Summer Events 2006

High School Girls Leadership Event with the Mystics

  "Is America Ready for a Woman President?"  

On July 20th, WUFPAC held its annual summer event at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.  Our panel of experts discussed whether 2008 would be the year of the woman president. Our moderator was Sonia Ruseler, former CNN anchor (far left), and our panel included the co-founder of the White House Project and the Council of Women World Leaders, Laura Liswood (left), the Director of Communications for the Democratic National Committee, Karen Finney (center) and the editor and political analyst for the Cook Political Report, Jennifer Duffy (right).  We were also joined by Representative Marsha Blackburn (far right). According to Laura Liswood, we learned: "There is no such thing as a political glass ceiling; it's really just a thick layer of men".  Attendees enjoyed discussions about women in leadership, the political process, gender stereotypes and women's involvement in U.S. politics.  

April Event 2006

Book Party with Eleanor Clift and Barb Palmer!
On April 23^rd, WUFPAC hosted its Spring Garden Party which featured notable author, Eleanor Clift, and one of WUFPAC’s own, Barb Palmer. Both women spoke about their books which address women being elected to public office. Palmer, WUFPAC's Political Director, first spoke about her book, Breaking the Political Glass Ceiling, which looks into the history of women who have run for Congressional seats in the past thirty years. She spoke about their findings, including which districts in the country are most and least likely to elect a woman, while at the same time trying to explain why this might be. Clift’s book, Madam President, focuses on the future of America’s first woman president.  At the event Clift discussed possible candidates and the likelihood of them actually being elected. This event also featured four other VIP guests, including Maryland State Delegate Anne Kaiser, Maryland Congressional Candidate Mishonda Baldwin, Maryland State Senate Candidate Tara Andrews and Lubna Al-Kazi, a woman who was instrumental in attaining the women’s right to vote in Kuwait. This elegant garden party was held at the beautiful home of Susannah Shakow, President of WUFPAC and was a huge success thanks to all of our honored guests and dedicated members!

February Events 2006

Celinda Lake Book Signing

On February 16^th, we were thrilled to have Celinda Lake, a co-author of What Women Really Want, join us for this exciting night! Sonoma Wine Bar on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC hosted a crowded room of men and women including young Congressman Tim Ryan and WUFPAC candidate running for Baltimore State Senate, Tara Andrews. Celinda Lake, one of the foremost Democratic Pollsters in the Unites States, spoke about how women are not as partisan as the rest of the population, and in fact they are much more “purple” than they are red or blue. “Women are the most powerful force reshaping the future of America” and it is exactly this point that is “reshaping the state of our nation much more than the two sided politics of left and right” Lake says. The evening was host to many great conversations and discussions about women in politics, why single women don’t vote and the truth about many statistics. A fabulous time was had by all and to top off the evening, Celinda Lake spoke individually with many of our members and guests and then signed their books!

November Event 2005

Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz Fundraiser in Washington

Thanks to everyone who attended the Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz event on November 8th at the Women's National Democratic Club in Washington DC and made it such a success! Besides receiving many generous donations towards her upcoming campaign, the event was a great opportunity for everyone to chat with the Congresswoman and hear about what she has been doing in her first year in Congress.  The Congresswoman, who is 38, represents Florida's 20th District.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz greets American 
University Washington Semester student 

July Events 2005

Left: Speaker Erin Dowd, three from left, and speaker & WUFPAC Steering Committee Member Jessica Grounds, far right, pose at a table where they have been swapping stories about their political careers.  Right: A crowd begins to gather at the start of "So You Want to Work in Politics?"

Annual Washington DC Intern Event : So You Want to Work in Politics?  WUFPAC hosted its annual intern event on July 14, 2005 with the career path question that increasingly more young women find themselves asking each other: "So You Want to Work in Politics?"  At The Hawk 'n' Dove's ''Club'', remarkable young women who have each taken interesting paths in Washington, including Hill Staffers, PAC Directors, Campaign Workers, and Lobbyists mingled with interns and shared their experience with their political career. Discussion was held in a round-robin format that allowed for the sharing of the nitty-gritty details involved in climbing the various political ladders. Speakers included:  Erin Dowd, Office of Congressman Mac Thornberry(R), Anne Fabry, Brown Rudnick Berlack Israels, Jessica Grounds, Stones Phones, Jen Hoelzer, Office of Congressman Sanford Bishop(D), Dana Jones, Emily's List, Amy Kardell, Kerry Campaign, Ruth Ravitz Smith, Brown Rudnick Berlack Israels, and Melissa Roy, America Coming Together.  The event was a great success with over 70 interns in attendance and 8 speakers!

