of not only counting petition signatures but also determining how many are actually valid.  As we all should know by now, there are many reasons why a signature could get tossed -- unclear handwriting, the person forgot to sign or print their name, the address block was left blank, etc.  The first district to reach 400 actual, valid signatures wins!

For this group’s purposes, we will be focusing on DISTRICT 4, 3 and  2 since those are the most common in our region.  Mary Lou Burke will collect  petitions for District 4. Stephen Summers will be in charge of collecting and vetting District 2 petition signatures. Alex Katz will collect District 3. All forms MUST BE NOTARIZED before they are turned in. Other forms should be sent to the appropriate person as listed on this Google Doc. It also lists contact information for Mary Lou, Alex, and others.

But please note that this doesn’t mean the responsibility is all on our local district organizers.  It will take our entire team to ensure we win!  If you have been collecting petition signatures already, please be sure to get them notarized as soon as possible after the event is completed.  The goal should be to have everything notarized and turned in to the respective district leaders ONE WEEK after the event is over -- again, Mary Lou for District 4, Alex K. for District 3, and Stephen S. for District 2.

You also do not have to fill out an entire sheet with signatures before you get it notarized so feel free to turn in less than full pages.  We have plenty of petition forms to go around so you can always start a new one!  And if you need extra forms, the PDF file is located under the Files tab in our FB group page or print them from here. If printing is a problem just ask Mary Lou, myself, or South Hampton Roads for Bernie on Facebook.  We’ll get them to you!  After your petitions are notarized, make sure they get to the appropriate district leader ASAP to begin the counting process.  The sooner the better so please stay on top of your petitions.  If you need help turning them in, ask the group!  We’ll find a way to make it happen.

And if you haven’t started collecting petition signatures yet, feel free to go ahead and get started!  If you were at our meeting yesterday (8/24/15) in Chesapeake, you should have been taught how to collect them.  If you were unable to attend, then this handy dandy PowerPoint presentation should be able to help you understand exactly what you need to do. Our ask for help and we'll train you.

If you have any questions about the race, collection petition signatures, or anything, let us know.  Let's be sure to win this competition!!  :)

-Erica

South Hampton Roads for Bernie Meeting Minutes - 8/24/15

The meeting of South Hampton Roads for Bernie was called to order at around 6:14 p.m.  Erica L. was designated as the note taker and tasked with posting the minutes to the South Hampton Roads for Bernie blog.

Sixteen supporters of Bernie Sanders for President came to the Cutting Edge Cafe in Chesapeake, VA

We discussed the logistics of primary petitions which is our main goal for the time being.  Petitions must be notarized and the collector/witness must be present when each petition gets notarized.  Stephen S. will possibly become the designated District 2 petition collector whose responsibility will be to gather any and all District 2 petitions and forward them to our point of contact for collection.  So far Stephen has collected approximately 135 petition signatures, mostly from District 2; Mary Lou has collected 71 with 41 from District 4.

We brainstormed locations of notaries.  Ken mentioned that the Chesapeake Democratic Party has a notary available to help with petitions.  FedEx, UPS, banks, and Navy Federal also have notaries, but usually require a fee. Navy Federal will notarize free as a courtesy to its members. We also have Sarah G., a group member who is a notary.  It was also mentioned that you do not have to fill out an entire primary petition with signatures in order to turn it in; you can turn them in half-full, with a couple signatures, etc. If a potential signer has a disability and needs help with the petition form, others may fill out all of the information except the signature for them.

We then moved on to national and regional Bernie news and updates.  Bernie is polling well in New Hampshire and is beating Hillary Clinton.  He seems to be gaining traction as the weeks go by and is continuing to jump in the polls as Hillary starts declining.

Regionally, support for Bernie is also picking up well.  We had two successful events hosted by our group on Saturday, August 22nd.  The first was at the Chesapeake Farmer's Market.  A group of five volunteers passed out flyers to people entering and exiting the market and gathered petition signatures.  The second event was a table at the Old Beach Green Market in Virginia Beach at the Oceanfront.  A group of five volunteers helped out there, and our group member Jennifer L. was able to confirm that we will be able to maintain a presence at that farmer's market weekly from now on through her contact at the market, who also happens to be a Bernie supporter.  Jennifer also mentioned that the market will even be held one week before the Virginia Primary, so that booth will be key in campaigning for Bernie.

