National Board

Published on May, 05 2012

The WILPF US Board meets every other month, and the Steering Committee meets in alternating months. Board meetings are usually via teleconference and are open to all WILPF members; pre-register to receive call-in information and agenda in advance of meeting by writing to secretary@wilpfus.org.

Board Meeting Schedule for 2024

With a new 2024 Board, the regular Board meeting will continue to recur every other month.

WILPF US members are welcome to attend Board meetings and are hereby notified that the meetings in 2024 are currently and usually will be at 10 am PT, 11 am MT, noon CT, and 1 pm ET – on the fourth Saturday of alternate months – namely January 27, March 23, May 25, July 27, September 28, November 23, and – in 2025 – January 25.

Please contact the Secretary (see above) to obtain additional meeting information.

Possible Special Board Meetings

The Board occasionally has additional special meetings to address pressing or accumulated business (as well as Board gatherings, for board retreats).

The Bylaws stipulate that —

Any Board meeting ... must be preceded by notification to all Board members at least sixty days in advance of the meeting. Failing such notice, the meeting may not make policy decisions. In addition, WILPF US members shall be notified in advance of all meetings by the means specified in WILPF US organizational policy

In addition to the schedule on this webpage, please see the WILPF eNews — especially the Updates section — for announcements of any such additional and special board meetings.

Special April Board Meeting

The Board will have a special board meeting on Saturday, April 27, to consider the 2024 budget proposal and address other business, as needed.

The meeting will occur at the usual board meeting times: 10 am PT, 11 am MT, noon CT, and 1 pm ET. WILPF US members who wish to attend the meeting should, please, pre-register to receive the meeting link and agenda in advance of the meeting by writing to secretary@wilpfus.org.

Board Minutes

Board minutes are usually posted following board approval at the subsequent regular meeting.

Click here for a list of board minutes

Opportunities for National-Level Involvement and Leadership Development

Are you an activist who wants to shape and develop WILPF at the national level? Spread your leadership wings! WILPF US members can become active at the national level by applying for membership in ad hoc committees and Board committees. Contact the Secretary for additional information on specific committees or committees that work in your areas of interest: secretary@wilpfus.org.

In addition to that option, experienced and interested WILPF US members are invited to seek a leadership position by applying for the national Board. Elections take place annually, for about a third of the board positions — generally, in the fall. You can apply and run for one of the open board positions.

We seek candidates who can develop respectful working relationships with sister board members and are ready to actively participate in WILPF US deliberations on policy, budget, and other issues. We especially encourage candidates with the special qualities of passion, clear sightedness, and other leadership abilities.

Between the regular elections, the Board sometimes makes appointments or takes other actions to address unfilled board positions. The Board may consider appointments to fill these positions, to serve to the end of the current board term (up to one-year). Contact the Secretary for additional information on currently vacant positions: secretary@wilpfus.org.

Hear from past and present Board members about what they like best about being on the Board

Current Board of Directors
Members, Brief Biographies, and Contact Information

President: Darien De Lu (Sacramento, CA)
Term ends: January 2025
conjoin [at] sonic.net

Darien draws support and strength from her "activist home" in WILPF, where she has been active for over 30 years. Outside of WILPF work, Darien uses leisure time to sing and write political and labor songs, for gardening and being in nature, and in other peace and justice organizing, including as a Latin America solidarity activist. She speaks multiple languages and has traveled extensively in Latin America, North Africa and West Africa, the Middle East, many parts of Asia, and all of Europe. She considers herself fortunate to have over forty years of participation in—and education from—many of the political movements that have often found innovative expression in California, such as nonviolent direct action, feminist process, ecological activism, and the ending of nuclear weapons and power. She agrees, to paraphrase Noam Chomsky, "since privilege confers responsibility, the question always arises as to how [one is] using that responsibility."

