We, her fellow board and branch members, extend a hearty congratulations to our marvelous newsletter editor Geraldine Popko! At the 2024 AAUW-NYS annual convention held 6/28 and 6/29 at the Hilton Hotel in Poughkeepsie, our branch won a 2024 AAUW-NYS Communication Award for Outstanding Newsletter! (See below.)

And thank you to our branch president Lynn Gore for her participation in a Learning Circle that was part of the Saturday afternoon session on Educational Challenges Today!

Also, thank you so much to our sister branch in Poughkeepsie for hosting this year’s state convention, to all of the organizers, and to the outgoing and incoming state officers!

– Susan Holland, branch webmaster, state delegate, etc….!

Please reserve your seat today!

The 2024 Festival will open with Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance in a vibrant production directed and choreographed by Seán Curran and conducted by Music Director Joseph Colaneri, featuring set and costume designs by James Schuette and lighting by Robert Wierzel. A Gilbert & Sullivan classic, combining soaring vocal lines and slapstick comedy, returns to Glimmerglass for the first time in nearly 20 years. This colorful, family-friendly production features elegant Victorian ladies and an aristocratic band of pirates stuck in perpetual adolescence. Curran’s hit production from Opera Theatre of Saint Louis kicks it up a notch at Glimmerglass with the addition of a corps of professional dancers.

Due to a mistake made by his nurse, Ruth, Frederic is indentured to the Pirates of Penzance until his 21st birthday. When Frederic turns 21, he announces his intention to abandon the Pirates and live an honorable life. The Pirate King is disappointed to lose his apprentice, but he concedes that Frederic is duty-bound to follow his conscience. Ruth asks Frederic to take her with him; as he considers her proposal, a bevy of maidens appears. One of them, Mabel, is deeply moved by Frederic’s situation.

Christian Mark Gibbs is a multifaceted talent of stage and screen, and will bring his “strikingly handsome tenor” (Broadway World) to the role of Dan Leno in Elizabeth Cree and Frederic in The Pirates of Penzance.

Elizabeth Sutphen is an impressive addition to the Glimmerglass Festival’s 2024 season, praised for her “exquisite” (The Guardian) coloratura soprano and “crisp comedic instinct” (Opera News). Sutphen will be performing the role of Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance.

Craig Irvin brings his “well-schooled baritone” (Opera Today) to the roles of the Pirate King in The Pirates of Penzance.

Reserve your ticket by May 31

email Lynn Gore:

lynngore54@gmail.com

send check after email confirmation.

$170 for members, $180 non-members

all seats are orchestra seats and there are no stairs to climb

Please provide contact information and

pick up location:

Kingston or Saugerties

If you have questions contact Lynn Gore at lynngore54@gmail.com, (845)687-9210
send checks made out to AAUW Kingston to

Lynn Gore
400 Chestnut Hill Road
Stone Ridge, NY 12484

Itinerary for Monday, August 19, 2024

9:00 am Departure Kingston, Herzog plaza
9:15 am Pick up Saugerties Park and Ride Rt 32 across from the southbound entrance to I 87.
11:30 am Arrive at Glimmerglass Opera House
11:30- 12:45 pm Lunch* and Opera Preview
3:30 pm Board bus at Glimmerglass
5:30 pm Saugerties drop off
5:45 Kingston drop off

* Lunch: The grounds and many picnic tables are made available to guests for picnicking before and after productions. Enjoy delicious made-to-order wraps and sandwiches or visit the wine bar to create a special picnic on the grounds. There is also room on the bus for small coolers if you would like to keep a picnic lunch cool.

This month, we are highlighting the Climate Roadmap from Sustainable Hudson Valley and LWV MHR. (Our branch co-sponsored the set of 4 workshops that were held earlier this month.)

The project as a whole is so large and encompasses so much that it was agreed that it should be broken down into four sections, each focusing on one aspect. These one-hour sessions are chock full of useful and important information presented in a way that most people can understand.

It will be shared among local leaders with an interest in the state of, and possibilities for, making a positive impact on the future of our Hudson Valley and beyond.

Please join us for these important conversations. Feel free to share the information with your local environmental organizations, political leaders, and others who could benefit from learning more about what is happening and what each of us can do.