Volunteers for Bernie Sanders at Chesapeake's farmers' market

Also in regional news, there are two other Facebook groups for our area that people are encouraged to join.  The first is the Norfolk for Bernie group and the second is the Virginia Beach for Bernie Sanders group.  Jennifer L. is the lead of the Virginia Beach for Bernie group and will continue to coordinate with the South Hampton Roads for Bernie group.  It was also mentioned that there is a strong Bernie presence on the ODU campus.

Ken then encouraged all of us to attend the next Chesapeake Democratic Committee meeting on the second Thursday of September at the Hilton Garden Inn at 7pm.  The Chesapeake Democratic Committee meets every 2nd Thursday of each month at the same time and place and we are all welcome to attend, no matter where we live.  It was also mentioned that there is a Virginia Beach Democratic Committee that holds meetings on the first Monday of every month and we are welcome to attend those as well.  The next Virginia Beach Democratic Committee meeting is unknown (possibly the 2nd Monday of the month due to Labor Day) but should be posted on their website -- vbdemocrats.org -- in the next couple of days.

Jennifer L. mentioned that she had researched when presidential candidates had come to Hampton Roads in the past.  She said that historically they come close to the primary date, but it is very possible that we could talk to Bernie's campaign and get him to visit sooner than that.  There was also a mention of the 100,000 person rally in D.C., but that event is unconfirmed at this time.  There also could be smaller events in the northern Virginia area in the future since that is closer to Washington, D.C.  There were also some ideas for more events mentioned at this point that will be summarized with the brainstorming section of the meeting at the end of these notes.

Group member Tom F. asked what he could do to help with his limited amount of free time and where he could be the best asset as an attorney.  It was suggested that he could help at some of the polling places in case people are potentially illegally turned away from being able to vote.  He could also give advice on some financing questions in terms of legality and even offer the use of a notary when he has one available. Ken then talked about how an election is actually coming up this November the 3rd, 2015.  Bernie needs like-minded progressive people in the government to support him when he is elected President and this is a perfect opportunity to ensure that occurs.

A 17 year old in Virginia who turns 18 by the next election on November 3rd, 2015, can register to vote. After that date, a 17 year old who turns 18 by November 8, 2016, can register to vote and then vote in both the primary and the general election. 

A more national event that was mentioned is the September 8th Birthday Money Bomb.  Bernie will be turning 74 on this date and it is suggested that every Bernie supporter gives $8 to celebrate.  However, Ken told us that we should all give $74 if we can to celebrate his age.  He said, "A man that is running for president at 74 years old deserves to get a $74 donation for his birthday!"

The next item on the agenda was to discuss recognition for Bernie.  We should all do our part to advertise, including wearing Bernie shirts, Bernie buttons, Bernie hats, Bernie bumper stickers, and anything else we can to get his name out there.  Also make a point to talk to your neighbors, people you run into, and people you see daily about Bernie.  Use personal contact to make a real difference in Bernie's name recognition.  Social media is important, but face-to-face contact is critical.

Another group member asked about what to do when people get hung up on the word "socialism".  How should we rebut it?  It was suggested to talk about how public schools, police, firefighters, roads, libraries, and even sidewalks are considered products of socialism.  You can also bring up that Bernie supports a Nordic model of socialism, which basically encourages a mixed economy of socialism (safety nets, healthcare, education for all) and capitalism/free trade.  Plus the top 1% get all kinds of socialistic benefits already including tax loopholes, corporate welfare, etc.  A documentary called "We're Not Broke" was also suggested for viewing.  But the main point was to not get hung up on the labels, especially with words like "socialism" and "communism."

Tom then mentioned a couple of ideas he'd had regarding the campaign.  He said that this is possibly the beginning of a young person's revolution.  He believes that it will take an inundation of things going viral on YouTube and social media in general to get young people fired up.  The Republicans, Trump, and even Hillary will lead us to more war.  If young people become more informed via outlets like social media, it could be the turning point towards revolution.  But no matter what, this momentum must be kept up past Bernie getting elected or not getting elected.  It has to continue on year after year in order to enact any real change.

We then broke into two groups -- one to get primary petition training and the other to brainstorm ideas about future events.

