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OFFICERS
Mary Windsor Saggus
President
Janie Dollar First Vice President
Rhonda Hethcox Second Vice President
Kay Harlow Secretary
Elene Stovall Treasurer
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UPCOMING EVENTS
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GBRW February Luncheon Monday, April 8th 12:00 p.m. B&A Warehouse
Birmingham, AL
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Roaring 20's Gala
Hosted by GBRW, RWOS, RWOTuscaloosa, RWOTrussville
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1920's Costume Party featuring a Silent Auction and Antique Car Display!
Saturday, April 27th from 6:00-10:00pm.
Hollywood Pool and Spa
1441 Montgomery Highway
Vestavia Hills, 35216
Tickets are $35 per person and include one alcoholic drink, dinner and dancing
RSVP by Tuesday, April23rd
For more information contact Vicki Bailey at vccbailey@aol.com
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Purchase an ad to support the GBRW Newsletter
Your advertisement will appear in this space
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Newsletter April
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Our meeting this month is on Monday, April 8th. We are glad to welcome our Alabama State Senator Cam Ward.
Lunch is $20.00 with reservation and $25.00 without. We plan to accept credit cards at the door.
For reservations contact Elene Stovall at stovalle@charter.net and please feel free to invite your friends.
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Senator Cam Ward
State Senator Cam Ward is an attorney originally from Milton, Florida. He became involved in public service at a young age and has always strived to be a public official that listens to the people he represents and address their problems with their community.
Senator Ward attended Troy University where he majored in International Relations. He served two terms as President of the Student Government Association during his time there. While at Troy, Senator Ward met his wife Julie. They have been married since 1994 and have a daughter, Riley.
Following undergrad Senator Ward attended Cumberland Law School where he excelled. In 2011, he was named Cumberland Outstanding Alumnus of the Year.
Cam served two terms in the Alabama House of Representatives before being elected to the Alabama Senate. Senator Cam Ward is one of our state's most active and influential leaders, he has repeatedly been recognized by conservative groups for his public service.
Senator Ward and his family live in Alabaster and are actively involved in their community.
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Letter from GBRW President
Mary Windsor Saggus |
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Once again my dad's wise words run through my head. In these contentious times the memory of his soft, strong voice soothes me and gives me hope. He was once asked, as an agronomist, what he thought about the Sierra Club. He answered, "I like the Sierra Club. They do good work and keep the rest of us in check, but God help us if they ever get total control."
The lesson I took from that answer is that we need extremes in life. The extremes encourage us to think and keep us in check, as long as we pay attention.
In philosophy, especially that of Aristotle, the golden mean is the desirable middle between two extremes, one of excess and the other of deficiency. For example, courage, a virtue, if taken to excess would manifest as recklessness and if deficient as cowardice.
In most circles I am known as a conservative. In some circles I am thought of as a bit too liberal. In reality, I believe in the golden mean. I expect to find the truth somewhere between the two extremes. The trick is to pay attention; you must really listen to both sides. And, quoting Dad again, you can't listen when your mouth is moving.
In this time of extremes, citizens call in to talk shows and speak hatefully to elected officials with opposing views. Newspaper columnists call names and hurl insults if they don't like the views of a citizen. And, I read recently that some of the insulted citizens threaten the health and well-being of those journalists. I don't see much of anything being accomplished by either side, just a lot of yelling and sniping. Do you think the loudest person wins, just because they are loudest? I don't.
Shhh! Be quiet. Listen. Please. You might learn something.
Sincerely,
Mary Windsor
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Lawmakers back for 2nd half of session
Lawmakers return to work today to start the second half of the 2013 Regular Session, with several key decisions left to be made on the state's budgets and legislation involving guns and Medicaid.
The first half of the regular session saw the Republican-controlled House and Senate moving several pieces of legislation through, though not without controversy. A bill that initially offered school districts the ability to apply for waivers from laws was rewritten in a conference committee to include tax credits for families of students in schools defined as failing to use in private schools or non-failing public institutions.
The moves sparked bitter disputes between Democrats and Republicans; Democrats have vowed to slow the legislative process down, while Senate Republicans have threatened to force cloture on virtually every petition.
Regardless of the speed of the process, lawmakers likely will be facing these issues over the next few weeks.
* Budgets: The Senate passed a $1.7 billion General Fund budget March 12 that includes funding for 100 additional correctional officers and $5 million to pay back $437 million borrowed from the Alabama Trust Fund. The budget does not include pay raises for state employees. Legislative leaders have said they may seek more money for the state's court systems.
Pay raises are more likely - but not certain - for education employees. Gov. Robert Bentley's proposed Education Trust Fund budget included a 2.5 percent pay raise for teachers, but legislative leaders backed away from that number at the midway point of the session, saying they were trying to be "conservative" in drawing up the budgets and avoiding proration.
* Medicaid: Based on the recommendations of the Alabama Medicaid Advisory Commission, Bentley has thrown his support behind legislation that would divide the state into as many as eight regions, each would be run by a regional care network. The networks would have the option of contracting with a managed care company. Supporters of the measure said they hope the new model will ensure better outcomes for the state's 940,000 Medicaid recipients. At a public hearing last month, providers did not dismiss the proposal outright, but asked Medicaid officials to use caution in their approaches, particularly in dealing with transportation issues faced by many of those enrolled in the program. * Guns: An omnibus gun bill that would allow employees to bring firearms to company property and permit visible, holstered firearms in public was scheduled to come up for a vote in the Senate today, but may face an uphill struggle. The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Scott Beason, R-Gardendale, also would strike language that now forbids the carrying of a pistol in a vehicle without a permit and that requires a sheriff to issue or renew a pistol permit within 30 days, while providing an appeals process for denied applications. The Business Council of Alabama, which had stated its opposition to similar "guns-in-parking-lots" legislation, said Monday it would oppose Beason's bill, calling it a violation of property rights. The Alabama Sheriffs' Association is also strongly opposed to the bill, calling it "a total destruction of public safety." * Abortion: A bill sponsored by Rep. Mary Sue McClurkin, R-Indian Springs, that would require abortion clinics to face strict building codes and have doctors with admitting privileges at local hospitals may come before the Senate this week. Supporters said the measure is designed to ensure safety at clinics; opponents said the real purpose of the legislation is to close the state's five clinics currently providing abortion services.
Article written by Brian Lyman of the Montgomery Advertiser
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