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Don’t Miss the  PA NOW Convention!  Deadlines Approaching

We are three weeks away from the PA NOW Convention that will be held at the Nittany Lion Inn on the Penn State University Campus.   The convention will be held Friday, December 4 to Sunday, December 5. There are some deadlines rapidly approaching:

  • Childcare – Sunday, November 15, 2009 – email panow@panow.org or call us at 814-280-8571 by Sunday Nov. 15 if you need childcare.
  • Accommodation Requests for People with Disabilities – Sunday, November 15, 2009 - email panow@panow.org or call us at 814-280-8571 by Sunday Nov. 15 if you need accommodations in order to attend
  •  Hotel Reservations – Tuesday, November 17, 2009 - To make your reservations call the hotel at 1-800-233-7505 and use reference number PANL09A for Pennsylvania NOW.  FYI, the hotel is ADA accessible.
  • PAC Breakfast Registration deadline, Thursday, November 19, 2009, click here to make a reservation.
  • Online Convention Registration – Deadline Monday, November 23, 2009. You can also download your registration form and mail it in.  You may also register for Friday and Saturday on-site.  Registration for NOW members is $0-$75.  Student registration is $35.  Non-member registration is $95.  Students and non-members can request a free one-year membership as part of their registration fee.

Below is a summary of the weekend's agenda, or you can click here for a PDF of the Convention Agenda::

  • Friday evening starts off from 4-6 pm with a State NOW Board meeting and will be followed by an informal gathering in our PA NOW Suite.
  • Saturday includes two featured speakers, seven workshops, the election of our seven-member Executive Committee for the next two years,  and a vote on a proposed by-laws amendment (see the fall PNT for the text of the proposed by-laws change)

Our Featured Speakers on Saturday are:

  • Latifa Lyles – Deputy Director, Women’s Bureau, US Department of Labor and former National NOW Vice-President – Membership
  • Detective Deirdri Fishel of the State College Police’s Domestic Violence Unit. She has been nationally recognized for her development of the Victim Centered Intensive Care Management program in Centre County.  We will also be honoring her with a Woman of Courage award.

The workshops are being presented by members and other activists from throughout the state.  The titles of the workshops are listed below, and you can click here for a complete listing with descriptions of the convention workshops:

  • Velvet Glove, Iron Fist  - A look at Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault through the legal and criminal justice system. 
  • Women, Emergency Contraception, and Health Care: The Need for Reform
  • Excellent Public Education for Every Child
  • Winning Justice for Women on Both Sides of Long-Term Care
  • The Future of Mental Health Recovery as a Feminist Issue
  • Addressing Violence Against Women on Campus (This workshop is sponsored by the PSU Commission for Women)
  • Feminist Action in the Past and Future: A Personal Journey

 Saturday evening we will have our entertainment.  Ellen Slingerland, a local harpist, will provide the music and there will be a cash bar.

On Sunday morning we will hold our PAC fundraiser brunch.  This requires a separate reservation; cost for this is a minimum of $50.00/person.  Representative Joe Sestak will be the featured speaker.  Also Lois Herr, who is running against Joe Pitts (the Republican Congressman who co-authored the notorious Stupak-Pitts amendment) will also be attending and will give a short speech about her race.  Other current and formerly-endorsed PA NOW PAC and NOW PAC candidates and elected officials have been invited and will be introduced if they attend.