A few ideas came out of the brainstorming group.  The first was that the Bernie Booth at the Old Beach Farmer's Market in Virginia Beach could serve as a sort of "staging area" for that event and simultaneously a flyering/petition signature event at the Oceanfront since the farmer's market is just a couple of blocks from the Oceanfront.  The Bernie Booth can keep extra flyers and materials for the second group and support them while they walk at the Oceanfront collecting signatures and passing out materials.  Stephen S. may possibly either head or at least be a part of this second flyering/petition group.

Flyering and gathering petition signatures at the Chesapeake Farmer's Market event on Saturdays should also be becoming a regular event.

There is also a one-time event coming up on Saturday, September 19th from 9am to 2pm called the Mt. Trashmore Community Yard Sale in Virginia Beach.  It costs $30 to rent a 10x10 booth area that Mary Lou graciously offered to sponsor.  Liz C. will be handling turning in the application and fee in by August 28th and possibly coordinating from there.

It was also highly recommended that group members attend both the Chesapeake Democratic Committee and Virginia Beach Democratic Committee at not only their next meetings but each one after that as well.

Another suggestion was that at each event we attend, we also pass out material discussing local elections, including dates and who is running that would support Bernie in office.

It was also mentioned that we could find out if it would be possible to see Bernie's speech at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia on Monday, September 14th, approximately 3.5-4 hours away.  The speech is mandatory for students to attend but is also open to the public as long as there is room.  Carpooling could be an option if there is interest.

Jennifer L. brought up that we could have a presence at the Isle of Wight County Fair which will be held on September 17-20 in Windsor, VA.  Carpooling may also be an option for that as well.

Finally, the last event suggested was to have a craft day somewhere in the South Hampton Roads area to come together and make things like t-shirts, tank tops, and jewelry with Bernie's name and logo.  We could then use these crafts to pass out at any events held in order to help spread the word about Bernie.

At this point, the meeting ended with a picture of the group to be shared with the campaign and social media. A total of sixteen people were in attendance. Our group expresses its sincere appreciation to Melanie Hayes of the Cutting Edge Cafe for allowing us space to host our organizing event. Our next event will probably be on a Tuesday, TBA.

South Hampton Roads for Bernie, Meeting Minutes, 7/27/2015

South Hampton Roads for Bernie held its second meeting on June 27, 2015. This group is a grassroots group and not funded by the official campaign. We are rolling up our sleeves and doing what we can to help Bernie succeed in the state of Virginia while we wait for the official campaign to reach us. We also network with similar groups, mainly Northern Virginia for Bernie Sanders and  the Virginians for Bernie 2016 volunteer hub.


Twelve people attended, a huge increase from our first meeting (two people). The first vice chairman of the Chesapeake Democratic Party, Ken Ehrenthal, attended. He encouraged us to advocate for Bernie through his group's monthly meetings and to post our activities on its Facebook page. We met at the Cutting Edge Café and were thrilled when Melanie Hayes, one of its owners, finished her shift and joined our discussion. I gave her-- as well as most of the others who attended-- a pro-Bernie button to wear.


We began by sharing a little about ourselves, explaining why we like Bernie (or what we most want to know about him), and announcing any previous experience with political campaigns and/or skills that our group might find useful. We  are an interesting group with a diverse range of skills who mostly "feel the Bern," as social media put it. Some members were students, another a teacher, some were retirees, and others business owners or managers. Attendees also had a wide range of useful skills or experiences: organizing events, social media, political campaigning, writing, graphic design (and possibly video editing), sales skills, and more.


Reasons for supporting Bernie also varied widely: health care for all, protecting our environment, disgust with political corruption and the influence of Wall Street, or gratitude for how he has protected our veterans and wounded warriors. He takes a firm and unwavering stand on issues, he refuses to take money from big corporations or super PACS, and he plans to put money toward much-needed infrastructure and public services. Public funding of political campaigns, which Bernie supports, would even the playing field between the populace and the super-rich. More specifically, a few of us were upset by the Citizens United Supreme Court decision and would like to see a reintroduction of some type of Glass-Steagall Act. Bernie supports overturning the former and bringing back the latter.


We then reviewed the basics. Most of us are already registered voters in Virginia, but a couple of us need to update our registration. I mentioned that it is often easy to register online. Ken advocates for registering at the Chesapeake Registrar's Office rather than the DMV. We made sure everyone knew to register, too, as a volunteer on Bernie's official campaign website, https://berniesanders.com/, if they hadn't already done so. We also reminded everyone that the national house-party/video conference by Bernie on Wednesday (7/29) is important to the campaign, and that they can use this site to sign up for or host an event near them.