To register for any of the 4 workshops, which are each offered twice per day, or for all 4 of them, go here:
Workshop registration page

Monday, April 23, Noon – Decarbonizing Power, Buildings, and Transportation
Monday, April 23, 6 PM – Decarbonizing Power, Buildings, and Transportation
Tuesday, April 24, Noon – Building a Low-Carbon Circular Economy
Tuesday, April 24, 6 PM – Building a Low-Carbon Circular Economy
Wednesday, April 25, Noon – Farms, Forests, Land, and Water
Wednesday, April 25, 6 PM – Farms, Forests, Land, and Water
Thursday, April 26, Noon – Community and Economic Benefits
Thursday, April 26, 6 PM – Community and Economic Benefits

Check your email for this Subject line: AAUW Election 2024, and then vote Yes for Open Membership!
From AAUW National Board Chair Julia Brown
For over a century, AAUW has championed gender equity while evolving strategically. Now we can build upon our legacy by welcoming all who share our mission, regardless of degree status.
Why does this matter? Because our standing as a leading voice for gender equity demands we practice the inclusion we fight for.
Far from devaluing our work, this evolution recognizes that many champion equity through non-traditional paths.
Rest assured, an open membership won’t require changing our name or mission. AAUW will remain the powerful organization you’ve always known, open to a wider universe of equity allies.
For over a century, our ability to evolve has been our strength. In these uncertain times, we need to include all allies, regardless of degree status.
Let’s forge a more just, equitable future together by voting Yes on open membership.
In solidarity,
Julia T. Brown, Esq.
Board Chair, AAUW

This month, we are highlighting the Climate Roadmap from Sustainable Hudson Valley. The project as a whole is so large and encompasses so much that it was agreed that it should be broken down into four sections, each focusing on one aspect. These one-hour sessions are chock full of useful and important information presented in a way that most people can understand.

We are co-sponsoring this event with LWV MHR. It will be shared among local leaders with an interest in the state of, and possibilities for, making a positive impact on the future of our Hudson Valley and beyond.

Please join us for these important conversations. Feel free to share the information with your local environmental organizations, political leaders, and others who could benefit from learning more about what is happening and what each of us can do.

Registration links for the four workshops follow:
Monday, April 8th, 6 PM – Decarbonizing Energy, Buildings, & Transportation
Tuesday, April 9th, Noon – Tackling the Carbon Footprint of Materials and Building a Circular Economy
Wednesday, April 10th, 6 PM – Farms, Forests, Land and Water: Optimizing Resource Use in a Changing Climate
Thursday, April 11th, Noon – Capturing Community Benefits for Environmental Justice, Economic Development, & Resilient Communities

Come celebrate National Poetry Month with AAUW Kingston on Tuesday, April 23 from
3:45 to 5 PM at the Kingston Library, 61 Crown Street, Kingston.

The afternoon will begin with a presentation by our featured poet Mary O’Melveny. Mary began writing poetry after a long career as a labor rights lawyer. Her award-winning poems have appeared in many print and online literary journals and anthologies. She is the author of four poetry collections. Her most recent, “Flight Patterns,” was nominated for the Eric Hoffer Book Award. Her collection, “Merging Star Hypotheses” was a semi-finalist for The Washington Prize, sponsored by The Word Works. She has been twice nominated for a Pushcart Prize.

Next, we will open the floor to poets or poetry readers who have signed up online to share their work or a favorite poem. Poems related to women are especially welcome. RSVP to let us know how many participants to expect. Please indicate if you are interested in presenting.
RSVP to Lynn Gore at: lynngore54@gmail.com (subject line poetry open mike)

Pleas join us! This meeting is open to all. Refreshments will be served.

AAUW-NYS, in collaboration with PowHer New York, a women’s advocacy coalition,
is hosting an in-person rally for everyone on March 12.
If you can’t make it to the in-person rally, you can also participate in an online virtual rally.

March 12 In-Person Rally:
New York City Hall – Noon to 1 PM – Wear Red!

March 12 Online Virtual Rally:
Use hash tag #EqualPayNY on social platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. to spread the word about Equal Pay.

2024 Equal Pay Day Calendar

– Overall Equal Pay Day – March 12, 2024

– Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Women’s Equal Pay Day – April 3, 2024

– LGBTQIA+ Equal Pay Awareness Day – June 13, 2024

– Black Women’s Equal Pay Day – July 9, 2024

– Moms’ Equal Pay Day – August 7, 2024

– Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) Women’s Equal Pay Day – August 28, 2024

– Latina Equal Pay Day – Oct 3, 2024

– Native Women’s Equal Pay Day – November 21, 2024

AAUW Kingston Fundraiser
Lucky Chocolates
February 27 – April 10

Our 2024 Branch fundraiser is a delicious one!

