About the League

League of Women Voters^®
of San Luis Obispo County

What is our mission? How are we structured? What is our history? Read our newsletter The VOTER for current League activities and information.

Our Mission. Membership. Officers And Board of Directors 2010-2011. Our History. Other Leagues.

Our Mission and Roles

The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan political organization encouraging the informed and active participation of citizens in government. It influences public policy through education and advocacy. We never support or oppose any political party or candidate.
The League of Women Voters has two separate and distinct roles.

Voters Service/Citizen Education: We present unbiased nonpartisan information about elections, the voting process, and issues.

Action/Advocacy: We are nonpartisan, but, after study, we use our positions to advocate for or against particular policies in the public interest.

To conduct our voter service and citizen education activities, we use funds from the League of Women Voters of California Education Fund, which is a 501(c)(3) corporation, a nonprofit educational organization. The League of Women Voters, a membership organization, conducts action and advocacy and is a nonprofit 501(c)(4) corporation.
Our Vision, Beliefs, and Intentions guide our activities.

A Look At Our Membership

The San Luis Obispo County League has 98 members. Our membership consists of 77% women and 23% men.
Our members are distributed throughout the county; north and south, east and west, incorporated and unincorporated. The city of San Luis Obispo contributes 31% of membership. The north county coastal area contributes about 41%. The south county coastal area about 19%. The balance comes from Atascadero, Santa Margarita and Templeton.

Officers And Board of Directors 2010-2011

LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY
OFFICERS:
Co-Presidents: Emily Penfield and Sharon Whitney
First Vice President: Ann Havlik, Planning & Land Use
Second Vice President: Vera Wallen, Voter Service
Treasurer: Maggie Higgins
Secretary: Colleen Ehrenberg
DIRECTORS:
Elinor Kogan, Member Services
Pati Dale, Communications/Voter
Cindy Marie Absey, Social Policy
Donna Damon, Observer Corps
OFF BOARD COMMITTEE CHAIRS:
Budget: Glenn Silloway
Nominations: Margarite Bader-chair

Marilee Hyman

Alice Yamada

LWVC Management Training Advisor, Beverly King
Advisers:
Carey Marsh, webmaster
Galen Ricard, outreach

History of the League of Women Voters

Our county League was established in 1962. The League has a strong history of activism and citizen education. We pushed for unified school districts in the 1960's, led the fight to prevent the cementing over of San Luis Obispo creek in the 1970's; pushed for the construction of a juvenile hall; conducted workshops on off-shore drilling, land use and emergency planning; honored adult community activists through our Rhodes Honorees program (1998-2006); honored youth volunteers who contributed their time and efforts to make their communities a better place through the "SLO Action Heroes" program (2001-2007).
On an ongoing basis we publish "Know Your County: A Guide to San Luis Obispo County Government",and inform voters through "Pro/Con" forums and a SmartVoter.com website.

Other League Organizations

League of Women Voters of California
League of Women Voters of the United States.

See other Leagues in California and other state Leagues and local League websites.

Comments, suggestions, questions? Contact our webmaster. Last revised: December 8, 2011 13:20 PST.