“Our strength comes from you, the community. If we work together, if the people of Athens unify and focus our efforts, there is nothing we cannot do!”
Tim Denson, A4E President
The 2016 Athens for Everyone Annual Membership meeting took place on February 28th, a beautiful Sunday afternoon. More than 50 Athens for Everyone members met and discussed our first full year, and looked forward to our next.
Several A4E Board members spoke about the current state of our organization, including Tim Denson (President), Judy Burke (Treasurer), Adam Veale (Political Committee Coordinator), and Jesse Houle (Outreach Coordinator). The big takeaways are that our resources (both volunteer time and money) are growing, our dedication to the cause is as strong as ever, and that we’re poised to have a great 2016 with your help!
This year, we intend to help combat discrimination in our downtown (and across the county); to push for continued expansion of bus service (Sunday service was only the beginning!); to fight back against some of the terrible legislation being put forth by the Georgia Legislature, including Campus Carry; to push for living wages for all county employees and to help workers across town know their rights and how to fight for them, and to continue pushing for a culture of consent, among other initiatives!
When it came to the voting portion of our meeting, we overwhelmingly voted in two new Board members: Ashley Mensah and Jen Letchuck. Congratulations to you both!
We also voted (31-4) to amend our bylaws to make it easier to qualify as a member by donating. This year, it will only take $60 to qualify as a full member (down from $100 last year). That means you can qualify with a $5 / month recurring donation (you can donate here!). Becoming a member through volunteer hours still only takes three hours per year.
In a non-binding opinion poll, we also decided to start new Human Rights and Housing Justice campaigns, assuming there is enough interest.
After voting, we mingled for a while and each A4E campaign coordinator got to converse with volunteers about what needs doing and how we can all pitch in.
Athens for Everyone gives a big THANK YOU to Broad 9A for donating their beautiful venue for this meeting. Thank you!
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