Our Annual Charity Date Auction is tonight! This year’s auction will feature an all-star line up of auctionees and prizes. Come to bid on the Metro Area’s sexiest bachelors and bachelorettes to support a worthy cause! AYD Members will receive a free bid card. Non-members can join in for only $5. Arrive by 7pm to be entered into the first drawing of the night- $75 to Fireworks Pizza!

We also have some fabulous celebrity MC’s this evening, including Tina Montgomery, Miss Virginia International 2008 and Richard Fowler, host of the Richard Fowler Show on We Act Radio, 1480 AM!

Want a sneak peek? Check out the auctionee bios and pictures here.

Auction items include power coffees with  Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair and Florida Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz , former Virginia Congressman Tom Perriello,  and former DNC Chair Terry McAuliffe; two tickets to the Arlington Democrats 2012 Jefferson-Jackson Dinner featuring Anne Holton, the former First Lady of Virginia and wife of our next U.S. Senator Tim Kaine. More info about available about these auction items and our Raffle Prizes are available here.

AYD will donate half the event proceeds to help Doorways for Women and Families.  Much more than a charity, Doorways’ mission is to help build a community where everyone can live free from domestic violence in safe and stable housing.

Donate to Doorways, Get free raffle tickets!
We will also be collecting donations for Doorways at the auction. All donated items from the wish list must be new, unopened, and full size (not travel sized). Anyone who brings one or more of the requested donation items to the Charity Date Auction will receive two free raffle tickets!

Requested Donation Items (all items must be new and unopened)
- Water bottles
- Saran wrap
- Aluminum foil
- Tupperware
- Baby monitors

Or if you are interested in donating other items, you can check out Doorways wish list.

Learn About and Support our Date Auction Charity

Interested in learning more about Doorways for Women and Families? Join AYD members on a tour of Doorways on either May 17th or June 14th from 6:30 to 7:30 PM. Email Nicole at community@arlingtonyoungdems.org to sign up, and specify in your email which date you would like to attend. To find out more about the tour please visit: http://www.doorwaysva.org/donate/events/brighterfuturestours/

AYD will also be doing a food drive for Doorways on Saturday June 9. Email community@arlingtonyoungdems.org to sign up.

Reception Benefiting Delegate Patrick Hope with Special Guest House Minority Leader David Toscano
Thursday, May 17
6:30-8:30 p.m.
at the home of Bettna Callaway
1305 N. Nelson St. Arlington, VA 22201
$25 – special AYD donation level
RSVP: 703-486-1010
More information can be found here.

Save The Date:
June 2: Democratic Party of Virginia Convention at George Mason University in Fairfax
June 8: Arlington Democrats’ Jefferson Jackson Dinner
June 12: Congressional Primary
September 3 – 7: Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina

Tuesday, May 15th, 2012
Doors Open: 6:30pm
Start Time: 7:00
Location: Clarendon Grill
Closest Metro: Clarendon (within walking distance)
Nearest Cross Streets: 11th and Highland

More information about this event including information on how to become an Auctionee is available on our Date Auction page.

Help Register Voters And Stay For Happy Hour!
Saturday, April 28th, 11am to 5pm
Locations all over Arlington!

Join AYD in teaming up with Organizing For America (OFA) volunteers to register voters from Columbia Pike to the Rosslyn-Ballston Corridor!

Visit our website here to find out more details on a voter registration launch point near you! Any time you can give is helpful.

At 5pm, join us for a happy hour at Hard Times Cafe in Clarendon (3028 Wilson Blvd.). Hard Times is located across from the Clarendon Metro station on the corner of Wilson Blvd. and N. Highland St.

If you have any questions, please contact Andrea at politics@arlingtonyoungdems.org.

Calling Eligible Bachelors and Bachelorettes; Annual AYD Charity Date Auction on May 15th!
Thursday, May 15th, 7pm to 9:30pm
Clarendon Grill, 1101 N. Highland St.

RSVP on Facebook.

Single? Snag yourself a date at AYD’s wildly popular Charity Date Auction! This marquee event is fast approaching, and you can be a part of this annual tradition and help out a great charitable cause at the same time!

Doorways for Women and Families is our charitable partner for the auction this year, and every winning bid will help raise money for this organization to help those most in need.

If you are interested in being an auctionee, fill out our questionnaire here. If you have any questions about the questionnaire, or the auction, please contact Jennifer at programs@arlingtonyoungdems.org.