A Cambodian Silks Event: Shop to Stop Human Trafficking and Increase Women's Global Political Participation 

The special guest for the evening was the honorable Mu Sochua, Cambodian political and human rights leader. Mu Sochua is the former Minister for Women's and Veterans Affairs for the Government of Cambodia and a leader in the struggle to combat human trafficking for forced labor and prostitution. 

Attendees had the opportunity to buy beautiful Cambodia silk scarves, purses and home accessories while supporting human trafficking, the spread of HIV/AIDS and supporting young women political candidates.

May Events 2005

Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee with 
WUFPAC Board Member Erin O'Malley

For more fabulous quotes, click here.

January Events 2005

Lisa Marie Cheney, Winsome Sears, Kim Gandy, and Christy Agner share their wisdom

WUFPAC held our first candidate training event on January 14th with the Women's Legal Alliance of Georgetown University Law School.  The event, which was covered live by CSPAN,  included hands-on political and candidate training; a town hall style panel; and a key note address by newly elected Representative Stephanie Herseth.  
The event began with two hours of candidate training directed by Emily's List and WUFPAC's Professor Barb Palmer, from American University.  This practical advice for candidates was followed by a panel discussion with Kim Gandy, President of NOW; Christy Agner, head of the DNC's Women's Vote Center; and two former WUFPAC candidates, Lisa Marie Cheney and Winsome Sears, both Republican candidates for Congress in 2004 running in Virginia.  The event concluded with a rousing speech by Representative Stephanie Herseth, who urged women to find the courage to run.
The highlight of the event was an early question to the audience by Professor Palmer: she asked how many people in the large audience, which consisted mainly of young women, were considering running for office themselves.  Almost every hand in the room went up.

December Events 2004
Circle Boutique Holiday Event
WUFPAC held a cocktail reception at trendy Circle Boutique in Dupont Circle on December 16th.  WUFPAC members had a chance to get to know each other better, and to shop for great gifts.  Look for more social events like this one to be held by WUFPAC in the near future.

Young Women's Stories: Muslim Women in Post-September 11th America 
On December 8th, WUFPAC hosted the second event of the new series, "Young Women's Stories" at the Cosmos Club in Washington, D.C.  There were four panelists: special guest Ambassador Diana Lady Dougan, Anita Sharma, Director, Conflict Prevention Project, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Durriya Badani,  Farida Azizi, Senior Advisor for Afghanistan at the Vital Voices Global Partnership, and Alyse Nelson Bloom, (moderator) Co-Founder and Program Director, Vital Voices Global Partnership.  These women enlightened WUFPAC members and guests with their work towards women's issues, and the struggles they faced along the way.  Following remarks by the panelists, the event closed with questions and discussion.  The fantastic atmosphere and astonishing stories these women told made this event a great success! 

October Events 2004
Young Women's Stories: Foster Care System with Amy Vasquez On October 19th, Candidate for 4th district New Jersey, Amy Vasquez spoke at a luncheon. Vasquez is a tireless supporter of children, dedicating her professional life to helping special education and foster care children. Vasquez began her career as a public school teacher, then went to law school because she wanted to make a difference in children's lives after witnessing the very troubling issues facing the children in her classroom. She has been a Court Appointed Special Advocate for the past seven years, representing foster children. At the luncheon, Vasquez spoke about the issues facing children in today's foster care system and how that encouraged her to run for office. 

September Events 2004
Tea and Networking Event  
On September 18th, WUFPAC held a tea and networking event at the Four Seasons Hotel in Georgetown, Washington, DC.   At each table, a lively discussion on women and politics was lead by our special guests  Jane Alonso of Senator Collins' office and Amy Woodman from Senator Lincoln's office at table number 1, Katherine Brown from Senator Clinton's office at table number 3, Dr. Michelle Clink from Senator Snowe's office at table number 2, and a political photographer at table number 4.  Proceeds from the event go directly to our WUFPAC candidates.

