INDIVISIBLE Lambertville NJ / New Hope PA

Author: Indivisible Lambertville / New Hope

  • NJ Politics – Get Ready for 2021 Election Year

    NJ Politics – Get Ready for 2021 Election Year

    Contributed by Olga Vanucci.

    2021 is a big election year!  Wait, what? 2021?  Yes, it’s a big election year in New Jersey, where the Governor and the entire Legislature are up for election.

    NJ Spotlight News provides an overview of what to look for:  Get ready for a busy election year in New Jersey | NJ Spotlight News.  Here are the highlights:

    Governor Murphy is popular.  The most recent poll by Fairleigh Dickinson University in mid-October showed Murphy with a 60% approval rating overall and 72% support for his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    One major obstacle that the GOP nominee, whoever that will be, will have to overcome is the Democrats’ huge voter registration advantage — registered Democrats outnumber registered Republicans by more than 1 million.

    Locally, a competitive race is likely in one of the two purple districts in the state, the 16th, encompassing parts of Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset counties. The senator is a moderate Republican and the two Assembly members are Democrats.  Both Democratic Assembly members in the 16th, Andrew Zwicker and Roy Freiman, are rumored to be interested in challenging Republican incumbent Christopher “Kip” Bateman for the Senate in a district where Democrats outnumber Republicans by more than 20,000 but a plurality of voters is unaffiliated.  According to New Jersey State Senate District 16 – Ballotpedia, Kip Bateman won the election for State Senate in 2013 by nearly 12,000 votes, but he won in 2017 by only 574 votes.

    Most likely, new legislative districts will not be in place for this year’s elections after voters passed a constitutional amendment in 2020 delaying the use of newly drawn districts until the 2023 elections if the state does not get its official 2020 census counts by Feb. 15. Given delays caused by the pandemic, and a potential challenge to the count should it not include the number of undocumented immigrants, it is unlikely the state will get its population estimates by that date.

  • From the Editor

    Dear Indivizzies,

    This month’s newsletter is shorter than usual as we prepare for a longer Winter’s nap. While December is typically chucky-jam-full of activities, this year we might better align ourselves with the rhythm of the seasons. Days are shorter and darker, signaling a time when nature slows down and draws inward. Now, instead of trying to squeeze one more party, one more shopping trip, one more cocktail into an already overloaded schedule, we are forced to stay closer to our dens, to find gratitude in a warm cup of tea and cozy blanket.

    For some, the lack of social activity and company may feel isolating, but we may be better served to see it at it as a time of solitude. The idea of solitude – extolled by philosophers and romanticized by poets – offers a time of mindfulness, of self-inspection, of spending time with that which is too easily ignored or overlooked when social demands keep us busy, the outcome of which is frequently profound growth and creativity. The Dark Ages gave way to the Renaissance, the wars and Depression of the early 20th Century brought about the New Deal. Undoubtedly, we are weary of the restrictions of COVID, but what if we’re in the midst of a chrysalis from which great social transformation springs forth?

    What can we do when it seems we are unable to do anything? As one of my favorite writers, Pema Chodrun, says, “Start where you are.” This means acknowledging what you feel – anger, sorrow, fear, joy, desire – and letting it in. The key here is allowing the good, bad and ugly that feels desperately personal, and then understanding that you are part of a vast human chain that is feeling similarly. Through this, we awaken compassion, and through compassion, we can build a responsible, caring community.

    For those that have taken the CTC training, this is the core of conversations: sharing a story about someone or something meaningful to you, being vulnerable and connecting to another human through vulnerability. We’re only human, after all. 

    Winter Solstice on December 21 – the longest night and shortest day of the year – celebrates the return of the light. One month later, Wednesday, January 20, we celebrate the inauguration of Joe Biden as president and Kamala Harris as vice president. While many of us see this as a “return of the light” of a more normal democracy, it must be more than returning to the systems and practices that ultimately resulted in the past four years.

    Enjoy this time of solitude. Practice radical compassion. Love your neighbor. Love yourself. Build a better world.

