Category: A Message From The President

Wishing Grant Tietjen well! - A Message from the President

7/16/2023

Goodbye and Thank You! to Grant Tietjen

A Message from the President

PACG Board member, Grant Tietjen, has been in the Davenport area for ten years. He relocated to Iowa from Lincoln, NE to take a faculty position at St. Ambrose University (SAU) as an Associate Professor of Criminology in the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice. For the past year at SAU, he was also the Assistant Program Director for the Masters of Science in Criminal Justice program. In 2017 Grant became involved with the Juvenile Justice Coalition of the Quad Cities, a group that PACG's Civil Rights Forum has supported for a number of years. This group has worked to promote sensible programs and ethical policies to protect our youth from unnecessary incarceration and undue harsh treatment.

In 2018 Grant was elected to the PACG Board of Directors, where he has served faithfully as an active member.

Grant will be moving to Tacoma, Washington where he has taken a tenured faculty position as Associate Professor of Criminology at the School of Social Work and Criminal Justice at the University of Washington - Tacoma. The position starts this fall. We will miss you, Grant, but we are so happy for you. Congratulations!

Glenda Guster

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PACG welcomes new Board members! - A Message from the President

2/4/2023

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Welcome to our new Board of Directors members!

A Message from the President

PACG is excited to announce that we have two new members on our Board of Directors! Please welcome Sharita Lacy and Laronda Bennett! Both women can be contacted from the About section of our website here.

Sharita Lacy

Sharita has worked for the Davenport school system as an Attendance Secretary for three years, and she loves her job! She enjoys her interactions with students as well as the staff. She calls herself an onsite mentor for students. The devoted mother of three children is also busy with their school and other activities. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends. Sharita grew up watching her mother, Glenda Guster, work in the community for the common good. She is looking forward to working with PACG members.

Laronda Bennett

Laronda Bennett is from Kansas City, Missouri and moved to Rock Island in 2017. She joined Tabernacle Baptist Church, where she met her husband, Greg.

Laronda works for Churches United of the Quad City Area in Bettendorf. As the Administrative Assistant, her role in the office is to support the Executive and Associate Director with the daily operation of the office. That could be from answering phones and writing and distributing emails. The job can be rewarding and challenging! She helps everyone who contacts the office for assistance with, food, rent, utilities, and shelter.

The achievement for which Laronda is most proud is deciding to go to school later in life to get her Associate Degree in Logistics Management.

She loves to sew and make cards, finding both very relaxing.

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Stop the reckless Iowa gun rights amendment - A Message from the President

9/25/2022

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Stop the reckless Iowa gun rights amendment

American Association of University Women

In 2021, the Iowa legislature repealed the law requiring a background check to purchase a gun. State lawmakers also repealed the law requiring a permit to carry loaded, concealed handguns. Had the people of Iowa demanded that these basic gun safety laws be removed from the books? No, according to the Iowans for Responsible Gun Laws Coalition (of which AAUW-Iowa is a member) a strong majority of Iowans support common sense gun laws:

91% support banning carrying a firearm while under the influence of drugs or alcohol
85% support prohibiting felons from possessing firearms
85% support requiring background checks on all gun purchases
83% support requiring gun safety courses before the purchase of a handgun

At a time when more Iowans are dying from gun violence and most Iowans want to strengthen laws to keep us safe, state lawmakers instead want to further weaken Iowa’s gun laws.

A state constitutional amendment, proposed by the Iowa legislature, will appear on the November 8th ballot. If passed, it will make ownership and use of guns a “fundamental right,” prioritizing gun rights over public health and safety. Whether they own weapons or not, Iowans of both major parties and, especially those in law enforcement, warn against adopting this constitutional amendment.

Read more and find out how you can help stop this reckless gun rights amendment!

