BRANCH MEETING – September 13, 2025

9:30 AM – FIRST FRIENDS CHURCH WHITTIER

What an important year for GWA-AAUW!  On September 25, 2025, we will commemorate 100 years as an AAUW branch.  With a kick-off at the September 13 Branch meeting, we have more events and activities planned, leading up to a special celebration at our April 2026 meeting.

Program – Kicking Off a 100 Year Celebration

Have we got plans?  We do, indeed!  Are we starting the year off with a bang? I’d say it’s more like a kick as we catch that equity and inclusion football and race toward the goalposts for a whopping touchdown of ideas and enthusiasm for our mission to empower women and girls.  Are we striving for gender equity?  You know it, and our programs this year will certainly reflect that. We want to engage our members, be a touchstone for growth in our community, and give our all to promote AAUW’s mission.

With that in mind, let’s get down to the first in ten of our Branch meetings for the year 2025-2026. On 9/13, the second Saturday of the month, we will begin our year with Table Talks as Pat Dudley throws out the first pass for members to catch and discuss the curious topic of Names.  This will, no doubt, prove quite interesting as we discover how a name can move us forward in our personal lives and our careers, and what we can do if it causes us to fumble.  Don’t be surprised if before we begin this discussion, we scramble the team members for maximum engagement!

The second pass will be cast by Ann Topjon, introducing us to our Section leaders who will explain the wonderful world of AAUW’s extra-curricular reading, writing, and public policy matters, all those things that allow us to run for goals that are either set for us or that we set for ourselves.  It must be the reason our sections are so popular!

Finally, for those of you who have wondered how to move from the B Team to the A Team with finer tech chops than ever before, Rebecca Ramirez will be giving a short tutorial on how to join Facebook, where you will find friends and loved ones already in the game and ready to welcome you to the team!  So-are you ready?  Let’s GO!

Claire Koehler, AAUW VP Program Director

Ann Topjon, Program Associate