Weekly Newsletter from the MCDP!
2 views
Skip to first unread message
John Helge
Jun 14, 2026, 1:58:26 PMJun 14
to Manist...@googlegroups.com
Manistee County Democrats!
This week rural Democrats from around the state of Michigan will be gathering at the UAW Black Lake Conference Center for the 2026 Rural Summit. We will be attending sessions focused on helping us improve how we organize, message, and work to elect Democrats
up and down the ballot. I have been fortunate to attend the three prior Rural Summits and have learned important tools and resources to help right here in Manistee County. If you are planning to attend in person, please be sure to find me and say hello!
If you are not able to attend in person, you can use this link to subscribe to a podcast that will update you on the highlights of what is happening at the summit each day.
Work is progressing on the "BLUE TSUNAMI" float for the National Forest Festival parade on Saturday, July 4th.
We want to invite you, your family, friends, and neighbors to join with your fellow proud Democrats in this parade. We have always been cheered on and well received by the crowds along the route due to our messages of positive change and hope for a better
future for all people We will stage for the parade along Division Street starting at 9am on July 4th. We will have room on the float for riders as well as several golf carts on a first come/first served basis for those who may not want to walk the entire
parade route. Make plans now to join us!
The ORANGE CRUSH PARTY will also be in full swing during the July 4 parade.
The River Street office will be open, and we will be offering Orange Crush pop to parade watchers. We hope they will all catch the symbolism of our desire to support candidates who we will elect to go to Washington and Lansing to CRUSH the ORANGE MAGA cult
followers. We still need you to help us by donating a 12-pack of Orange Crush pop. Please drop it off at the 319 River Street office or if you want to make a donation you can use this link:
Donations - Manistee County Democrats or
mail a check to ORANGE CRUSH, PO Box 65, Manistee, MI 49660.
The 23rd Annual Don and Marge Jennings Awards Dinner and Fundraiser will be here before you know it. Items are now being collected for the Silent Auction,
which is a significant part of the event, and crucial to raising the funds that will allow us to support our candidates. Your help is needed in making sure
we have a successful silent auction by donating, and, if you will be attending, bidding high and often! While all donations are appreciated, in looking at past auctions, the items which garnered the most bids, or the largest amount over minimum bid fell
into a few categories: consumables (food items, gift certificates to local restaurants),
recreation (golf, football tickets, a charter fishing trip - do we have any generous charter boat captains in our midst?), gardening (yard art, gift certificates to nurseries), and
art identifiable as specific to the Manistee County area (beaches, local landmarks, architecture). Of course, all donations will be welcomed!
Please contact Diane Van Aken to arrange pickup of any donations, or to discuss ideas you may have for a donation. She can be reached at
dkv...@aol.com or
phone/text 517-243-0368.
Nominations for the 2026 Don and Marge Jennings Award are now open. If you know someone who has worked tirelessly to improve social justice for all residents in Manistee County, please
nominate them for this prestigious award. You can access the nomination form using this link:
Nominations will close on July 11, 2026. The award dinner will be held on Saturday, August 15, 2026, at the Manistee National Golf Resort.
A message from Dawn Bense, Manistee County Democratic Party Vice Chairperson:
We want to invite your friends, co-workers, or people who are interested in learning about canvassing (aka door knocking) for the upcoming elections. The next meeting is at
6:15 PM on June 25th via Zoom or Google Play. If you are interested, please email me at
grandma....@gmail.com and I will send out a link when it gets closer. We are going to hear from Paul Angel, who is the organizer for the entire northern half of Michigan.
He will talk about how to get some door-knocking done. Please download MiniVAN on your phones (available on
Google Play or the
Apple Store) and have it ready so he can walk you through what we are doing to get organized and ready to elect Dems up and down the ballot. All of our candidates need our help here in Manistee County to get the word out and talk about issues to our neighbors
in the county. Rebecca Amidon, Angel Coon, Mitch Distin, and Mark Yonkman are counting on us!! I sincerely hope you all can attend.
We really appreciate the donations that have rolled in to the GoFundMe site and the MCDP PO Box to help pay for the two billboards that will go up on US31 in Manistee from July 1 through October 31.
You will be proud to see these messages as you drive by. We have collected almost $5000 so far from over 50 donations! Here is the GoFundMe link:
https://gofund.me/c392c2c2f.
If you prefer to donate by check, you can mail it to MCDP Billboards POBox 65 Manistee, MI 49660.
We certainly hope you are finding this weekly newsletter informative and useful. Do not hesitate to contact me if you have any ideas or suggestions to improve this newsletter. We do this
to serve the residents of Manistee County and to help them make better decisions at the ballot box!
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages