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In this Issue:
- President's Message
- 2024 Recipient of the Prestigious Thalheimer Award
- Special General Membership Meeting | July 23
- Reclaim Our Vote Campaign
- Highlights From Our Juneteenth Event
- Uncovering Fairfax County's Racial Covenants on Property Deeds
- Boys to Men Symposium
- 2024 Freedom Fund Gala
- Member Spotlight
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Maintain Your Membership
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A Message From Our President | |
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Members, Supporters, and Friends of the Branch,
WE DID IT AGAIN!!!! Fairfax County NAACP is tapped to receive the prestigious 2024 Dr. Ross Thalheimer Award. The Thalheimer Award is the NAACP's top award given to local branches and units for outstanding achievements. The honors have been given annually since 1944 from a grant from Dr. Ross Thalheimer, a Johns Hopkins University instructor in philosophy and a University of Washington instructor in philosophy and sociology.
While we are excited to see our advocacy being honored and recognized, we could not have done this without the hard work, dedication, and leadership of our late President and lifelong Civil Rights and Social Justice advocate Michelle Leete. Throughout Michelle's time in the Fairfax County NAACP, she demonstrated firsthand what it took to lead and provide much-needed change in our community and in the county. She took on the responsibility of carrying the load of being the voice of the branch. She met with grieving parents and rallied for the rights of students.
Receiving this award is indeed bittersweet for myself as the current President of the Fairfax County NAACP, as well as for the executive members and the entire membership. We will continue to honor the work of Michelle and carry her vision of what a fair and equitable Fairfax County should look like. We will continue to carry the torch of advocating for a “One Fairfax” as Michelle did and we will continue to strive for justice, equality, and the betterment of our community. Our commitment to these values remains unwavering, and we will ensure that Michelle's legacy lives on through our actions and advocacy.
Below, you can read about some of the great work our branch has accomplished leading up to the receipt of this award.
We invite you to donate to the Fairfax County NAACP, helping us continue our crucial work in advocating for civil rights and social justice in our community. Thank you for standing with us in the fight for equality and justice!
Together In Service,
Niki Zimmerman
Proud President, Fairfax County NAACP
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For the second time in six years, the Fairfax County NAACP has won the NAACP’s prestigious Thalheimer Award, recognizing it as the most engaged and activist local branch of its size in the nation!!
“This is a unique honor and one that we do not take lightly,” said Fairfax NAACP President Niki Zimmerman. “Indeed, it is a tribute to our late President Michelle Leete, who led our branch with distinction throughout 2023 and tragically died before her time at the start of the new year. We dedicate this award to her memory and pledge to continue the fight for racial equity and justice for all.”
The Thalheimer Award, named after social justice activist and university professor Ross J. Thalheimer, was established in 1944 by the foundation bearing his name. It acknowledges the stalwart advocacy of the members and leaders of the nation’s oldest and largest civil rights organization, who engage daily in the fight to end racism and create a just society. Thalheimer, a native of Baltimore, Maryland, became a renowned educator and lecturer in psychology, sociology, and philosophy, as well as a committed advocate for racial justice and world peace.
In seeking the award, the Fairfax NAACP highlighted its work in the areas of education, criminal justice reform, housing, political action, and religious affairs. The award period of May 2023 to May 2024 proved fertile for the branch. Notable highlights include:
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Education Committee: Recognized for spearheading advocacy to change Fairfax County Public Schools’ use of debunked methods of teaching reading to young children and replace them with a phonics-based curriculum, ensuring that every child has a fair shake at this cornerstone of civic life.
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Criminal Justice Committee: Led the push to hold the Fairfax County Police Department accountable for the tragic and unnecessary killing of Timothy Johnson at Tysons Corner Shopping Mall and to begin developing policies to protect citizens from unnecessary police use of force.
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Housing Committee: Focused on lobbying the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors for additional funds to enhance the county’s stock of affordable housing. They also advocated for more services for the unhoused, conducting a survey of more than sixty homeless citizens on their needs during the extreme summer heat and sharing those findings with county personnel.
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Political Action Committee: Led a “Souls to the Polls” drive in 2023 and created a website listing all nominees up for election in the county to ensure that voters were not confused during an election season that saw near-total redistricting of its national and statewide elected representatives’ regions.
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Religious Affairs Committee: Held a highly meaningful Juneteenth celebration, in conjunction with NOVA Parks, honoring the recently discovered gravesites of the formerly enslaved on the grounds of Bull Run Regional Park.
The Thalheimer Awards will be presented during the National NAACP’s Annual Convention from July 14 to July 17 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Former president Karen Campblin, who continues to serve as the branch’s 2nd Vice President and on the board of the NAACP’s Virginia State Conference as the Chair of its Environmental and Climate Justice Committee, will be on hand to accept the award. A celebration is being planned for later in the month, to be announced once the convention delegates have returned home with the Thalheimer Award proudly in hand.
