LDS DEMS: WHAT ARE WE?
LDS Dems is an official caucus of the Utah State Democratic Party.
STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES
Utah has a rich heritage and a bright future. Our families are the basic units of society, and their success determines the success of our communities. For this reason, our mission is to reduce economic stress, create safe neighborhoods, and provide quality educational and community resources. We take our stewardship over the natural world seriously. We strive to make our communities welcoming and safe for all of Utah's people without regard for when they first came to our great state. We recognize the hand of Divinity in the US Constitution, and we seek to ensure that the rights and freedoms it provides are available to everyone.
Our vision: Encourage more Latter-day Saints to participate and feel welcome in the Democratic Party and vote for Democratic candidates.
ORGANIZATIONAL OUTLINE
LDS Dems is comprised of an executive committee and two planning committees. The interim chair is Sen. Ben McAdams and the interim vice-chair is Crystal Young-Otterstrom. We intend to create regional chairs who will coordinate activities and outreach committees for their area.
Activities Committee (Interim Chair: Trisha Beck):
This committee is tasked with planning quarterly events that help members of the caucus get to know one other and provide a means to introduce moderates to our ideas in a comfortable, LDS-based setting.
Outreach Committee (Interim Chairs: Craig Janis & Cris Balmanno):
The purpose of this committee is to first, create a comprehensive database of all LDS Democrats in the state and second, to convince moderate and republican Mormons that the Democratic Party is really the "right place" for them. Additionally, the outreach committee will oversee messaging, rapid response, candidate recruitment, LDS 101 candidate trainings, etc.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
- Join our email list and encourage all of your LDS Democrat and Moderate friends to join it as well! Click here to sign up: www.ldsdems.org/join.
- Join the executive, activities, or outreach committees on the state level.
- Become a regional chair or offer to help with activities and/or outreach in your region.
- If none of these jobs sound right for you, let us know what you would be interested in helping us with and what your skill sets are!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LDS Dems Kick-off Breakfast (invitation attached)
The LDS Dems Caucus invites you to join us for a free breakfast:
Saturday, October 1 from 8 - 9:30am
Murray Park, Pavilion #2: 296 E Murray Park Ave.
Breakfast will be cooked by your LDS Democratic Elected Officials!
The breakfast is generously underwritten by Sam and Diane Stewart.
At the breakfast, we will hold a free raffle to choose 1 lucky winner to attend the Sunday Morning session of General Conference with Utah State Democratic Party Chair Jim Dabakis! You'll get to join Jim in the VIP section.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Richard Bushman Lecture on "Mormonism and the Public Good"
September 27, 2011 • 7:00 PM • University of Utah Olpin Union - Saltair Room (200 S. Central Campus Dr.) • This event is free and open to the public. No tickets are required, but please arrive early for seating.
Richard Bushman observes: "Recent events in Washington have demonstrated once again how much Americans differ on how to resolve the nation's problem. The parties to the debate cannot even agree on the nature of the public good. The lecture will argue that these conflicts arise out of basic contradictions in our national values and therefore will perpetually recur. The question the lecture will pose is: Can Mormonism, a religious tradition of particular relevance to Utahns, contribute to the resolution of these fundamental disagreements. Can a religion that is authoritarian in nature help solve the problems of a democracy?"
Richard Bushman is among the most widely known and highly regarded historians of Mormonism and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He is Gouverneur Morris Professor of History emeritus at Columbia University and recently finished his term as the Howard W. Hunter Visiting Professor in Mormon Studies at Claremont Graduate University. His publications include: From Puritan to Yankee: Character and the Social Order in Connecticut, 1690-1765 (1967), King and People in Provincial Massachusetts (1985), The Refinement of America: Persons, Houses, Cities (1992), and Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling (2005).
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Susan Easton Black to Keynote Eleanor Roosevelt Luncheon
2011 ELEANOR ROOSEVELT AWARD LUNCHEON
The Garden Place at This Is The Place Heritage Park
Thursday, October 27, 2011
11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Join us in honoring women in Utah who emulate the values, philosophy, and work of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.
Representative Patrice Arent, 2011 Eleanor Roosevelt Award Recipient
Women’s Democratic Club, Special Honoree
The Utah Democratic Party is also proud to announce Susan Easton Black as our Keynote Speaker. Professor Black Black is a renowned author and LDS historian, and has been widely recognized and celebrated for her contributions about prominent women in the LDS faith. She was also the first female religion professor at BYU.
For additional information or if you have any questions, please contact Marla Kennedy at
ma...@utdem.org.
