A Four Pack of Meet-and-Greet Fundraisers and a “Giving Blitz” Campaign for Good Measure

So far this year we have thrown four great Meet-and-Greet Fundraisers for our endorsed candidates. First we held one for Vangie Williams from the 1st District on September 1st in Colonial Beach. We’ve already reported about this event in an article titled “A Sparkling Event for Vangie Williams” posted to our website on September 3rd. You can read that article at https://lgbtvadem.org/2018/09/a-sparkling-event-for-vangie-williams/. You can still give to Vangie through our link at https://secure.actblue.com/donate/cbcookout.

We are excited to report that we have had several other fundraisers including one for Carter Turner, candidate for the 8th House of Delegates seat, in Roanoke on October 12th, one for Abigail Spanberger, candidate for the 7th Congressional District, on October 17th, and one for Donald McEachin, Congressman from the 4th Congressional District, on October 20th. We are excited to say that we have raised over $15,000 so far for these great candidates, but we are also still accepting donations at our links. All three events were magical evenings.

Our event for Carter was held at the lovely home of Peter Volosin and Malcom Quigley in Roanoke. We had a number of excited supporters that came from as far away as Caroline County to support Carter in his attempt to not only win the seat, but take back control of the House of Delegates. State Senator John Edwards and a number of local politicians joined us for the event. Carter discussed the importance of fixing I-81 and drove home the value of working for the people of the district to bring change that will impact their every day lives. Carter will make a great addition to the House of Delegates so we hope that you will support him. You can still donate by going to https://secure.actblue.com/donate/lgbthd08.

On Wednesday, October 17th, a group of approximately 75 enthusiastic supporters gathered at the home of Brian Boyce to support Abigail Spanberger in her bid to defeat Dave Brat (R) to win the 7th District Congressional seat. We couldn’t have been more pleased to join Brian in the beautiful setting of his “new” home. The early 20th century architecture, flowing rooms, elegant décor, and beautiful gardens were a great venue for the event. We also were pleased to welcome Susan Swecker, Chairwoman of the Democratic Party of Virginia, Delegate Dawn Adams (also a Host Committee member), State Senator Jennifer McClellan, and State Senator Adam Ebbin, as they motivated us and spoke about Abigail and her bid to represent all the people of the 7th District. You can still give to support Abigail at http://bit.ly/Oct17LGBTDemsRSVP.

Later the same week on Saturday, October 20th, we joined again at Brian’s home for a fundraiser for Congressman Donald McEachin. Although the Congressman was unable to join us, he sent us great energy and thanks. He was well represented though by Delegate Dawn Adams (also a Host Committee member), Delegate Debra Rodman, Delegate Schuyler Van Valkenburg, and Delegate Danica Roem. Each spoke about how even though Congressman McEachin had left the state legislature and was serving in Congress he was a huge support to them, and provided guidance and knowledge as they transitioned to their freshman year in the House of Delegates. Just as Congressman McEachin gave them guidance, he has always done the same to the Board and members of the LGBT Democrats of Virginia. He was one of our biggest supporters when we formed as a caucus back in 2009 and he continues to be a steadfast ally to our organization and all LGBT citizens of the Commonwealth. We were so excited that his campaign manager, Connor Kish, could also join us and speak to us about the Congressman and the campaign. If you were unable to attend, no worries, you can still give to Congressman McEachin’s re-election campaign at http://donaldmceachin.ngpvanhost.com/form/352696232981104384.

We aren’t done though! We would like to start a series of “Giving Blitz” campaigns, with Anthony Flaccavento in the 9th and Jennifer Lewis in the 6th. We were unable to put together a Meet-and-Greet fundraiser for either, but that doesn’t mean we can’t ask for donations to support their campaigns. If you would like to give to Anthony, please go to https://secure.ngpvan.com/ED_J941lkkOf9K7aC3boYQ2. If you would like to give to Jennifer, please go to https://secure.actblue.com/donate/lewisblitz.

Thanks so much for your support!