Fundraiser for Silvia Delamar 
WUFPAC held a fundraiser in Washington, DC for Silvia Delamar on September 9th, on the rooftop at Local 16 in Adams Morgan. Delamar, a Democrat, is running in Georgia's 8th district.  If she wins, at age 26 she will be the youngest woman ever elected to congress.

August Events 2004
Rising Stars Event at the Republican Convention
WUFPAC once again teamed up with United Leaders to throw a Rising Stars event at the Republican Convention in New York City.  The event was held at Proof in Gramercy Park, named one of the 50 hottest spots in the city by New York Magazine.  The event featured the nation's rising political stars from the Republican party.   For more about United Leaders, see: www.unitedleaders.org.

July Events 2004
Rising Stars Event at Democratic Convention
On July 28th, WUFPAC cosponsored a fantastic event in Boston with the nonprofit group United Leaders.  The Rising Stars event showcased rising political stars from around the country.  Two WUFPAC candidates, Samara Barend and Silvia Delamar, were featured at the event which drew a crowd of 700 young professionals.  For more about United Leaders, see: www.unitedleaders.org.

Lisa Marie Cheney Fundraiser on July 25th
WUFPAC held a fundraiser for our Republican candidate, Lisa Marie Cheney on July 25th at the home of Steering Committee member Libby Stennes.  The fundraising brunch in Alexandria, Virginia was a success, and the crowd felt energized that this talented candidate will prevail against incumbent Jim Moran in November.

Representative Stephanie Herseth speaking on July 20, 2004         

 Susannah Shakow, WUFPAC President, with 
                      Steering Committee members Maureen Ward 
                                                                        and Alyse Nelson Bloom

Rep Stephanie Herseth helps to Bring Young Women to Politics!
Newly elected under 40 Congresswoman, Stephanie Herseth, spoke to a packed house on July 20th at WUFPAC's Bringing Young Women to Politics event.  The event celebrated Rep. Herseth's win, and introduced Washington DC interns to professional women from the area.  Rep. Herseth urged the crowd to "be proactive in identifying the young women we think could run and tell them they should."  She also said, to great applause: "if a single, 33 year old woman can win in South Dakota, we are going to see a lot more young women in Congress soon!". 

February/March Events 2004
 
Candidate Samara Barend (Right), with Steering Committee Member, Erin Ross

WUFPAC throws fundraisers for two young Democrats: Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Samara Barend
WUFPAC and YDemsCan held a successful fundraiser for Debbie Wasserman Schultz on February 24th at Local 16 in DC. Wasserman Schultz, who is running in Florida’s 20th District (which is Broward County and Tallahassee), was recently endorsed by Nancy Pelosi and by Emily’s List.

On March 24th WUFPAC cohosted an event at Politiki on Capitol Hill for Samara Barend, who is considering a run for New York’s 29th District. The district is geographically one of the larger districts in the state, covering much of the state’s southern border with Pennsylvania, but also reaches up to the Rochester area. Over 75 people attended the event, which was co-sponsored by a variety of groups, including alums from the University of Pennsylvania. Erin Ross, one of our Steering Committee members, served as MC for evening.

Congresswomen, Candidates and Eleanor Clift make WUFPAC Congressional Reception a Great Success!!!
On Wednesday February 4th WUFPAC hosted a Congressional Reception honoring the young women in Congress. It was standing room only in Rayburn, as the crowd of 150 listened to Congresswomen, Pundits and WUFPAC candidates. Representatives Linda Sanchez (D-CA), Melissa Hart (R-PA), and Lois Capps (D-CA) spoke about the importance of young women in Congress. Eleanor Clift, of the McLaughlin group and Newsweek, spoke about women?s suffrage and how far we have come. Candidates Lisa Marie Cheney (R-VA)and Emily Mathews (R-TX) gave energizing speeches about what it is like running for Congress as a woman under 40. Stephanie Sanchez, who ran for Congress twice in Connecticut as a woman under 40, and who now runs College Democrats of America, closed the program with a call for young women to make politics more a part of their lives.