AAUW Kingston has teamed up with Lucky Chocolates in Saugerties to bring you some lovely treats. You can order chocolate for delivery or in-store pickup at 113A Partition Street in Saugerties. Every purchase on our special page contributes to scholarships for girls and women. Tavin and Verona of Lucky Chocolates will do everything to make your experience a pleasure.

Click on our special Lucky Chocolates link below:
https://luckychocolates.com/aauw-kingston-fundraiser
and choose from the five fundraiser options.

If you have any questions, contact Lynn Gore (lynngore54@gmail.com).

A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical
Wed., April 17, 2024, Matinee
Broadhurst Theatre, 235 West 44th Street, NYC

A Beautiful Noise brings the hits you love to life like you’ve never seen!
the songs you know. the true story you’ve never heard — until now.
Created in collaboration with Neil Diamond himself, A Beautiful Noise is the uplifting true story of how a kid from Brooklyn became a chart-busting, show-stopping American rock icon. With 140 million albums sold, a catalog of classics like “America,” “Forever in Blue Jeans,” and “Sweet Caroline,” an induction into the Songwriters and Rock and Roll Halls of Fame, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and sold-out concerts around the world that made him bigger than Elvis, Neil Diamond’s story was made to shine on Broadway, where the biggest stars tell their story.

Like Jersey Boys and Beautiful: The Carole King Musical before it, A Beautiful Noise is an inspiring, exhilarating, energy-filled musical memoir, that tells the untold true story of how America’s greatest hitmaker became a star, set to the songs that defined his career.

Orchestra seats, no stairs!
If you need a handicap seat, please call Lynn (845-687-9210) immediately.

Cost: AAUW Members: $215 Non-Members: $225

1. Email your reservation ASAP to lynngore54@gmail.com
Include contact information: phone, and email for you and your guest, and whether you will board in Kingston or New Paltz.

2. Send your check by February 29, 2024
Send checks (made out to AAUW Kingston) to:
Lynn Gore
400 Chestnut Hill Road
Stone Ridge, NY 12484

Questions? Email: lynngore54@gmail.com or call 845-687-9210

Schedule
8:30 AM      Departs Kingston Plaza
9:00 AM      New Paltz Thruway Park & Ride pickup
11:30 AM    Drop off near the restaurant*
2:00 PM      Show at 222 West 45th Street
4:45 PM     Pick up near the theatre
7:00 PM     Drop off in New Paltz
7:30 PM     Return to Kingston Plaza
(Return times depend on traffic conditions)

* Lunch is not included in the price.
Join the group lunch at “Le Rivage” on 46th Street (prix fixe details to follow soon) or head out on your own.

Dear branch members,
Info from some recent AAUW National emails about 2 upcoming webinars:
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1, Inclusion in Practice: How AAUW’s Policies and Practices Promote Inclusion
Wed., Jan. 31, 2024, 7 PM ET
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_IhHjiqZARNmRqdXSR9KxFQ
Please join us for the AAUW National Inclusion & Equity Committee webinar on inclusion policies and practices. The webinar is designed to aid local branches and states as they explore various national policies and bylaws of AAUW national, featuring the resources available in AAUW’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Toolkit. The webinar provides an informative look at several national policies and practices, including the soon-to-be-announced member civility policy.

2. School Boards: The Battleground for the Education Culture Wars
Wed., Feb. 7, 2024, 7 PM ET
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Y2RuiP5PSNuey04jKNymAA
Across the country, we have seen school boards, and candidates for school boards, taking up controversial policies that have led to banning books from school libraries; the censorship of curriculum in school classrooms due to individuals finding content “objectionable”; and policies leading to the prevention of safe school climates for students of all sexual orientations and gender identities . Please join us for an AAUW National Public Policy Committee webinar to learn how one AAUW state board is fighting back and what you can do locally.
=====================================================================
If you have questions about either webinar, please reach out to Robin Lucas (lucasr@aauw.org), Grassroots Advocacy Manager, and Meghan Kissell (kissellm@aauw.org), Senior Director of Policy & Member Advocacy.