Johnson County Democratic Party
Monthly Meeting
March 1, 2022
Call to Order:
Greg Haas called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm by Greg Haas, Chair.
Attendance in person: Greg Haas, Jim Shell, Suzi Black, Sharon Case, Dudley Case, Mary Van Auken, Kay McCormick, Lorajane Kessler, John Sherwood, Kate Sherwood, Linda Wilson, Lois Petersen, Vikki Chenette
Secretary Report:
Lois Petersen made a motion to approve the minutes from the February 1 meeting and Suzi Black seconded the motion.
Treasurer’s Report:
Suzi Black reported the checkbook balance and the amount that is earmarked for flowers for William McIntyre’s funeral and for the William D. McIntyre Memorial Scholarship fund.
Chair Announcements:
Greg Haas did not have any chair announcements.
Modification of the Agenda:
Greg Haas announced that in order to finish the meeting by 7:00 pm, so that members could get home to watch the State of the Union Address, he was going to put off until the next meeting the following agenda items:
- Chamber of Commerce – Lois Petersen
- Platform/Position Paper – Greg Haas
- Tourism Association is hiring
Greg asked if anyone objected to this change in the agenda. No one objected.
William D. McIntyre Memorial Scholarship:
Greg Haas said he talked to Bill’s wife, Dixie, on the phone and she said there was a lot of animosity towards Democrats in Kaycee and that she didn’t want a scholarship recipient to have that animosity directed towards a student for applying for and receiving a scholarship sponsored by the Democrats. As a result of his conversation with Dixie he said there are three possible options to take with respect to the scholarship.
- Make a donation to the Hoof Prints of the Past Museum in Kaycee of the $350 we have in the treasury, since Bill McIntyre was very active in this museum.
- Have a scholarship sponsored by the Johnson County Democrats that would not use William D. McIntyre’s name.
- Set up an organization independent from the Johnson County Democratic Party to organize and operate the William D. McIntyre Memorial Scholarship.
Suzi Black made a motion to have the JC Dems donate $350 to the Hoof Prints of the Past Museum in Kaycee in Bill’s name and set up a scholarship committee to work on organizing and operating the scholarship fund. Vikki Chenette seconded the motion. After some discussion the motion passed unanimously. Dudley Case said that he has an inactive non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation that could be used for this scholarship program.
Lois Petersen, Vikki Chenette, Lorajane Kessler and Dudley Case volunteered to be on the committee.
Call to Committee for SCC (March 26 at 1:30 pm via Zoom):
Greg Haas said that the JC Dems get 4 votes at the Democratic State Central Committee meeting. Voting by proxy is allowed, so if one of the four members who can legally vote at this meeting cannot attend the meeting, they may designate another member to vote for them. Because of Bill McIntyre’s death there is one opening for a JC Dems member to attend this meeting and vote. Greg said he would check to see which four members among the JC Dems members can legally vote at this meeting.
County Convention:
Greg Haas said that the Wyoming Democratic Party will allow the county conventions to be held in person or online (e.g. Zoom) or by a combination of in person and online. Greg Haas said it is too much trouble to set up a hybrid meeting (in person and online). Greg Haas made a motion to hold the county convention in person. Lois Petersen seconded the motion. After some discussion to motion passed unanimously.
The state party told Greg Haas that the county convention must be held In April and that we need to set a date for the convention. After some discussion, Vikki Chenette made a motion to hold the convention on Saturday, April 23 between 10am and Noon. Linda Wilson seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously.
Greg Haas stated that normally three committees must be set up to organize and operate the convention: 1) Platform and Resolutions Committee 2) Ballot and Credentials Committee 3) Bylaws Committee. Greg Haas said that forming a Bylaws committee would not be necessary since we use the State Party Bylaws for the convention. Greg Haas then asked for volunteers to serve on the other two committees. Greg Haas and Linda Wilson volunteered to serve on the Platform and Resolutions Committee. Mary Van Auken, Suzi Black, Vikki Chenette and Dudley Case volunteered for the Ballot and Credentials Committee. Dudley said he was chair of this committee for the 2020 convention and had the paperwork for this committee.
Training Report:
Dudley Case said he attended the Zoom training course entitled Wyoming Candidate Information Session on February 9. Sarah Hunt and Nina Herbert conducted the session. Dudley reviewed the highlights of the session and stated that the session was recorded for anyone who missed the session. One important point covered was that Federal, State and County offices are partisan. City, town and special district offices are non-partisan and precinct committee positions are partisan. Deadlines, campaign logistics, fundraising, voter contact, public appearances, resources, and costs were all covered during the session, which lasted for about one hour. The presenters gave links to the Wyoming County Commissioners Guide, the Wyoming Candidate Guide, which includes filing fees, the Wyoming Clerks Guide, and Wyoming 2022-2023 Election Calendar.
Adjournment:
Greg Haas adjourned the meeting at 6:55 pm.