Amy Smith, Erin Ross, Susannah Shakow, Sophia Nelson and Barbara Palmer
at WUFPAC's Congressional Reception

Successful Event for Emily Mathews
On Thursday February 5th WUFPAC held a fundraiser for candidate Emily Mathews, who is running for Congress in Texas's 1st District. Despite sleet and freezing rain, there was a good crowd for the event, and WUFPAC raised nearly $2000 for the candidate.

2003 Events
WUFPAC Event at Aura Science In a departure from our usual political events, WUFPAC held a great party at Aura Science, an upscale makeup and skincare store in Pentagon City. The November 11th event raised money for the Young Women's Project, a nonprofit that shares WUFPAC's goal of turning more young women into leaders. Despite a huge crowd, there was plenty of makeup and hors devours to go around. Women networked while getting their eyes done. The night was such a success, WUFPAC will try to do more of this type of event in the future.

Reception for Lisa Quigley WUFPAC and YDemsCan welcomed Lisa Quigley to the race for Congress at an event on October 30th at Top-of-the-Hill. Lisa, who was a former staffer for Rep.Cal Dooley of the 20th District in California, is running for his seat as a Democrat. If she wins, she will be the only under 40 mother in Congress - she has two children under the age of five.

WUFPAC Board Members Lara Flint, Susannah Shakow and Barb Palmer with Candidate Lisa Quigley.

Congresswoman Linda Sanchez (D-CA) Speaks to a Packed House
Rep. Sanchez spoke to WUFPAC members at a cocktail party on September 23.  The event was a great success, even though we had to change locations hours before! Sanchez, who at 34 is the youngest woman in Congress (and the only woman under 40!) spoke to a full house at Howrey Simon law firm about what her first 9 months in Congress have been like. She discussed Title IX; the obstacles that deter young women from running for office, and how having younger women in Congress leads to more women achieving leadership roles. She also told several stories about what it is like to be young, female, and Latina in the sea of old, white men that is Congress. For those of you who missed the event, look under Rep. Sanchez?s Woman of the Month profile for a transcript of her speech.

Issue Forum #1: Balancing Work and Family
WUFPAC is introducing a new series of events called Issue Forums. These will be informal gatherings where we will meet to discuss a topic with the help of a moderator. At our first Issue Forum, we discussed how to balance work and family. Our discussion was guided by Joan Williams, the Director of the Gender, Work and Family Project at American University. She has written extensively on this subject (see Unbending Gender Why Family and Work Conflict and What to Do About It (Oxford, 2000)), and she gave us her perspective on the problem, and her ideas for how society can better address these concerns.

2002 Events
Amy Walter at the Spy Lounge
Amy Walter, the U.S. House Editor of the Cook Political Report, speaks to our members at the Spy Lounge in Adams Morgan on predictions for the 2002 elections. The Washington Post says about Amy: “few people watch congressional races and redistricting as closely as Amy Walter.”

Summer Member Cocktail Party
Old and new WUFPAC members meet for drinks, live music, and the latest information on WUFPAC candidates at our summer cocktail party.

Election Law Summit
WUFPAC’s President and Treasurer speak at the first annual Election Law Summit at the Renaissance Hotel on the impact of the new campaign finance laws on political action committees. They also speak about the importance of WUFPAC in supporting young women across the country.

Women in the 2002 Campaign Event
WUFPAC’s President speaks at the Women in the 2002 Campaign Event at American University on the need for a political action committee focused on young women, and how college students can become involved in WUFPAC.

2001 Highlights
Rep. Melissa Hart Reception
Newly elected Representative Melissa Hart (R-PA) speaks to WUFPAC members at a cocktail reception. WUFPAC supported Rep. Hart in her 2000 campaign for the House.

2000 Highlights
Cokie Roberts Speaks on Women and Politics

Political commentator Cokie Roberts speaks to WUFPAC members about the history of women in politics and in society. WUFPAC members get the chance to talk to Cokie in an intimate setting.

Madam’s Organ Salsa Party
WUFPAC members dance, mingle, and hear updates on the 2000 election at this trendy Adams Morgan bar.