    Peace and much love,

    Deb

  • Mark Your Calendars! Community Gatherings for 2021

    COMMUNITY GATHERING DATES are on our calendar in perpetuity for the third Sunday of every month. There are a few months in which the Gatherings are moved a week ahead to accommodate a holiday. Unless otherwise notified, Gatherings are held from 3:00-4:30 pm. Dates are also marked on the calendar on the ILNH website.

    Jan 17 May 15 Sep 19
    Feb 21 Jun 13 Oct 17
    Mar 21 Jul 18 Nov 14
    Apr 18 Aug 15 Dec 12

     

  • ILNH and Money

    ILNH and Money

    Contributed by Elycia Lerman.

    It’s hard to believe that ILNH is ending our fourth year as an organization – time flies when you’re trying to save democracy!  It seems like a good time to provide some insight into our financials.  Admittedly, it’s a bit of a boring topic, and even with my very witty personality it may not be an exciting read. However, for all those who help us keep the (virtual) lights on through donations and fundraising activities, we owe you our gratitude and an accounting.  

    Each year we forecast a budget based on what our goals are for the year. What types of programming we will support and provide and what kind of fundraisers we think we can execute. These discussions happen in the individual groups like Civil Rights, Environment, GOTV, etc and within the Leadership Team and the Board. There are overhead costs for our liability, our Board & Officers’ insurance and our technology infrastructure (Quickbooks, Zoom, Wix, etc).  We also budget for legal & accounting professional support, we had large payments here when we filed for our 501c4 status and when we transitioned from Excel to Quickbooks for our accounting. In addition to programming, other expenses include equipment (we own an overhead projector and portable sound system), facility rentals, and supplies. 

    Our revenue is split between donations and merchandise sales. You can see the split in the table below, and note that donations are the larger portion. Our 2019 Holiday Jam was not the merchandise sales event that we had hoped, and we still have a bunch of inventory that we would like to sell at a discount – stay tuned. In 2018 we partnered with two other groups, Rise Up Doylestown to do a musical holiday fundraiser and in 2019 we partnered with the ACME for the Raise Hell fundraiser, both were a big success.  

    In our first year of operation, we were able to create a cushion of finances that enabled us to survive 2020.  Sometimes luck plays to your advantage.  In 2018 and 2019 we pretty much broke even on our revenue and expenses. In 2020 however, our expenses are running about  $2,000 more than income.  We are still in an ‘okay’ position for 2021 with respect to our fixed costs for insurance and technology infrastructure, but we will have to think about different ways to raise funds.  

    Recently there was a survey to all ILNH Indivizzies to get input on what they see for the future of our organization. We will take this input into our budgeting conversations in the next month as we prepare for our 2021 budget. If anyone has questions on the financials or would like to work with the finance team,  please reach out to me, ElyciaLerman@yahoo.com.

    Figure 1

    ILNH 
    2017 2018 2019  2020* 2021
    Budgeted Total Revenue $17,000 $14,200 $17,000 $14,500 ??
    Expense $15,000 $19,700 $19,800 $16,600 ??
    Actual Total Revenue $16,049 $16,332 $11,454 $4,324
    Merch Sales $3,357 $6,971 $2,131 $1,430
    Expense $10,631 $16,895 $11,232 $6,238
    YTD Oct 2020
  • ILNH Swag Goes Online!

    ILNH Swag Goes Online!

    Over the past four years, much of our revenue has come from the sale of ILNH swag, however, this year the lack of in-person meetings and events has sharply reduced the income that helps us with the behind-the-scenes organizational expenses. At the same time, we have accumulated inventory that requires appropriate care and storage, essentially leaving money on the shelf.

    Now, just in time for holiday gift giving, ILNH Swag is available at Shop Swag! (also highlighted in our main menu bar). Better yet, you’ll find many items are deeply discounted and maybe even free! Items range from buttons, cards, clothing, jewelry and more.

    Please help us clean our closets, reduce inventory and recoup expenses! Various payment options make it easy to purchase.