Civic League Also Gears Up

In my ongoing effort to catch up on press releases which came out last week while I was working my butt off covering the Toronto International Film Festival for Press+1, I present here a release from the Guelph Civic League and their push to get more people active in this election. It's good to see the GCL back in business, and I hope they succeed. I was at the Eden Mills Writer's Festival yesterday for Ed Video Media Arts Centre and our table was next to a group getting out the vote for the Township of Guelph/Eramosa who had a 40 per cent voter tunrout last election. Of course, they also had mail-in ballots, but you know, fingers crossed.

Anyway, the press release:

GCL Gears Up for the 2010 Municipal Election - And We Need Your Help!

September 10, 2010

We are quite excited to be embarking on the next chapter in the GCL’s commitment to keeping citizens informed and working towards a local democracy that is inclusive, participatory, transparent and accountable.

We can’t thank the previous Executive Committee enough for the guidance and support that it continues to provide without hesitation.

With a new Executive Committee, relying on the experience and talents of our Members and Member Organizations will be imperative as we move forward together. Most memberships have expired and are in need of renewal. Please visit guelphcivicleague.ca to renew or sign up for the first time.

The Executive Committee has lots of new ideas for increasing citizen engagement and donations are needed at this time to ensure that our initiatives can be met. Donations are gratefully accepted on our website. They go a long way toward ensuring that we can meet our goals for the community.

If you have some time, volunteer! Those who wish to apply their energy and volunteer with the GCL may contact us at volunteer@guelphcivicleague.ca. With all of the election activity there will be plenty of opportunity to go around.

Some of our upcoming election activities include:

* Getting the voting records out for 2009 and 2010
* Asking candidates to respond to a set of questions based on the values of GCL and our Member Organizations
* Ensuring that our supporters are kept well informed as the election issues begin to percolate
* Contributing to Jan Hall's Election Radio show on 93.3 FM CFRU, Tuesday mornings 7-9 am!

Which activities would you like to be involved with? If you have other ideas for potential initiatives, please don’t hesitate to share them with us.

We are just beginning to build on the wonderful work of our predecessors. You can stay up to date with the GCL’s activities by visiting our website or Facebook page.

Together we can continue to make a positive difference in our community. We are looking forward with great anticipation to working with you all soon!