Welcome to Plymouth Area Democrats. Our organization was founded in 2004, during President George W. Bush’s second run for office, by a group of locals who felt that they could not just sit by helplessly any longer. That group included people you may know: Martha Richards, the first Chair, Deb Reynolds who ran and won a seat in the NH Senate, Kate Hedberg, Veronica Barbardos, Bob Crowley who provided a space for the group, and others. Lisa Lundari, a local graphic artist, designed our logo and other materials as needed.
I arrived in 2005, new to the community and looking for like-minded friends. In no time, Martha had me engaged in the organization. If you have not come to a meeting yet, please join us. You’ll find our meetings—which are generally on the third Wednesday of the month at the Plymouth Area Senior Center—fun and informative. We start with potluck supper at 5:30 —we have a number of wonderful cooks and food lovers in the group.
After a brief business meeting and announcements, our guest speakers come on, usually at 7pm. On election years, we try to get all the Democratic candidates here, and in the past we’ve been honored to have visits from Hillary Clinton, Martin O’Malley, Colin Van Ostern, Annie Kuster, and Carol Shea-Porter. Bernie Sanders spoke at PSU, sponsored jointly by the university and PAD. And we have enjoyed accompanying Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan on Main Street walks.
On alternate years, we explore issues that affect the lives of New Hampshire residents and try to find speakers that can provide new and enlightening information on those issues. During my tenure as Chair, we have looked at NH’s tax situation, the opiod crisis, the effect of the minimum wage, the threat of Northern Pass, the effectiveness of Core Curriculum in our schools, and the condition of the rural poor.
As you can imagine, we are enormously energized right now. We are fighting back against the Republican assault on the progress the Democrats made in NH. We are providing weekly action ideas to keep the pressure on the GOP in both Concord and Washington.
We need your help. Please join our email list, our Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and Instagram. Come to a meeting soon and make yourself known. We look forward to adding your skill set to our organization.