The Voice of Douglas County Democrats JUNE 2017

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INSIDE THIS ISSUE: More photos from Carson Valley Days Parade .…. Page 2 Photos from our May DCDCC meeting……………..Page 3 This month’s featured Democrat (Art Erickson)….. Page 4 Kimi’s column ……………………………….….…… Page 5 Calendar of Events ….……………………………… Page 7

Douglas County Democrats pause for a photo before stepping out in the annual Carson Valley Days parade through Minden and Gardnerville June 10. They handed out hundreds of mini American flags to eager children along the parade route. (More photos on Page 2)

Warm, sunshiny days have a returned. It must be summer. That means it’s almost time for our annual Douglas Democrats Barbecue!

Mark your calendars for July 29 and follow your nose to the sizzling tri-tip steaks on the grill at Mormon Station State Park in Genoa. The fun begins at 1 p.m.

For just $20 (kids under 12 are free) you can enjoy camaraderie, good food, a spectacular silent auction, a cold beer or soft drink, and much, much more.

For more information, contact Katherine Winans at (775) 267-0539 or jkw@gbis.com.

ALSO: Don’t forget the Douglas County Democratic Central Committee meeting Thursday, June 22. The social is at 6:30 p.m. and the meeting will begin at 7 p.m.

The voice of Douglas County, Nevada Democrats — June 2017 Page 2

More Carson Valley Days Parade photos

Upper Left: Young Democrat Meagan Leberth rides atop the Douglas Dems parade entry.

Upper Right: Bert Heyman leads our “float” with Old Glory.

Lower Left: Our booth at Lampe Park.

Lower Right: Gim Hollister and Paul Belt put the final touches on our parade entry.

The voice of Douglas County, Nevada Democrats — June 2017 Page 3

May meeting memories…

TOP: Assemblyman William McCurdy II, also chair of the Nevada State Democratic Party, fields questions from Douglas Democrats May 25.

LOWER LEFT: Douglas Dems chair Kimi Cole shakes hands with a stranger (under the mask it’s former chair Paul Belt, who recently returned from Arizona.)

LOWER RIGHT: “The President” surprised attendees at our meeting.

decade ago. He rented a house for about a year until finding his present home in the Wild Horse Valley area of Johnson Lane.

Art’s political life might have taken a different turn. “My grandmother was chairwoman of a Republican county central committee in South Brunswick Township of New Jersey,” he recalled. “She was an ‘Eisenhower Republican.’”

But as he approached voting age, he realized the Democratic Party platform was more to his liking, especially because of his union affiliations.

Looking back at last year’s lost presidential race, he believes Hillary Clinton failed to reach out. “She came across like ‘I’ve got this in the bag,’” he said.

“My question is, who will run next? There are no real charismatic leaders in the Democratic Party at the moment,” he observed.

He said union support will be needed, noting organized labor has been associated wrongly with negativism.So, when you attend next month’s Democratic Barbecue at Mormon Park in Genoa, be sure to stop by the

cooking pit to say “hi.” Undoubtedly he’ll be one of chefs flipping tri-tips.

Democrat Profile: Art Erickson The voice of Douglas County, Nevada Democrats — June 2017 Page 4

As a staunch union member and supporter, Art Erickson had no hesitation when deciding what party to register with when he first voted in 1970 — the Democrats.

That was an off year, but in the next Presidential election (1972) his candidate, George McGovern, lost to Richard Nixon. Art was in the military then, so in retrospect he quipped, “I was Tricky Dick’s hired gun!”

Erickson is a regular attendee of our Central Committee meetings, and likes to work behind the scenes at events such as the annual barbecue.

In the last election he was a strong supporter of Catherine Cortez Masto, who defeated Republican Joe Heck in a hotly contested race for the seat held by then-minority leader Harry Reid.

He is retired as an “inside wireman” with IBEW (International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers), a job he held for more than three decades.

Why did he choose this area for retirement living? The answer dates back to 1971, when Erickson was part of a National Guard convoy that passed through this area. It made a lasting impression on him.

Upon retirement he considered settling in many locations throughout the west. But when a military friend asked if he’d ever been to Carson City, he recalled the trip of nearly half a

Art Erickson

From the Chair ...By Kimi Cole

Visions of a Blue Valley

The voice of Douglas County, Nevada Democrats — June 2017 Page 5

Through a long procession of circumstances, I purchased a fixer-upper in the fall of 2001.

Although it looked rough cosmetically, I saw a house in a great neighborhood, with an awesome floor plan and amazing potential. I bought it.

Three weeks of nonstop work on the interior brought the house from a horrible “before” picture to an amazing “after” picture and I moved in. The yard was entirely another story and I decided to wait until spring to start working on it.

When spring arrived, other yards around me were beginning to turn green, and I was looking at a hideous brown landscape. One landscaper advised I should tear everything up and start with new sod, which I couldn’t afford at the time.

Then I was introduced to the man who has been my gardener ever since.

He said, “First, let me bring my crew and clean it all up.” They raked and thatched, to see what we had to work with. I’ll admit it looked better, but everything was still dry brown.