Treasurer: Barbara Nielsen(San Francisco, CA)
Term ends: January 2026
treasurer [at] wilpfus.org

WILPF US:

Joined c. 1971; Life Member (2005)
Member, Berkeley Branch (now East Bay) and active participant(1971 – c. 1989)
Member, San Francisco Branch since 2005 and active participant
Branch, Regional service focus until 2008; when added National, International, UN focus, service & work
National Board Elected Service: Treasurer & Finance Committee Chair; Nominating Committee Chair; Program Committee Chair, (2008 – 2019)
Bylaws Committee Service: Member (2007 – Current)
National Program Committee, National Issues Committees Service/Participation: (2008 – Current)

US Triennial Congress Service/Participation:

2008 Iowa 30th Congress: Co-Facilitator/Presenter, Bylaws Workshops and seated on National Board as member-elected Treasurer
2014 Detroit 32nd Congress: Parliamentarian; Member: Congress Rules Committee, Congress Committee, Congress Program Committee, Resolutions Committee
2017 Chicago 33rd Congress: Parliamentarian; Member: Resolutions Committee, Congress Rules Committee; Facilitator/Co-Presenter, four workshops
2021 Virtual 34th Congress: Parliamentarian; Member: Congress Rules Committee, Congress Resolutions Committee; Participant, Workshop on Member Development

International Triennial Congress Service/Participation:

2015 Centennial International Congress, The Hague, Netherlands: Voting Member. USA Section Delegation
2018 International Congress, Accra, Ghana: Chair, Congress Resolutions Commit-tee; Alternate Member, USA Section Delegation
2022 International Virtual Congress: Participant in USA contributions to Int’l Program; voting member, US Delegation; invited service as Facilitator, Congress Resolutions Plenary

WILPF at United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) Annual Meeting:

Attended CSW and supported WILPF US CSW programs.

Secretary: Ginger Harris (Boston, MA)
Term ends: January 2027
secretary [at] wilpfus.org

I grew up in a progressive family in a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri. (My mother was a WILPF member before I was.) After a BA degree in political science and MA in Urban Planning and working several planning jobs, I married, had a daughter and became ac-tive in WILPF at the branch level: monthly board meetings, annual membership meetings, In-ternational Women’s Day vigils, Tax Day leafletting, Women in Black vigils, Hiroshima-Nagasaki memorials, anti-war-toy leafletting, tabling at public events, anti-Vietnam-war ral-lies & marches.

During one or two years in late 1980s I chaired our monthly branch meetings. While working 28 years for the St. Louis transit agency and subsequently caring for my aging parents for another 10 years until they passed away, I volunteered on behalf of other issues: non-fossil-fuel modes of transportation, replacing coal, oil and nuclear power with less polluting sources, supporting community and urban gardening, and using non-hackable voting systems, in addition to WILPF-sponsored activities.

After moving to the Boston area in 2015 to be closer to our two grandchildren, my mate and I participated in a few rallies in downtown Boston and met some WILPFers. They drew me into their Saturday morning lobby letter and business meetings via Zoom, which I cherish. Most recently I accepted nomination to the position of Secretary to the board of WILPF US.

Program Committee Chair: George Friday (North Carolina)
Term ends: January 2026
programchair-friday [at] wilpfus.org

George grew up in Lincolnton and Gastonia, NC in the 60s. She holds degrees in Political Science, Economics, and African American Studies from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill where she graduated in 1982.

George works with grassroots organizations to provide leadership and skills training ranging from strategic planning, organizing, fundraising, marketing and community building with particular focus on communication, oppression, change and the role of ”privilege” in transforming power dynamics to create broad, deep, economic and social justice change.

She is currently Coordinator for NC Peace Action and United for Peace and Justice, and consultant to various non-profit groups.

Development Committee Co-Chair: Martha Collins (Milwaukee, WI)
Term ends: January 2024
devchair [at] wilpfus.org

Martha Collins is an advocate, human rights activist and experienced nonprofit leader who has dedicated her career to working for social justice organizations that focus on building power within marginalized communities. For over two decades, Martha has had the opportunity to collaborate and strategically develop several coalitions to help create public policy groundwork for advancing social and economic agendas. She has extensive fund development and nonprofit advocacy experience.

In 2015, Martha led a successful coalition to prevent the Wisconsin Family Medical Leave Act from being repealed by the state legislature. During 2016, she led the largest “Fight for $15” rally in Wisconsin and developed and implemented a community-focused program which trained and employed over 200 Milwaukee residents as Peacemaker Ambassadors. In 2017, Martha served as a Commissioner on the Equal Rights Commission with the City of Milwaukee and introduced a resolution for the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).

Martha actively serves on the United Nations Association Women Affinity planning committee working towards build awareness of the Cities for CEDAW campaign. Since joining WILPF, she has actively served in various leadership positions with the local WILPF Milwaukee Branch and on the WILPF US Advancing Human Rights and Women, Money & Democracy issue committees.