The branch expresses deep appreciation to the National NAACP for this recognition, and to our members, supporters, and community partners who have steadfastly supported us. We also extend heartfelt gratitude to the committee chairs and committees, whose dedication and efforts have been instrumental in our achievements. Together, we remain dedicated to upholding our mission of ensuring the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights for all individuals, and to eradicating race-based discrimination.
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General Membership Meeting | |
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Join Us for a Special Guest at Our Next General Membership Meeting
We invite you to our General Membership Meeting on Tuesday, July 23rd, featuring our special guest, Mr. Philip Hagen.
Mr. Hagen is the director of the Fairfax County Department of Management and Budget. Appointed in November 2022, he has been with the department since 2019, previously serving as deputy director. He holds a bachelor’s in finance from the University of Florida and a master’s in public administration from George Mason University.
Under his leadership, the DMB is responsible for coordination of the county's annual budget process, including the financial forecast; preparation of the Advertised Budget Plan; support of deliberations by the Board of Supervisors; and preparation of the Adopted Budget Plan, which exceeds $10 billion for all funds, including over $5 billion for General Fund disbursements.
Join us for an insightful session and engage with Mr. Hagen on the intricacies of managing our county's budget. This is an excellent opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of how fiscal decisions are made and how they impact our community directly.
We look forward to your participation in what promises to be an enlightening and informative discussion.
Register Below!
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Reclaim Our Vote Campaign | |
Help us reach Black voters in Florida and Georgia!
After the events of the past couple of weeks, it's more important than ever that we get out the vote, and we could really use your help! We have launched postcarding to Georgia for the general election—and we still have plenty of addresses for Florida.
In Georgia, we are part of Team Unity Georgia, a coalition of groups working to fight voter suppression in that state. We aim to reach at l east 600,000 Black voters with our postcards, encouraging them to vote early and to use ActiVote to educate themselves about who will be on the ballot.
In Florida, we are writing to 900,000 plus Black women who are registered voters. In addition to voting for federal, state, and local offices, Floridians will be voting on six ballot initiatives, including a state constitutional amendment protecting reproductive rights.
Important reminders:
– Please hold onto the postcards that you've written until October. The mailing window for all of our general election campaigns except for Virginia is Oct. 1-15.
– All of the files that you need to postcard are included in the e-mail that you receive from Sincere after you submit an address request. This includes the addresses, the script, a sample postcard, general guidelines, and sticker templates. In addition, you can always find these files by looking up the address request in your Sincere account.
– Please write to only one campaign at a time to prevent mixing up addresses and stickers. After finishing an address list for a city or county, destroy the list, the script and any remaining printed stickers before requesting addresses from another campaign.
– You must follow our script exactly and you must handwrite the script (except for the sticker text) and address.
– Use only ROV postcards. ROV postcards must not be used for any other organization's postcard campaigns.
COMING SOON: we plan to start postcarding to Texas by July 19. In August, we'll launch Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. To see current plans for all of our postcard campaigns, go here, and keep checking Sincere for new postcard campaigns.
We hope you'll continue writing with us throughout the summer and into the fall. We have a lot of voters to reach, which is why we're starting our campaigns so early.
Additional resources can be found on our Volunteer Dashboard. Recordings of past webinars can be found on our YouTube channel. And our Annual Report is here.
For more information on this initiative, please follow the link below..
THE CENTER FOR COMMON GROUND
The Center for Common Ground of Virginia is a 501(c)3 organization. Since late 2017, our nonpartisan Reclaim Our Vote Campaign has reached millions of voters of color in Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, and Virginia. For the 2020 election including the primaries, the General Election, and the January 5 runoff, Reclaim Our Vote reached out to 14 million voters. We distributed 9.4 million postcard addresses, sent 2.9 million text messages, and made 1.7 million phone calls.
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Thank you to everyone who joined us for the Third Annual Bull Run Juneteenth Commemoration! Your presence made this event truly special as we honored the largest pre-Civil War emancipation and celebrated the lives of the enslaved and their descendants.
A BIG thanks to our Religious Affairs Co-chairs, Eliza Selander, and John and Pam Dister, who spearheaded this event, and to our co-sponsor, NOVA Parks. We also thank Bishop Brett Fuller for his inspirational words and all other participants. The Ice Cream Social, sponsored by Dominion Energy, was the perfect sweet ending to a memorable day!
We are grateful for your support and participation in making this commemoration a success. Below are some highlights from the event.
Thank you again for being a part of this meaningful celebration.