Glenda Guster

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Free N95 Masks Available - A Message from the President

2/1/2022

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Free N95 Masks Available Locally for All Residents

A Message from the President

The Biden administration has made 400 million N95 masks available to Americans. As of this week, all residents can receive up to three, free N95 masks. From channel WQAD8: "The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Jan. 14 updated its guidance on face coverings to say properly fitted N95 and KN95 masks offer the most protection against COVID-19, versus surgical or cloth masks." The Administration has taken this move to protect against the omicron Covid variant.

The Rock Island County Health Department will be distributing N95s at its health centers and community health care clinics. N95s are also available at participating pharmacies and other health centers in the Quad Cities.

For more information and distribution locations visit:
www.wqad.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/free-n95-masks-quad-cities-locations/

Glenda Guster

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A Message from the New President - 2022

1/11/2022

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New President and Changes to the PACG Board

A Message from the New President - 2022

Dear Progressives,

I am honored to have been elected by the PACG Board of Directors for the position of President. I have been a member of PACG since 2008 and a Board member since 2019, so I am familiar with the organization.

Other changes to the Board include Allison Ambrose moving into the position of Vice President. We certainly appreciate her guidance for the past few years, especially during the pandemic. I am pleased that she will remain involved, initially to help me with the transition to president.

Margie Mejia-Caraballo will be stepping down from the Board. We are grateful for her ongoing participation with PACG over the past years.

For those of you who don't know me, I have been the Secretary for NAACP Davenport for three years. I am the Environmental Climate Justice committee Chair for our local NAACP branch. Our committee worked closely with PACG's Environmental forum for the past couple of years. I am learning so much about Environmental issues working with these people. I hope to encourage others to get involved with local and national environmental issues and injustice that affect people of color.

My husband, Michael, and I have six children and nine grandchildren. I enjoy exercising, traveling, and spending time with my family.

My primary goal is to increase diversity in our organization, and to get more young people involved in PACG. How can we achieve this together? I will share other goals with you throughout the year.

Glenda Guster, President

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Holiday Greetings from the President

12/22/2021

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Year-End Holiday Greetings!

A Message from the President

Hello Progressives,

As we end this year, I am writing one last message to you as your President. I am excited to announce that Glenda Guster will be taking over as President, starting January 1st. Glenda has been a devoted board member and will make a fabulous President! Check out her bio on the PACG About page here.

Other changes to the board during this past year include new member Susan Leuthauser who has been a very active member in our Environmental Forum. I am sad to say that Margie Mejia-Caraballo will be leaving the board after many years of devoted service in the role of Vice President. I will be taking over as Vice President beginning January 1st.

I'd also like to say how sorry I am that we again were not able to hold a live Holiday Party this year. Let's hope for the return of this fun and festive event in 2022. However, we did use a bit of our Pie Auction funds raised from the picnic, which we typically used to fund the Holiday Party, to benefit two local organizations that serve those in need: Dress for Success and The Center.

I encourage you to look at our Holiday Poem that we sent out again this year (see below). It sums up some of the things that PACG accomplished during our second year of the pandemic. I am so proud of us!

Finally, I want to express what an honor it has been to serve as your President over these past three years. The organization is one we should all be proud of! I'd like to thank everyone for supporting all that we do in so many ways. In particular, thanks to those active in the forums, our three part-time employees, Julie Ross, Jeannie Price, and Dee Fitzgerald - as well as the board members who have all tirelessly supported our mission during my tenure. This organization would not be the success that it is without these individuals.

Happy Holidays to you all! Here's to a healthy and progressive 2022!!!