Marybeth Gardam
Development Committee Co-Chair: Marybeth Riley Gardam (Iowa City, IA)
Term ends: January 2024
devchair [at] wilpfus.org

Marybeth grew up in New Jersey and pursued journalism and advertising as a career goal. She changed course to work in non-profit public relations and marketing. And during the 80s she moved to Macon Georgia and started working to secure funding and help organizers provide services to migrant farmworkers. She served as director of the Peace and Justice Center of Central Georgia. All the while, she was involved on the periphery of human rights and civil rights in what was still a pretty segregated part of Georgia.

In 2000 her husband's job took the family to Iowa where she imagined a departure from activism and took some writing courses at the University of Iowa. But after 9/11 she found herself drawn back in to peace and justice work. In 2003 she found WILPF and served first as Co-President of the Des Moines branch; and then, in 2014, she joined the WILPF US Board as Development Chair. Also, she currently chairs the Women, Money & Democracy Issue Committee.

Having served in commercial marketing, non-profit marketing, and organizing at the community, WILPF branch and WILPF issue committee level, she brings a multi-faceted approach to fundraising and looks forward to working with her Development Co-Chair, Martha Collins, to create a culture of philanthropy among the whole Board and all members of WILPF. Fundraising at WILPF is everyone's job.

She lives in Iowa City, Iowa, with her husband of 40+ years, just two miles from her daughter and grandson.

Personnel Committee Chair: Cee'Cee' Anderson (Atlanta, GA)
Term ends: January 2027
personnelchair [at] wilpfus.org

Cee’ Cee’ Anderson is a Licensed Ordained Minister, a Women’s Cancer Researcher, and Health Care Consultant/Provider in the Medical Field. She serves as Personnel Committee Chair for WILPF. As a Healthcare Manager/Administrator with Public Health DHA/DHM/DPH degrees, she is knowledgable about connections among human health, the environment and climate. She is a former RN and Special Ed Teacher.

She is currently a Mediator for Clayton/Fulton Counties and is a founder of the Finding Alternatives For Safety and Treatment of Juveniles. She is a Life Member of Peoples Agenda, Ga WAND, NAACP, SCLC and USCAN among others.

As HR and Quality Control Administrator, she has experience in getting clients and employees on the right path for several businesses. She has worked diligently with the Pardon & Parole Board to advocate justice for Inmates across the State of Georgia. Several Inmates have been pardoned and released due to her advocacy.

She has made strides through Georgia WAND to combat the environmental injustices at the Savannah River where Augusta, Georgia & South Carolina connect. She’s traveled across the State of Georgia and nationally to share her passion as well as her expertise in Public Health, advocating for radiological environmental monitoring as well as strengthening radiation standards so that the standards reflect the differences in vulnerability to radiation in women’s and children’s bodies.

Lastly she’s advocating for mortgage companies to save homes from foreclosure.

Nominating Committee Chair: Ellen Schwartz (Sacramento, CA)
Term ends: January 2025
nominatingchair [at] wilpfus.org

When she joined WILPF in 1969, Ellen was the youngest member of the San Jose branch. Now she is nearly the oldest member of the Sacramento branch, and can’t figure out how that happened.

In between, she has served as branch chair, branch newsletter editor, chair of WILPF US Policy Committee, WILPF Western Region newsletter editor, occasional Triennial Congress newsletter editor, Congress Registrar, chair of Congress Committee, WILPF US Treasurer for ½ a term (finishing an unfinished term), WILPF US Program Chair (finishing another ½ term) and starting in 2024, chair of the WILPF US Nominating Committee (finish-ing another unfinished term!).

Ellen was born in Chicago, and while in college was involved with the cam-pus chapter of the Congress of Racial Equality. Her greatest admiration was for an artist named Sophie Wessel, who produced silkscreen designs for protest signs. Ellen would think, “Look, Sophie makes these signs, everybody worships her, and she doesn’t have to actually go to the pro-tests, never mind the planning meetings. That’s what I want to be when I grow up.” It hasn’t worked out that way, but it is still her ambition.

Eileen Kurksoski
Membership Development Committee Chair: Eileen Kurkoski (Boston, MA)
Term ends: January 2025
membershipchair [at] wilpfus.org

My activism started through the Social Action (S.A.) committee in my Unitarian Universalist (U.U.) society. A group of us brought food and prepared it for dozens of woman, some unhoused, all struggling to survive in Boston. During this time, Nancy Wrenn, a WILPF member also in the S.A. group, began educational meetings on the unjust prison system in Massachusetts. I admired and liked Nancy.

