volunteering – Dear Liza

Twilight Tombstones

Dear Liza,

The Friends of Lone Fir is a non-profit, volunteer group who help maintain and educate folks about our wonderful local pioneer cemetery. They put on tours of the Women in Lone Fir, symbolism and architecture of tombstones, and headstone cleaning workshops.

And this year, the Friends hosted a five Saturday series of tours called Twilight Tombstones. On each Saturday in October and one in November, guides lead four groups of twenty through the cemetery, telling stories of the folks buried there.

It was sold out in minutes!

This year, Auntie Bridgett volunteered with me. She greeted folks at the gate and steered them in the right direction.

My job was “tour support”, which means I made sure our group, lead by Peregrine and Paul, stayed together. I also answered extra questions from the folks in the group. It was a delightful, educational, exhausting evening.

The fun began even before the tours started! A friendly group of Zombie Carolers came by after serenading the Dead, and shared their songbook with us. Their songs are not for the squeamish, featuring such delightfully gruesome tunes as “Rudolph the Undead Reindeer” and “Good King Wenceslas Tastes Great.”

Love,

Grandma Judy

Vote Forward

Dear Liza,

Last month I started working with a group called Vote Forward. These folks collect the addresses of people who usually don’t vote, and send these addresses to volunteers like me, and we write them a letter. The letter doesn’t tell anyone who to vote for. It just tells them why we think voting is important.

My letter said, “I vote in every election because decisions are made by those who show up. Voting is a way for all of us to show up and have our voices heard.” Simple as that. Auntie Bridgett helped by addressing all the envelopes.

And Saturday was the day we mailed them out! It is part of a HUGE Get Out the Vote Project called The Big Send. This way, people get their letters in time to make a plan to vote. They can even vote early or by mail, if it is allowed where they live.

I have been very encouraged by the news from around the country, showing so many people voting early, or waiting in long lines to have their voices heard. I love that groups like “Pizzas to the Polls” are making sure folks in those long lines get something to eat.

With just two weeks to go before the election, it feels like our whole country is crossing its fingers, waiting for an outcome that will mean a change of direction, a turn towards healing, for all of us.

Love,

Grandma Judy