Allison Ambrose

2021_winter_holiday_poem.pdf
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Action Alert - Petition to Repeal Iowa Voting Restrictions

11/21/2021

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Petition to Repeal Iowa's New Restrictive Voting Laws -
Action Alert

petition_to_repeal_new_voter_laws.pdf
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A Message from the President

PACG has joined a coalition of Iowa organizations to support the effort of the League of Women Voters of Johnson County, Iowa (LWVJC) to oppose the changes to Iowa's new voting laws (HF413 and SF568). These laws are restrictive and unnecessary. They make it harder to vote! Per the LWV, the restrictions:

Invalidate some mail-in ballots that, even when mailed promptly, cannot be returned before polls close
Impede voting by medical and other workers with 12-hour shifts by closing the polls earlier on primary and general election days
Obstruct returning absentee ballots by limiting the use of ballot drop boxes to one per county, regardless of population, and by unnecessarily restricting who may return absentee ballots
Drastically shorten the early voting period from 29 days to 20 and needlessly limit ballot request periods
Invite interference in our elections by allowing political parties to challenge Iowa elections in court
Limit county auditors’ abilities to adapt to local conditions and criminalize good-faith errors
Provide less time for voter registration and move voters who miss any general election to an “inactive” list

To get an even better understanding of what changed in these new laws, see this PACG blog post.

The list of voting law changes summarized by the Iowa State Association of County Auditors in the flyer below.

The League of Women Voters (LWV) is collecting signatures to oppose these changes from now until December 15th. The goal is to collect thousands of signatures across the state. These signatures will be delivered in person to the Iowa Senate Majority and Minority Leaders, the Speaker of the House and Minority Leader in January of 2022. LWV will host a press conference at that time.

LWVJC is offering both a paper petition or online signature. Here’s more information about the petition:

For further details about the petition, and to sign in online click this link: https://www.lwvia.org/petitions
To sign the online petition without further details, click this link: https://www.lwvia.org/anti-voter-laws
All signees must be Iowa residents, at least 18 years old and eligible to vote. However, a signee does not have to be registered to vote.
Paper copies of the petition can be printed from pdf we have attached above. Susan Leuthauser will pick up your signed petition or you may mail it to the address below.
Each person can sign only one petition - either online or a paper copy.

If you have visitors from Iowa over the holiday, encourage them to sign the petition. Feel free to forward the online signature link to friends and relatives living across Iowa, and encourage your neighbors and friends to participate in this campaign. Email them this link: https://www.lwvia.org/petitions

Contact Susan Leuthauser (by clicking on her name) with any questions. She will also coordinate the collection of the signed petitions. If you would rather mail your signed petition, send it to:

LWVJC
P.O. Box 5254
Coralville, Iowa 52241

Our growing list of coalition partners for this petition drive includes:

Iowa Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO
Common Good Iowa
Sierra Club
Delta Sigma Theta
Episcopal Diocese of Iowa
Iowa Coalition Against Sexual Assault
Interfaith Alliance
Des Moines Chapter, The Links, Incorporated
Progressive Action for the Common Good
One Human Family of the QCA
QC Pride, Inc.
Metropolitan Community Church of the Quad Cities

As usual, PACG is proud to be working for the common good in this important way.

Allison Ambrose

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Prof. Kristen Henning's Book is Available! - A Message from the President

10/12/2021

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Prof. Kristen Henning's Book is Available Now!
Read "The Rage of Innocence: How America Criminalizes Black Youth"

In June of this year, PACG, along with the Juvenile Justice Coalition of the Quad Cities, LULAC, NAACP, OHF-QCA and UUCQC, sponsored the "Race, Adolescence and Trauma" webinar with guest speaker Professor Kristen Henning of Georgetown Law. We are pleased to announce that Prof. Henning's book, The Rage of Innocence: How America Criminalizes Black Youth has been published and is readily available in local bookstores and digitally. The links below are some of the reviews of the book.

As a result of our webinar, PACG continues to work in coalition with others to address the issues that Prof. Henning raised. These Adolescence, Race and Trauma discussions have been ongoing since June. Please join us if you are interested.

PACG is proud to have been part of bringing this important work to the Quad Cities!

The Rage of Innocence reviews:
LA Times
Good Reads
Penguin Books

Allison Ambrose

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What You Can Do Now - Go Plastic Straw-Free with Nicolina

5/23/2021

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Earth Day Fair 2021 Was a Huge Success!