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Girl Scouts of Alfred Street Baptist Church | | |
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Karen Campblin
2nd Vice President
Fairfax NAACP
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Paul Gilbert
Executive Director
NOVA Parks
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Fairfax County's Racial Covenants History | |
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Join Dr. Krystyn Moon, History Professor at the University of Mary Washington, for an insightful discussion on racial covenants and their role in creating segregated neighborhoods in Fairfax County from the early 1900s until 1968. Dr. Moon will share her research, focusing on a subdivision in Hybla Valley and its lasting impact.
Date: August 27, 2024
Time: 7pm-8:30pm
Location: Sherwood Hall Library
First Floor Community Room
2501 Sherwood Hall Ln
Alexandria, VA 22306
*Light snacks and drinks provided*
Don’t miss this opportunity to learn about and reflect on this significant part of our local history.
Cosponsored by: Fairfax County NAACP, Nature Forward, South County Task Force, Gum Springs Historical Society & Museum, and Mount Vernon Regional Historical Society
RSVP using the QR code or follow the link below!
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Join Us for the Boys to Men Symposium!
We’re excited to announce the Boys to Men Symposium! Sponsored by Fairfax County NAACP and Dominion Energy, this special event is dedicated to helping boys navigate the journey to adulthood. If you know a young man aged 12-18, this is an opportunity you don’t want him to miss!
Date: September 28, 2024
Location: Gum Springs Community Center
8100 Fordson Rd
Alexandria, VA 22306
Time: 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Topics:
- Mental Health and Emotional Intelligence
- Substance Abuse
- Fatherhood and Fatherlessness
- Emotional Relations and Responsibilities
What’s Included:
- Breakfast, lunch, and snacks
- A Game Truck for entertainment
This symposium is designed to provide valuable insights and support, helping boys develop into responsible, emotionally intelligent men. Let’s come together to nurture and guide our future leaders!
Parents/Guardians: Please click the button below to register and fill out the consent form for your child’s participation.
Register Below!
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Save the date and mark your calendars for November 2, 2024 for our much-anticipated Fairfax County NAACP Freedom Fund Gala. It's just around the corner, and we need YOUR help to make it a success!
Join us for an unforgettable evening at the Tysons Marriott in Tysons Corner, Virginia, from 5:30 PM to 9:30 PM. This signature event is our most significant fundraiser of the year, bringing together members, friends, and supporters for an inspiring night of celebration and recognition. With your help, we're confident we can exceed our goals and make a real impact in our Fairfax County community!
For more details about this event and how you can help, follow this link. You can also reach out to our Freedom Fund Committee Chair, Evelyn Spain, on how you can play a role in making this gala a success. She can be reached at Evelynss328@yahoo.com or Freedomfund@naacp.org.
Stay tuned for ticket information coming soon, and get ready to be part of this special event!
Thank you for your continued support!
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Welcome to our newest feature, the Member Spotlight! Each month, we’ll be shining a light on one of our amazing members who embodies the spirit of our community. | |
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Mary Paden
Mary Paden has been the Fairfax NAACP Housing Committee Chair since 2019 and is also an elected member of the executive committee. The 40-member housing committee works to increase affordable housing, prevent and address homelessness, insist on fair housing, and foster equitable development.
“We focus on homelessness because more than 50% of homeless people in the County are Black whereas only 9% of the population is Black,” she said. “This points to issues with our criminal justice system and education system, as well as housing discrimination over the years.”
The NAACP committee also helps organize faith communities and neighbors to support affordable and workforce housing in their neighborhoods.
Ultimately, Paden said she wants to influence the county’s development policy to avoid gentrification and displacement of people living in lower rent areas and instead promote development that will benefit them.
A current member of the County Affordable Housing Advisory Council and the Fairfax Healthy Communities Network, Paden has received awards from the NAACP and the Greater Washington Coalition for Smarter Growth. Paden also represented Fairfax NAACP on the Regional Fair Housing Advisory Committee of the Metro DC Council of Governments.
She is a freelance editor and former journalist with an MS from the University of Michigan in Natural Resources Conservation and Environmental Communication and a BA in Journalism from the University of Detroit.
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A friendly reminder to those who pay annual membership dues to belong to the NAACP:
We rely on those dues payments to help us meet our financial obligations, both at the local, state, and national level. Your contributions and engagement are important to us. Please take a moment to check your membership card and see if it’s time to make your dues contribution.
Payment is simple. The following link will bring you to our Fairfax County NAACP web site, where you can update your membership information and then pay via PayPal. Please also consider making a donation when you remit your dues payment.
We very much appreciate your ongoing support and look forward to engaging with you.
For questions about your membership dues, please contact our Branch Secretary Mike O'Brien at secretary@fairfaxnaacp.org.
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Have you joined the movement?
Your Support of Fairfax County NAACP makes a direct and positive impact in our community!
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Fairfax NAACP Executive Committee | | | | |
