On December 1st and 2nd, 120 members of our affiliate Maine People’s Alliance (MPA) came together from across the state for their Annual Winter Retreat. The event created space for staff and leaders to reflect on their work over the past six months and to develop plans for 2013. The group was trained on a number of skills ranging from meeting facilitation to personal visits to direct action. They also had an opportunity to celebrate the significant victories MPA garnered with their impressive civic engagement efforts. And in addition to reflecting, planning, training and celebrating, members took action on the federal budget fight. It was a very busy weekend for MPA!
Leaders were central to the success of this event. They worked with staff to present issues and to facilitate activities. Participants actively engaged in evaluation and planning activities that helped set the course of their chapters and of overall campaign strategies. They were also responsible for generating hundreds of phone calls to demand that their Senators end the Bush tax cuts for the richest 2% of Americans and preserve critical programs such as Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security. Folks left the retreat equipped with new skills, strategic plans and renewed energy to continue the fight for economic and racial justice!