A Message from the President

PACG's Environmental Forum organized and presented the Earth Day Fair at the Freight House Farmer's Market on Saturday, May 22nd. It was evident that a lot of work went into making this event a success. Read the After Action Report from the Forum in this WEU, with more details about the incredible day. The linked Facebook post has almost 50 pictures of all of the activity. Thank you to the Freight House for providing the space for this delightful gathering!

In the meantime, I want to highlight one of the most impressive vendors at the fair - Nicolina's Turtle Company!

It was started by Nicolina when she was 8 years old! She was alarmed when she learned about the harmful environmental effects of plastic, and knew that she wanted to do something to make a difference.

One day she noticed her big sister - who was using a stainless steel straw in an effort to cut down on her own plastic footprint - put her straw directly into her backpack. It occurred to Nicolina that it would be a lot more sanitary if the straw could be put in some sort of a bag or container to keep it cleaner. She took sewing lessons and then asked her to mother help her design lined pouches. Nicolina's Straw Pouches were born!

Pouches can be purchased for $10. This includes one stainless steel straw. An extra $3 buys a small brush that can be used to thoroughly clean inside the straws. Each pouch is large enough to carry several stainless steel straws and the brush securely. The fabrics are bright and fun, and the pouches are closed with colorful snaps. Nicolina and her mother have enlisted community volunteers to help make pouches.

But, with the pouches, Nicolina was just getting started on her environmental journey! Merely creating Nicolina's Turtle Company, the pouches, a website and donating to local environmental groups, were not enough projects for her! She decided to approach schools and restaurants to ask them to stop using plastic straws. Restaurants now only offer straws when customers ask for them, and her school has stopped using plastic straws completely!

Nicolina is also working with the QC Straw Free Initiative, sponsored by the Quad City Earth Coalition, to spread this concept across the Quad Cities.

Read more about this amazing young person at her website: https://nicolinasturtleco.com.

By the way, these items are available from Nicolina's website. I bought a bunch of them! They will make stocking stuffers or other gifts for my own (adult) children.

If you wish to purchase larger quantities of stainless steel straws so that you can reduce your plastic footprint, they are available locally at many stores.

If you sew and have scraps of material lying around, consider helping in these efforts. You may also want to make a donation to help her save the environment from plastic and fund local environmental education.

I was touched to see the impact that these children are having on our Quad Cities community. What can you do to help the Earth?

Allison Ambrose

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Join the Spread the Relief Campaign - What You Can Do Now

3/29/2021

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Join the Spread the Relief Campaign!
Ongoing Online

A Message from the President

PACG has partnered with our friends at One Human Family QCA, Immigration Office of the Diocese of Davenport, Metrocom NAACP and Quad Cities Interfaith in the "Spread the Relief" campaign. We encourage people to donate all or part of their COVID relief funding to programs and agencies that are helping those in our communities who have been more severely impacted by the downturn of the economy. Three areas of concern are food assistance, housing assistance and health care.

Rabbi Henry Karp, co-founder of One Human Family QCA states that, "The goal of the campaign is to call upon our neighbors in the greater Quad-City area whose income and financial security have not been negatively impacted, but who will be receiving stimulus checks from the federal government as part of COVID relief. We ask these people to consider donating all or part of their stimulus funds to programs and agencies that are providing assistance to those most seriously affected by the pandemic. In this way we can 'Spread the Relief' to those in dire need."

A very extensive list of organizations to which stimulus dollars can be donated is listed in our Spread the Relief Catalogue blog post. Select a category of need (at the top of the blog post) and then choose an organization to donate to. Write "COVID Relief" in the memo line of your check.

Read the Spread the Relief News Release here. The campaign flyer, catalogue and news release are attached below.

The press for this campaign is rolling in! Please share to spread the word!

Allison Ambrose