When she invited me to a weekend WILPF Boston retreat in 2015, I immediately joined WILPF because I met so many other women like her- friendly, knowledgeable, and passionate about matters I cared about. I immediately volunteered for the job as secretary.

Two years later, when the WILPF national office was moving from Boston to DesMoines, Jan Corderman asked me to apply for the WILPF US secretary position. Since the end of my three year term I’ve been involved in a number of WILPF administrative and issue committees. My other WILPF activities include attending the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women four times and, in 2023, being a representative in our WILPF U.S. Local to Global program. In 2024 I worked on the program committee for the WILPF 35th Triennial Congress: Water on the Frontiers for Peace.

Locally, I am co-chair of my Boston WILPF branch, and am active on anti-nukes, drones & war, and environmental issues.

At-Large Board Member: Phillip Cole (Brisbane, CA)
Term ends: January 2025
at-largebdmemberPhillip [at] wilpfus.org

My name is Phillip Cole, and I am a member of the San Francisco Branch, and an active member of the East Bay-San Francisco branches joint policy planning committee; I am looking forward to my three-year term of service to our membership (2022 – 2024) as an At-Large Member of the USA Section National Board.

I was born into a family of social activists. My first memories of activism include watching the adults in the house preparing to be arrested for integrating a lunch counter, and their discussion of who would be guardians of the kids left behind. We move to San Francisco when I was still a child, and when I was age 10, my mother took us kids to what turned out to have been the largest anti-war march that had ever taken place in the city, where I had a huge wake-up call , as I saw my schoolteacher there, playing a guitar while standing on the back of a flatbed truck in the march. I then realized that everyone has a part to play in stopping war.

When I was a child, every single day, my mother would sing the Negro National Anthem, “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” As I join our USA Section Board, I say to all of our WILPF members, everywhere, together let us Lift Every Voice!

At-Large Board Member: Tina Shelton (Philadelphia, PA)
Term ends: January 2027
at-largeBdMemberTina [at] wilpfus.org

Tina Deshotels Shelton grew up in Louisiana and has lived in Texas, Oregon, and in Pennsylvania, where she learned about WILPF. She works in the mental health field, and is an advocate for better services. In addition to WILPF, she is active in her com-munity, with Girl Scouts, and local community activism.
She and her husband have three children, and they have been involved in Scouts, band, and other activities. She enjoys gardening, teaching rational thinking skills, and helping people make connections.

Finding WILPF after 9/11, she has been active in the local branch along with many passionate and interesting women and men. As most WILPFers, she is grateful for the leadership, mentorship, and progress of those who worked before. She continues to have a leadership role in the Greater Philadelphia Branch, including coordinating with coalitions and bringing the strengths of WILPF into these areas.

She is passionate about living peaceably, anti-militarism, anti-racism, immigration concerns, sustainability, creating a nuclear-free world and building relationships to sustain us and move us toward our goals. She is excited about the transformative movements we see all around, especially those that are women-led and build on our feminist strength.

To contact the National Board, please contact president@wilpfus.org

Other Governance Positions in WILPF US

In addition to the Board members, WILPF US has several important “Internationals” who serve important governance positions. These positions are all established by the WILPF International Constitution and By-Laws, and their terms of office are about three years, with starting and ending dates related to the WILPF International Congresses

The WILPF US Liaison to the Americas Region Representative (generally referred to as “WILPF US Liaison”): Jane “Cricket” Doyle (Santa Cruz, CA)
IntlLiaison@wilpfus.org cricket.wilpf@gmail.com

The WILPF US Member of the International Advisory Board: Dee Murphy
AdvisoryBdRep@wilpf.us.org

The WILPF US Member of the International Advisory Board, Alternate: Julie Kabukanyi (Brockton, MA)
AdvisoryBdRep@wilpf.us.org

National Board Minutes

2024

National Board Minutes - September 28, 2024

National Board Minutes - Special Meeting, April 27, 2024

National Board Minutes - January 27, 2024

2023

National Board Minutes - November 18, 2023

National Board Minutes - October 14, 2023

National Board Minutes - September 30, 2023

National Board Minutes - July 22, 2023