Thank You Message from Pat Hudson,
Vice Chair for Membership & Outreach, 2006-2007

Thank you Henrico Democrats for your support during my term on the HCDC Executive Board. It has been challenging at times and always rewarding to work with so many of you.

Vice Chair of Outreach pursuant to duties set forth in the HCDC bylaws included two important tools for Outreach: the HCDC Website (www.henricodemocrats.com) and the monthly Newletter.

Membership duties were divided between the Vice Chair for Elections who works directly with the Magisterial Chairs to maintain membership contacts and those by this Vice Chair who reaches out to county democrats on a committee, personal and continuing basis.

• Early in 2006 the Vice Chair formed a small committee with Lourdes Pogue and Jane Mitchell to seek ways to reach out to Henrico County democrats.
• The website was revised and expanded in August 2007
• Jane Mitchell was Editor and Publisher of the HCDC Newsletter for many months and provided a wonderful, professional product. The newsletter was great but a time consuming task. The newsletter was officially ended in August 2007 and appropriate contents may now be found on the HCDC Website.

Projects

• With hard working committees we were able to sponsor the first project named: HCDC Celebrates…Diversity. The intent of this event was to focus on a different Henrico area of interest each year. By the second year it became HCDC Celebrates…Turning Virginia Blue, a major fund raiser for HCDC held in late April of 2007. This event will continue each spring on an annual basis.
• The other committee project was reaching out to Henrico Absentee Voters. In 2006 it was a major mailing that not only helped elect our new Democratic Senator, Jim Webb, but a way to get information out to potential new members for HCDC in the future. In 2007 DPVA put out guidelines on how to organize this project. The HCDC mailing contained information on 3 State Delegate campaigns, Henrico Sheriff campaign as well as several county and local elections. 2007 was on a smaller scale but with the Presidential election in 2008, reaching Absentee Voters should again be a major project.