Report to Annual Meeting, October 7, 2023
Those of us working with FCNCL appreciate the continued spiritual guidance and support provided by Piedmont Friends Fellowship, North Carolina Fellowship of Friends, and by other Quakers throughout the state. We have 22 people actively engaged in our committee work, and our committee memberships are posted at fcncl.org. We have more than 150 people signed up to receive our Action Alerts. This year we have continued to educate ourselves and our participants about the NC General Assembly (NCGA) and to advocate for legislation that promotes Quaker values.
1. Our First FCNCL Lobby Day in Raleigh was a huge success.
At least 35 of us attended FCNCL Lobby Day on March 22, including six participants from Carolina Friends School, to advocate for Medicaid Expansion. Participants were prepared by a virtual Lobby Visit Workshop and a presentation by Sen. Sydney Batch on the importance of Medicaid Expansion and next steps. Our group met our General Assembly Representatives. Collectively we met with at least nine (9) Senators and seventeen (17) Representatives.
In addition to supporting Medicaid Expansion we were able to build and strengthen relationships with our legislators and inform them about our concerns as Quakers. For many in our group it was a first time to visit the legislators and learn how easy it is at the state level. We came away invigorated knowing that even legislators who already agree with us on an issue appreciate hearing from us. Several told us how they support our other priorities as well and some had looked at our web site in preparation for our visit.
As a final reward we were in the House gallery to watch the House approve the bill as revised by the Senate; we were also recognized by the House as a group attending.
2, 2022 Annual Meeting. Our (virtual) meeting was held on Oct 8, 2022 with 32 people attending. Key components of the meeting included:
- Presentation and discussion by Rob Schofield of NC Policy Watch on the topic of how FCNCL can act to help protect NC democracy.
- Approval of the FCNCL Policy Priorities for the 2023-24 Legislative sessions.
- A presentation from Pam Schwingl of the Policy Committee on how we translate policy priorities into action.
- Approval of recommendations from the Nominating Committee of officers and committees for 2023.
This year’s Annual General Committee Meeting will be held Saturday, October 7. Please be sure your Monthly Meeting has named up to three representatives to represent your Meeting. We hope this meeting will include both in person and hybrid options for attending. The theme will be announced later.
3. Antiracism Work. We continue to actively pursue our antiracism commitment through connections with key BIPOC members of the General Assembly and other advocacy groups, support for legislation that supports BIPOC communities, and supporting BIPOC owned vendors for catering and printing needs.
4. Invitation to join us.
- Extend your voice beyond voting. Build a relationship with your legislators, and participate in our action alerts and fact sheets to let your legislators know what is important to you.
- Check that your Monthly Meeting has up to three representatives on the General Committee who can communicate regularly with your Monthly Meeting.
- Share your expertise by volunteering on a committee or for assistance for a specific task. We are all volunteers.
- Contribute financially to our expenses by donating personally and/or through your Monthly Meeting. Since we have no office expenses or paid staff, our expenses are limited but we do have printing, internet accounts, and lobby day expenses.
- Stay connected with us:
- Email: info@fcncl.org)
- Website: www.fcncl.org
- Two Facebook pages: Friends of FCNCL for Advocacy and FCNCL