Join Us on November 11 to Launch the WILPF Membership Drive: One by One, We Grow!

By Shilpa Pandey 
Membership Development Chair
Jan Corderman
Treasurer    

November 2020

As a recent headline in Foreign Policy puts it: “Women Make Peace Stick.”

That’s why we want to work together to invite others to connect with the international peace movement and be part of our organization to hear the latest insights into feminist peacemaking.

Join us on Wednesday, Nov 11, 5 pm Pacific / 8 pm Eastern to launch the WILPF Membership Drive!

Let’s work together to make a difference.  We’ll let others know why it’s important to be part of a diverse network of women (and men) in 45 countries around the world—expanding our network for women’s rights and sustainable peace.  

Each month until our National WILPF Congress scheduled for August of 2021, we’ll share our challenges and successes and get new ideas about where to find prospective members and how best to share our experiences as a WILPF member rising up for peace, environmental, racial, and social justice issues.    

We’re excited that two pros have agreed to join in coalition with us and to share ideas and tips.  

Deborah Bunka is the Iowa Farmers Union Membership & Fundraising Director. Relocating to Ames, Iowa, from Canada in 1996, she wrote a monthly column on food history and availability of seasonal local foods for the Ames Tribune, while also writing a regular food column for the regional Facets magazine. For five years, Deborah ran a farmers market, opening Iowa’s first year-round, indoor market and launching a CSA. Coinciding with her lifelong interest in social, political, and economic justice, she travelled throughout Iowa for nine months, talking with people about clean water issues a citizen-lobbyist. She also served as co-director of KHOI, a community radio station. These experiences have made Deborah a good fit for her work as Membership & Fundraising Director with the Iowa Farmers Union where she has led the organization to triple its membership over five years.

Francis Engler is the California Political Director for UNITE HERE Local 11. Francis’s commitment to helping others overcome barriers and break out of poverty was born out of his personal experiences and continues to drive him in his role as an Organizing and Political Director for Local 11 and his work on the Board of the Hospitality Training Academy.

Having been raised in a family of dairy farmers in rural Wisconsin, Francis’s mother instilled in her children the importance of hard work, a fact that would characterize her daily life when she was widowed and left with three young sons to care for. As an adolescent, Francis found inspiration, opportunity, and support from church, school, and activist organizations. He earned a scholarship and graduated from Yale University, where he first encountered and joined the hotel and food service worker union UNITE HERE.

Knowing the value of support and encouragement, Francis has made it his life’s work to help those in poverty build a path to self-sufficiency and family-sustaining wages through union employment in LA’s vast hospitality industry. As part of UNITE HERE Local 11, Francis has organized tens of thousands of low-wage workers in hotels, casinos and food service and created an inspiring network of worker-activists in politics.

Join this Zoom Meeting on your laptop or other device for a visual connection here:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85465710302?pwd=TFpuZitNdUdiOW5NUGNjNWRMdENwdz09
Meeting ID: 854 6571 0302
Passcode: 681806
Or join by phone: 312-626-6799 (you’ll be asked for the meeting ID and Passcode).  

Amplify our message and activism in our Communities.
One by One, We Grow!!