 | Dear League Members,
I’m happy to say that we survived our first Bunco Party fundraiser, and we made about $1400 in the process. This is due to the help of several members, specifically Judy DeAngelis-Small, Jenn Martin, Sabrina Dion, Sue Ebersberger, Kathy Ebersberger, Hilah Mercer, Marilza Novaes-Card, and Rollin Raymond. There was help from others as well, but these are the main reasons why we were successful.
For those who weren’t able to make it, everyone who played had a lot of fun. We had great raffle prizes and good food, too, so I think everyone who attended was glad they did so. We have so many ideas for how to improve things for next time, and I hope we will have even greater help next year. To that end, we have a leadership team already in place: Judy DeAngelis-Small to again be our Bunco Master and photographer, and Sue and Grace Ebersberger to lead the non-bunco-specific parts of the fundraiser (food, raffle items, etc).
Now that the fundraiser is behind us, time to think about our upcoming meetings. Tonight (Thursday, March 9) is our monthly meeting from 5-8 pm at the Iron Oak Post in downtown Melbourne. Our speaker will be Supervisor of Elections (SOE) Tim Bobanic, to speak about issues that arose during the 2022 election and those anticipated for 2024. Our annual meeting is Saturday, April 15, to be held at Magnolia Hall in Cocoa Village, home of the Cocoa Women’s Club. At this meeting, we will discuss and vote on some bylaw changes as well as elect a new slate of leadership and discuss plans for the upcoming year. I hope you all can attend both events. We are looking for sponsors for both, especially tonight’s meeting, so please let me know if you or someone you know is able to sponsor a meeting, in whatever increment they choose. The annual meeting will be potluck, as it is an internal League meeting (no non-members will be attending) but there is still a cost for renting the space for us to meet.
Stay tuned for documentation in your email to prepare for the Annual Meeting. Info on bylaw changes and the leadership positions needs to be out to members 30 days in advance of the meeting so you can thoughtfully determine what your votes will be.
Thanks for being a member of the LWVSC and for helping out whenever you are able. This coming year looks like it will be full of fun events, great opportunities for us to help Brevard County voters and many chances to defend democracy. We need the help of each member to do these things, so thanks for all you do.
Suzanne Taylor
President
|  | | SUPERVISOR OF ELECTIONS
TO SPEAK AT LWVSC MEETING
MARCH 9 (TONIGHT) 6-8 PM
SPEAKER BEGINS AT 6:15 PM
A little about Tim Bobanic... Tim was appointed as the Brevard County Supervisor of Elections by Governor Ron DeSantis as of October 1, 2022. Tim served as the Director of Information Technology and Election Services for almost 10 years prior to his appointment. Previously, he served for 4 years as the Director of Information Technology for the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections.
Tim is a master Florida certified election professional who has overseen 28 elections throughout his career in elections. During Florida’s first statewide recount since 2000, Tim oversaw the recounting of over 284,000 ballots. Not only did Brevard complete all 4 recounts within the statutory deadline, they were also recognized as the only county of the 20 largest counties in Florida whose recount ballot totals matched perfectly with the original ballot totals.
Supervisor Bobanic is a member of the Florida Supervisors of Elections (FSE) and was selected by his peers as the District 6 Chairman and is also Vice Chairman of Administrative Rules Committee for FSE. His institutional knowledge and commitment to public service prepared him to be the Supervisor of Elections for the 10th largest voting population in the State of Florida.
He is a lifelong Floridian who attended the University of South Florida where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Management Information System. Tim is married to Dana Bobanic, and they are the proud parents of a son who is currently attending the University of South Florida.
Topics Covered During the Meeting:
Signatures and the Cure Rate from our last election
Anticipated Issues for the Next Election | | |  | |
Education Committee
Hilah Mercer, Chair | | | Education Committee Meeting
Notification of Education Committee Time Change: We will begin meeting from 6:00 – 7:00 PM beginning January 18, 2023. We will continue to meet on the 3rd Wednesday of each month. This change is being made to better accommodate members who cannot meet during the day.