We mentioned some simple and inexpensive ways that all of us can help Bernie's campaign: wear pro-Bernie t-shirts and buttons, put up a yard sign, and dedicate time and space for Bernie through whatever social media we use. For buttons and bumper stickers, some of us prefer to shop through Bernie's official campaign website, berniesanders.com. The advantage is that all the official merchandise is union-made in the United States, and any money paid goes directly to Bernie's campaign. The disadvantage is that right now it takes a very long time for the orders to arrive. Others of us may search online on sites like Amazon.com to see what is available. The only advantage is that it might arrive a little faster.


In our area, Bernie lacks name recognition, and that needs to change. Yard signs, buttons, t-shirts, and bumper stickers can help with name recognition. Keep conversations positive and not pushy. Bernie doesn't run a negative campaign, and neither should we, but we should be prepared to share the facts and an accurate representation of Bernie's positions and character.

Our most urgent need is to get Bernie on the ballot for the primary in Virginia. The state-wide goal is to get 400 petition signatures on petitions from registered voters in each district in Virginia. While 200 valid signatures are needed per district, we anticipate some of the signatures will be challenged or thrown out, so we will collect double that amount. Our initial deadline is October 1. Contact- and collection-points are being established in each district; I am the contact person for District 4. We reviewed a slide presentation on how to go about doing this. The forms must be filled out carefully and the circulator or witness must have his or her own signature notarized at the bottom of the back page. A circulator cannot sign his or her own petition except at the bottom notary portion, which must not be signed until the notary public is available and tells us to.

Each volunteer petition-circulator is in charge of getting his or her own paperwork notarized before turning it in. As an example, I collected signatures from every available registered voter there. We had separate sheets for District 4/Chesapeake and District 2/Virginia Beach. A separate sheet must be made for each district and each city or county within the district. The last four numbers of the signer's social security number is not required, but it's recommended to help with quick and accurate validation of signatures by the Board of Elections. I collected the forms after they were signed and will get them notarized at my earliest convenience. Additional suggestions for collecting signatures is on this Google Doc. Several volunteers took petitions to begin collecting signatures.


Ken and I both pointed out that we should work on getting signatures first, then work on promoting Bernie if the signers seem open to it. A signature does not mean a vote for Bernie. It just means that the signer thinks Bernie's name should be on the ballot in the primary. It's a matter of ballot access for a serious candidate. The petition signatures are very important, because without them, Bernie can't appear on the ballot in March. I mentioned that if we are petitioning in a public place, like in front of a business, and the management asks us to move along, we should be pleasant and do so. But Ken also told us that anyone actually interfering with petitioning (like taking the petitions or getting violent or tearing them up) is breaking federal law. In a situation like that, call 911. Hopefully we won't need to do that, but it's good to know.


Two members, Stephen and Erica, both from Virginia Beach, promised to become notary publics to help notarize campaign petitions as they come in. They also promised to collect and seal petitions for District 2 and to send them to me (Mary Lou Burke, District 4). I will collect for the statewide group,and, thus, Bernie Sanders' campaign, as they come in. December 10, 2015, is the final deadline for Sanders' candidacy to present the sealed petitions in Richmond, but we intend to supply all the signatures we can well before then; hopefully by October 1. Several attendees took blank petitions to circulate.


Presidential Primary Election Day in Virginia will be on March 1, 2016. Please mark your calendars accordingly. The turnout for primary elections in Virginia is historically low. Ken estimated that Bernie could win Virginia primary with as few as three hundred votes per district in the state. How exciting! Encourage Bernie supporters to register to vote and to vote in the primary.


I wanted to show two movies at our meeting but didn't get the chance. I'll mention them here, anyway, in case others want to watch. One was his official campaign video, "Progress." Another was a grassroots video on how to help Bernie by Melanie Fisher.


Our next meeting will be on a Monday evening in August. I will figure out the details and publicize them through the South Hampton Roads for Bernie Facebook Page. Melanie graciously offered our group the use of the Cutting Edge Café after hours to hold the event. In the meantime, I have extra blank petitions to circulate. If anyone needs forms, they can run them off of the state elections website or contact me and I will provide some.