Then he said, “Lets get the water all turned on and see what it looks like then.” After a few weeks, I started seeing signs of green. But it was also still sprinkled with other colors — yellow, brown, red — and there were stickers and thorns growing in the yard that hurt to walk on. I commented to my gardener, “This is better, but still not how I

would like to see my yard. What should I do? He said, “Continue to nurture the yard. I

will spray the dandelions and you will pull some stickers and thorns. The healthy lawn will overcome the weeds.” He did and I did.

The second season started a lot better, but the yard was not yet great. I still couldn’t walk barefoot without getting stickers in my feet. I asked my gardener again, “What should I do now?” He said, “Continue to nurture the lawn. I will spray the dandelions some more and you will pull more stickers and thorns.” He did and I did.

By early in the third season, the lawn was looking great and I could run outside barefoot without getting stickers in my feet!

When I was first getting involved with the local political process, I looked around and was concerned about the color of the valley. It looked way too red for my liking.

However, with all the challenges and opportunities revealed during the past election, I see that there is a good base and plenty of room for growth. “Continue nurturing the Valley,” I say to myself. “Pull more stickers and thorns, and, by golly, it can begin progressing through purple into blue!”

I have hope that one day, with all of us working together, nurturing this valley we call home, that it will take on a whole new color — the color blue!

And one day we WILL be able to walk in our valley without getting stickers in our feet!

The voice of Douglas County, Nevada Democrats — June 2017 Page 6

Leaning a bit to the left

The word I hate the most

First a warning: This month’s column contains some phrases that may be disturbing and offensive. Got your attention?

While driving with my dogs to our favorite hiking area this morning, I wondered aloud what I would write about this month. I had no clue. Then I tuned in NPR on my car radio just in time to hear a report on the one-year anniversary of the terrible hate-crime shooting that left 49 people dead and 58 others wounded at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Fla.

The report then chronicled an attempt to disrupt the funeral of several of the victims, young men, by a church that travels the nation spreading hate.

I had my topic: hate, something that has no place in our society.

Online I found a photo of a young boy carrying a sign outside the funeral reading: “God sent the shooter.” Really? One of the very definitions I’ve heard of God is “God is Love.”

Unfortunately, hate is alive and well in America, today and in our not so distant past.

Remember the protests and hate rallies when Birmingham, AL, schools were integrated?

Remember when American soldiers murdered an estimated 500 unarmed men, women, and toddlers in My Lai, Vietnam in March of 1968?

The My Lai Massacre, as it’s come to be known, brought to mind my very first day of Army basic training at Ft. Polk, La. There was a large billboard with a caricature of an Asian man and the

Pat StanleyBy Pat Stanley

wording, “Gook: this is the enemy.” Gook is defined by Wikipedia as “a derogatory term

for people of East and Southeast Asian descent.”At My Lai, I believe, it was not hate just of the real

enemy, but of anybody who looked Asian. Online I found Vietnam-era photos including one of

a soldier on who’s whose helmet was painted, “kill a Gook for God.” There were others that I’ll not repeat here.

I didn’t have to look far to find hate in my own childhood. I attended an all-white grammar school and remember the community consternation when the first Hispanic enrolled. He became a good friend.

Somebody very close to me once warned against Catholics and Jews.

If that had kept up, there wouldn’t have been anybody left on the “good guys list.”

Okay, so what to do about it? I think that has to begin in our own homes and our own hearts. We need to speak up when hate rears its ugly head.

The Internet can be a wonderful research tool. Following are some quotations I found about hate:

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness: Only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.” (Martin Luther King)

“In time we hate that which we often fear.” (William Shakespeare)

“Animals don’t hate, and we’re supposed to be better than them.” (Elvis Presley)

The code of a large international organization is, “Love and and tolerance of others.”

Let’s do our part to promote love, not hate.

We want to know what’s on YOUR mind!If you had a magic wand, and could change ONE thing about the current state of politics, what would it be?To take our short survey, CLICK HERE: ✔

The voice of Douglas County, Nevada Democrats — June 2017 Page 7

Your DCDCC Officers …OfficersDCDCC Chair: KimiMCole@gmail.comFirst Vice Chair: Joan NeufferSecond Vice Chair: Susan MinorSecretary: Melanie Meehan-CrossleyTreasurer: Jan WallsMember-at-large: Patrick WilkesMember-at-large: Pat Stanley

Chairs of Standing CommitteesAdministration: Katherine WinansPrograms/Policy: Kimi ColeMembership: Katherine WinansCandidate Recruitment: Your Name HerePublicity/Public Relations: Pat StanleyFundraising/Finance: Vacant

Timely TicklersEvery Saturday (9 a.m. — 11 a.m.)Chip Evans Show“The Buzz” KBZZ 1270 am/96.1 fm

June 22 — ThursdayCounty Central CommitteeDem HQ, 1513 Hwy 395, GardnervilleSocial at 6:30 p.m. — Meeting at 7 p.m.

July 4 — TuesdayIndependence Day

July 8- Saturday“Effectively Engaging Your Audience”- Kimi ColeDem HQ, 11 a.m.- Lunch will be provided

July 10 — Monday (6 p.m.)DCDCC Executive CommitteeDem HQ, 1513 Hwy 395, Gardnerville

July 29 — Saturday (1 p.m.)Annual Doulas Dems Bar-B-QMormon Station State Park (Genoa)

August 12- Saturday (11 a.m. — 1 p.m.)Vote Smart- Facts Matter, Western States Summer Tour in Minden. Stay tuned for more information and ticket purchases!