February 2023
Vanessa Skipper, League member and Brevard Federation of Teachers (BFT) Vice President, was present at our January meeting and provided information regarding Brevard Public Schools current publicized student behavior issues. Vanessa then took questions for almost an hour. She later provided excerpts from the BPS policy manual that address student conduct and a copy of the Cell Phone Use Contract that students and parents are required to sign. The discussion was open-ended and informative.
Representatives of the Education Committee, Kathy Ebersberger and Hilah Mercer, presented a program on February 11th General Meeting at the Suntree Library. The presentation Critical Issues and Current Trends in Florida’s Education System included:
o Understanding School Choice in Florida – three parallel systems
o Recent legislation impacting education in Florida
o Brevard Public Schools’ new Board
o Action Plan
The guest speaker at our February 15th Education Committee Meeting at 6:00 via Zoom will be Mr. Matt Susin, Chair of the BPS School Board. Thanks to Fran Baer for making the arrangements.
The Education Committee continued our commitment to having League members at all regular and special called BPS School Board Meetings.
There were two Regular February School Board Meetings in February - Tuesday, Feb. 7, and Tuesday Feb. 21. Please plan to attend School Board Meetings when you are able. Wear your League t-shirt or observer pin if you have one. Judy DeAngelis-Smalls can assist you in ordering a t-shirt and Deb Clark can assist with observer pins. Our presence is noticed, needed, and appreciated by many.
The King Center’s Youth Theater announced that all performances of The Fannie Lou Hamer Story have been cancelled.
North and South Area Elementary Science Fairs – The Triple L Award: League, Lagoon, Learning Award is given to projects that demonstrate an understanding of the importance of a healthy Indian River Lagoon. This is a joint project of the Education and Natural Resources Committees.
North Area Fair – February 23, 2023 – Space Coast Jr./Sr. High
South Area Fair – March 9, 2023 – Central Middle School
| BREVARD SCHOOL BOARD MEETINGS
Educational School Facilities (ESF)
2700 Fran Jamieson Way
Viera, FL
Meeting schedule TBD
Most meetings start at 5:30 p.m.
Please arrive by 5:15 p.m.
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Natural Resources Committee
Susan Little & Maureen Rupe
Co-Chairs | | |
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Florida Springs Council (FSC) Wins DEP Basin Management Action Plans (BMAPs) Challenge
On February 15, 2023 the 1st District Court of Appeals ruled that Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)’s water quality restoration plans for 13 Outstanding Florida Springs (Basin Management Action Plans, or “BMAPs”) do not meet the minimum requirements under Florida statutes.
Background: In January of 2019, the FSC challenged the ineffective springs BMAPs, arguing that the plans did not meet the minimum requirements under law. They were joined by seven organizations - Rainbow River Conservation, Sierra Club, Save the Manatee Club, Our Santa Fe River, Ichetucknee Alliance, Silver Springs Alliance, and Friends of the Wekiva River - and three individuals, Jim Tatum, Tom Greenhaugh, and Paul Still.
For four years the DEP took the side of polluters in court. DEP argued that the BMAPs did not need to actually achieve water quality goals, only have a “target” for doing so, and that they did not need to assign pollution reductions to categories of non-point sources. After a seven-day hearing in 2019, an Administrative Law Judge ruled on behalf of DEP, upholding the flawed BMAPs. FSC appealed the ruling to the 1st District Court of Appeals. On 02/15/2023 the 1st DCA ruled on behalf of springs advocates, throwing out the non-compliant BMAPs and ordering DEP to draft new BMAPs that follow the law.
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| | CELEBRATING WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH!
We're joining The Rev David Bryant's African American History Class to learn about
Fannie Lou Hamer
...one of the most
important, passionate, and powerful voices
of the civil and voting rights movements.
Thursday, March 23
7-8 PM
Live via Facebook
Register on Club Express and link will be e-mailed to you.
| ANNUAL LEAGUE MEETING
Saturday, April 15
10:30 a.m.
Cocoa Women's Club
Agenda
Elect 2023-24 officers and board members
Vote on bylaws changes,
Meet new members and see old friends | The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan political organization, encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.
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