A MESSAGE TO THE DPLC
FROM VAL HOYLE

June 3, 2007

Due to the need to spend more time with my family and an increased work load at my job, I have decided to step down from the position of Chairperson of the DPLC. I was elected to be Chairperson of the DPLC in December of 2004 and with the help of a lot of committed and hard working Democrats, we helped make this organization more effective at getting more Democrats elected in Lane County and made it a more welcoming organization for new people.

Over the past 2-1/2 years the DPLC has:

1. Expanded our membership and mailing list 1,500%.
2. Broadened the spectrum of interest groups that were represented on the executive committee and in our organization.
3. Put together a platform that represented our core values and interests as opposed to having an issue based platform. The DPO and other counties used our platform process as a template for their platform convention.
4. Helped to keep every Lane County Democratic legislator and statewide elected official in office and helped to flip two of the four seats needed to turn the Oregon House from Republican to Democratic majority.
5. Moved into a larger office where we could have a stronger volunteer effort and have a place to build a stronger community for our local Democrats.
6. Had the most successful auction in the history of the organization.
7. Changed our meeting format so that we could have time to go over both important organizational business and discuss issues important to our community in the newly developed community forum part of the Central Committee meeting.
8. Reached out to many different parts of Lane County, rural, urban and suburban and built a stronger team of active Democrats in every House District.
9. Most importantly, we got Democrats elected, we made new friends and we had a lot of fun doing it.

There are still many things that need to be done for us to grow our organization in preparation for 2008 and beyond but we have a solid foundation to build on and a fantastic group of people ready to do the work necessary take us where we need to go.

There can be no complacency, we have to continue to fight hard, fight fair and fight back and that is why I have decided to step down. We need to have someone at the head of this organization who has the time to lead and work with our current DPLC members to bring in new people onto the DPLC team. The election for Chairperson will be held on July 19th and I encourage all Precinct Committee People to come and vote and I invite the rest of you to come to be a part of the proceedings and welcome the new Chairperson once they are elected.

I would like to thank all of the people who supported me through this 2-1/2 years and I look forward to continuing to work with the new leadership. I will always be grateful that you allowed me to be a part of this great organization and want to thank you from the bottom of my heart.

All the best,
Val Hoyle