By Peter Bergel
The PeaceWorker
Changes in The PeaceWorker are the biggest news this month at OPW. If you are reading this, you have found the new PeaceWorker website (at www.peaceworker.org) and can see the many features we have implemented in order to make the news activists need more accessible, both to our traditional audience in Oregon, Washington and California and to a whole new global audience.
The OPW Board has decided to continue to produce a printed PeaceWorker for at least two more quarterly issues (Sept and Dec/Jan), but it will only be available to those willing to pay for it, either by subscribing at $15/year or by making a donation of $15 or more to Oregon PeaceWorks. However, both subscribers and non-subscriber can access every issue (monthly, except August and January) on this website, which will continue to improve over the next few months.
If you are into Twitter, OPW is now tweeting as “thepeaceworker” Please consider following us by going to www.twitter.com/thepeaceworker and clicking the “follow” button. Our Twitter feed can also be accessed on the right side of our home page at www.oregonpeaceworks.org.
The Burrito Booth
OPW assistant Lynn Hairston (opw2lh@gmail.com) is coordinating the OPW Burrito Booth at the Salem Art Fair this month during the weekend of July 17-19. If you would like to volunteer for a shift, please email Lynn or call her at 503.585.2767. It’s an enjoyable way to help OPW raise some much-needed operating funds. These burritos are made with organic black beans and have won acclaim as “the best food at the Fair” from the Salem Statesman Journal newspaper.
OPW is grateful for the help of a number of businesses who have donated food and other supplies to the booth. We will list them all in the next issue of The PeaceWorker, as well as at the booth.
Guard Home Campaign
The Guard Home Campaign, in which OPW worked with a coalition of other Oregon peace groups to keep Oregon’s National Guard troops from being deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, did not succeed in getting the Legislature to pass its bills. After our hearing before the House Rules Committee, we were promised a work session on one of our bills by Committee Chair Rep Arnie Roblan (D, Coos Bay) if we could show that we had enough votes to pass it on the House floor. We accomplished this difficult task, but Roblan still did not schedule the work session. The Legislature ended without taking the opportunity to vote on this crucial topic. Nevertheless, we got more media attention, advanced further and accomplished more than any of the other state campaigns on this subject, of which there are more than 20, so far.
The Campaign is considering what its next steps will be, if any.
Strategic Planning
The OPW Board has scheduled a strategic planning retreat in the fall to update OPW’s Strategic Plan. If OPW members wish to participate, please let the Board know by emailing me at pbergel@igc.org.Φ
Peter Bergel is Oregon PeaceWorks’ Executive Director.