ourmidland.com
Building on the legacy League of Women Voters of the Midland Area celebrates milestone BY ELLIE SCHROEDER for the Daily News In 1967, 53 years after the 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote, Midland area women began to explore the question of how women could become more effective on political issues. A group of women from Church Women United held meetings in kitchens and living rooms to organize LWV-Midland as a provisional league in 1967, (recognized as a 94-member full-fledged league in 1969) with Lucille Bicknell, Fran Hamburg, Evelyn Lipowitz and Barbara McGregor as founding members. They were joined in 1968 by Maureen Pillepich and Julie Schmidt. In 2018, these six “Life Members” were celebrated for their 50 years of faithful participation in the Midland League. The league is a national political organization that encourages the informed and active participation of citizens in their government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy. It recognizes its strong, informed members as its most valuable asset. Over the years, LWV-Midland members have augmented the active league work by serving in community organizations, on governmental boards, and as elected officials. Although membership numbers dipped somewhat around the turn of the century, membership has been recently on the increase, once again reaching 95 women and men in 2017. In early 2019, membership topped 100 for the first time, and continues to grow. From the beginning, the Midland Area League made a concerted effort to give presentations about the league and its work to any club or organiza-
This scene is courtesy of the U.S. National Park Service, and provided by the Midland chapter of the League of Women Voters.
tion requesting a speaker. Speakers were also available to discuss specific issues: LWV-Midland stirred up a bit of controversy the early 1980s by taking a position asking for more public input regarding the proposed nuclear plant. Mary Dee Rieke, President April 1971-1973, remembers one financial advisor so incensed by the league’s position on financing education, he “vowed not only to withhold his own future support, but also to encourage all his acquaintances to do likewise” and one public forum “so rowdy, it had to be temporarily adjourned as a cooling off period.” LWV of the Midland Area serves the community by providing information to voters about candidates and issues for general and local elections, hosting candidate forums, sponsoring programs and discussion groups such as the Great Decisions program (developed by the Foreign Policy Association, a national, non-profit, non-partisan group) to keep voters informed, and providing voter registration information. The league has addressed issues such as city and
county planning, Midland County and city of Midland governments, local adult corrections, local use of federal funds, county housing needs, K-12 public school financing, the Midland Police Department, nuclear energy and services for juveniles. The league is proud to be nonpartisan, neither supporting nor opposing candidates or political parties at any level of government. Voter service activities are at the core of the league’s purpose to ensure the right of all citizens to participate in government. LWV-Midland has sponsored many voter registration projects, provided voter guides since 1971, and has aired candidate forums on Midland cable television (now MCTV) since 1989. The first online voting guide, VOTE411, was published in 2012. Following each election, a Your Elected Officials pamphlet, with the names and contact information for elected officials, is updated and widely distributed throughout the community and on the league’s website. After careful and thorough study leading to consensus, the league
does develop positions upon which to advocate for a variety of subjects. In 2018, LWV-Midland joined leagues and other civic organizations throughout Michigan to work on two successful state-wide nonpartisan ballot proposals. Members circulated petitions, sponsored opportunities to educate the public, and advocated for the passage of the proposals: Proposal 3: “Promote the Vote” (to ensure that every eligible Michigander can vote and every vote will count) and “Voters Not Politicians, (which addressed the issue of gerrymandering Michigan congressional and state legislative districts). Both proposals received overwhelming support from the voters. In 2008, the League initiated a focus on the theme of “Making Democracy Work” (MDW) to honor community leaders. The inaugural MDW award was presented to Rose Marie McQuaid; the 2009 awardee was Sharon Mortensen. In 2010, 14 awards were presented to outstanding representatives of the more than 250 women who have served in public elected office in Midland County throughout the years. Honorees were: Maxine Brink, Mary Currie, Maureen Donker, Leona Falkenstein, Phyllis Ferris, Ann Manary, Rose Marie McQuaid, Donna Morris, Lee Rouse, Nancy Skochdopole, Alice Sharron Such, Carole Swinehart, Theresa Townley, and Elizabeth Weaver. Dr. Richard Dolinski was recognized in 2011; Frances Hamburg in 2012. In 2015, Frances Hamburg was also honored by the League of Women Voters in Michigan with one of its highest awards, the Maryann Mahaffey Community Service Award. Rose Marie McQuaid received this same award in 2017. As Carole Swinehart, LWV-Midland President (1985-1987), put it, the league has had “busy years…very satisfying, filled with great people willing to give of their time for projects that had value to both our members and the community.” As the Midland Area League celebrates its 50th anniversary, the commitment to Making Democracy Work is as strong as ever.