NELSON COUNTY DEMOCRATIC COMMITTEE – 07/14/2025 Meeting
Meeting at the Faber Fire Department Station 2 – POT LUCK
Called to order by Connie Brennan at 6PM. She thanked everyone for coming out tonight. Connie took a moment to remember a good friend and a loyal worker for the NCDC, Carol Coyner. She will be missed greatly.
Motion made to approve the agenda. It was moved and seconded. Vote to approve was unanimous.
Motion made to approve the minutes of the June 2nd Committee meeting. It was moved and seconded. Vote to approve was unanimous.
Report on Budget issues. There was no change in the budget but there was a need to amend it. Becky spoke about the T-Shirts and replenishing our inventory so we can sell them at the DemFest. Total of $851.38 is the cost of the new shirts. The T-Shirts will sell for $25.00 each. We ordered 37 and sold 3 recently.
Fourth of July report – Becky. The parade was held on July 5th this year. It was very hot. It was very important that we were there because the Republicans were there. We had great messages on the sides of our float. One was “Let freedom ring” and the other was “Liberty and justice for all”. There was another one that stated our freedom of press and religion and speech and our right to assemble. That one was on the back of the float. The parade was short, about 20 minutes, from beginning to end. It was successful and everyone had fun. Amy Laufer and Sam Soghor came. Sam wore his wonderful Uncle Sam costume. Anne Krieger sang some patriotic songs. We had flags and candy to hand out as well. There were only about 7 parade participants: Shiloh Baptist Church, The Republicans, The Democrats, The fire department,the Rescue squad and the Sheriff’s office. There was a float with Miss Nelson on it. There were Veterans walking as well.
Report from Lynn. She talked about the Precinct Captains- they met back on June 18. The primary turnout was less than we hoped for. We were down over a thousand voters from the last inaugural primary. Lynn reiterated that this coming election for state offices is the most important election that people in VA will ever have. The precinct captains are focusing on two areas. Kathy Hatchey is leading the group with postcards and additional information. Lynn reached out to the Spanberger folks, and they sent a trainer who came on July 1st. We will be having canvassing in Nelson and it’s going to start July 16th. Also, Lynn is working on the website. Ernie has a page on our website if you haven’t seen it yet. There is also a section on the website that says be informed, stay informed. Hopefully in the next newsletter we will have something up for you to look at. We want people to have accurate information and to know that we are working for this community.
Chris spoke about the workshops offered at the last meeting: Off to a good start:
· GOP Accountability/Local Protest – Some committee members are working on this
· Immigration Committee is a work in progress and it is still being organized. There is hope some activities can be identified that we as a Committee might participate in.
· Angie is working on events. Family events and community events timeline for this year now is probably a little too short because of Demfest and the election. Angie is hoping that we can hit the ground running in January and plan something fun for all.
Our NCDC focus now is to elect Abigail Spanberger, Hashmi Ghazala and Jay Jones.
Kathy reported on the signs. She said that Larry is trying to get signs, both barn signs and yard signs. He is having a hard time getting them right now.
Sam Soghor – Amherst Representative on the Fifth district Committee and candidate for state House District 53 spoke. He says the signs have been an issue and that we just need to keep pushing or just buy the signs ourselves. He spoke about how important canvassing is, and he is all about knocking on doors. He said he would meet anyone who wanted to knock on doors. He also spoke about his website.
Three School Board candidates attended the meeting and each had an opportunity to speak.
Wayne Hachey – Central district
Joe Richardson – North District
Joe Kennedy – East District
Each spoke briefly, telling us about themselves and what they could bring to the county School Board.
The other two candidates, Sarah Beth Tracy and Stacey Rush, were unable to attend. Stacey did leave a stack of papers that tell what she has done and hopes to do.
Roy White, Independent candidate for North District spoke briefly.
Our Democratic candidate for Board of Supervisors, Central District, Ernie Reed also spoke briefly. He will be having 2 town hall meetings coming up.
Upcoming events:
DemFest – September 13 – Everyone urged to get tickets early
Post card parties planned – August, September, October (need stamps if anyone would like to donate some).
Townhall – October 3rd at RVCC
Events honoring John Lewis at several different areas; Charlottesville this Thursday 4:45to 5:45. Details are on our Facebook and Instagram pages but you can also look up Indivisible Charlottesville for more information.
July 26th Blue Ridge Medical center will be having a health fair at the Heritage center
Next full committee meeting will be October 6 at the Faber Fire House, to include a pot luck.
Motion to adjourn made and seconded; unanimous approval.
Respectfully submitted,
Angela Jones- secretary