DNCC and the Community

Convention Conversations:

Plans for the 2008 Democratic National Convention have long included a commitment to bring more people into the Convention experience than ever before. In keeping with that goal, DNCC CEO Leah D. Daughtry recently hosted a forum in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the seventh in a series of community forums to be held in the lead-up to the Convention. As excitement and interest in the 2008 Democratic National Convention continue to grow, Colorado Lieutenant Governor Barbara O’Brien and State Senator John Morse joined Daughtry to answer questions and offer information to local residents and business people interested in the historic regional opportunities presented by Denver’s hosting of the Democratic National Convention in August.

The series – “Convention Conversations: A Traveling Forum Sponsored by the DNCC” – of at least 10 community forums will provide residents in Denver, the state of Colorado and states throughout the Rocky Mountain West with opportunities for direct communication with top Convention organizers and a venue to ask questions, share ideas and find out how they can get involved. Denver played host to the inaugural event in September. Mayor John W. Hickenlooper joined Daughtry for the forum geared toward Denver residents and representatives of the areas diverse business community. Daughtry was joined by Governor Bill Ritter for a forum in Pueblo, Colo. the following month and in December by Colorado House Majority Leader Alice Madden in Boulder, Colo. In January, Daughtry traveled to Las Vegas for a forum with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and in March, she was joined by U.S. Representative Ed Perlmutter (CO-07) in Lakewood, Colo. Earlier this month, Daughtry traveled to Salt Lake City for a forum with Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker. Details on subsequent forums throughout the Rocky Mountain region will be announced in the coming months.

DNCC Service Days:

In recognition of Earth Day, and as part of an ongoing effort to give back to the community hosting the 2008 Democratic National Convention, DNCC staff recently joined Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado (VOC) and Xcel Energy for a tree planting service project in the Sunnyside neighborhood of Northwest Denver. The event marked the most recent outing in a series of “DNCC Service Days” focused on three areas of importance to the Denver-area community: youth, environmental projects and the combined issues of homelessness and hunger. More than 400 trees were planted in the project, which is part of the "Mile High Million," Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper's effort to plant more than one million trees in the Denver metropolitan area by the year 2025.

To date, “DNCC Service Days” projects have included:

• A clean-up project and goods sorting at the Boys and Girls Club of Metro Denver;
• Helping to prepare an application for $400,000 in State Primary Care funds for Clínica Tepeyac, a community-based health clinic that serves uninsured and underinsured families;
• A painting and crafts project with Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Howard Dean for students at Manual High School;
• Preparing and serving a special holiday breakfast with Colorado’s First Lady Jeannie Ritter for homeless and runaway youth at Urban Peak;
• Sorting canned goods with Atlanta Mayor and Convention Co-Chair Shirley Franklin at The Crossing, a Denver Rescue Mission facility;
• Working with a Montessori school in Five Points on an indoor activity with children and a playground area clean-up;
• Facilitating a soccer skills camp with local middle school students and Colorado Rapids players; and
• Spreading mulch around trees in City Park as part of a project focused on environmentalism;