Phone Bank For POTUS, See POTUS and FLOTUS!
Tuesday, May 1st, 6:30pm to 9pm
Where: OFA HQ, 2408 Columbia Pike, Arlington, 22204

Join AYD as we kick off our weekly Day Of Action next Tuesday at OFA HQ on Columbia Pike in South Arlington! The President and First Lady will be in Richmond on Saturday, May 5th, and the Campaign needs our help in spreading the word about this event.

Help AYD make 1000 phone calls towards this effort! Complete a two-hour shift and you will receive a VIP pass to the rally!

RSVP to Andrea at politics@arlingtonyoungdems.org

Visit the facebook event here.

Did You Take the AYD Membership Survey Yet?

Take our survey here!

AYD’s officers want to hear from you as we get ready to plan the rest of our activities for the year.  Your participation in this survey is critical to our efforts; it allows us to tailor AYD events and offerings to what our members want and need. In addition to helping us make AYD better, completing our survey will give you the chance to win the following prizes:

$20 discount to any AYD or party ticketed event
$30 credit to any winning bid at the annual AYD Charity Date auction
$50 gift certificate to Toscana Grill in Courthouse.

This survey is completely anonymous, so please give us candid feedback and thank you!

Save The Date:
May 2: Arlington Democrats Meeting at NRECA in Ballston
May 5: Rally with President Obama and the First Lady in Richmond
June 2: Democratic Party of Virginia Convention at George Mason University in Fairfax
June 8: Arlington Democrats’ Jefferson Jackson Dinner
June 12: Congressional Primary
September 3 – 7: Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina

She’ll be talking about the issues that Latinos care about — from building a stronger economy and putting people back to work, to immigration reform, to an educational system that gives every child in every family the chance to get ahead.

Can you join the call? RSVP here for all the info you’ll need.

Latinos for Obama is about fighting for a future where the American dream is still possible for anyone who works for it.

We’re fighting to keep promises to our kids that they’ll be able to go to college, that they’ll always have access to health care, and that they can pursue any career they choose.

If we organize now through Latinos for Obama, we can do just that.

Join folks across the country on the call with Michelle Obama this Thursday, and help launch Latinos for Obama:

http://my.barackobama.com/Latinos-for-Obama-Call

The first Earth Day event, an environmental teach-in was founded on April 22, 1970 by United States Senator Democrat Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin. Nelson assembled Earth Day similar to the teach-ins on the Vietnam War, a decentralized, grassroots approach where each community could create events specific to their region. Nelson thought of the idea of organizing teach-ins after visiting Santa Barbara, California after the 1969 oil spill where he became outraged by the destruction and Washington’s inability to reform environmental regulations. His environmental teach-ins were a success and brought over 20 million Americans to hold demonstrations for environmental reform. This success of Earth Day encouraged politicians that environmental legislation had a strong, long-lasting constituency; which greatly influenced environmental politics by activating national legislation such as the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and Safe Water Drinking Act. Earth Day also helped spawn the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Still to this day, environmentalists are a large constituency in politics. Just this week, President Barack Obama received endorsements today from the Sierra Club, League of Conservation Voters, Clean Water Action and Environment America. Here in Virginia, Virginia Young Democrats believe Earth Day 2012 offers Congress and Virginia’s legislature the opportunity to produce their own “act of green” by green-lighting offshore wind energy generation and putting to bed offshore drilling.

Please read Virginia Young Democrats’ op-ed at http://bit.ly/IpTCbU and like their page on Facebook: VAYD Environmental Caucus

Doors open at 6:30pm, and at 7pm, we will welcome Katherine Archuleta, National Political Director for Obama for America! (https://twitter.com/#!/archuleta2012)

This meeting will coincide with the nationwide launch of Latinos for Obama.

Following Ms. Archuleta’s remarks, we will hear from our own Miles Grant; blogger (http://thegreenmiles.blogspot.com/), activist, and former candidate for The Virginia House of Delegates.

Miles will talking about the intersection of environment and politics, and how to get more involved locally with this very important issue.

We’ll also be talking about our Environmental Caucus and Latino Caucus, and their respective 2012 kick-off meetings.

Happy Hour specials are as follows:

$5 house red/white
$5 Mojitos /sangria
$3 yuengling/ Sam Adams
$2 miller / dos Equis
$5 jumbo margaritas

Caribbean Breeze is located a short walk from the Ballston Metro station (Orange line). Street parking is available in the area, as well as at Ballston Mall for $1 after 6pm.

Contact Gordon at vp@arlingtonyoungdems.org with any questions.

About Katherine Archuleta

Katherine Archuleta joined Obama 2012 in July 2011. Prior to becoming the National Political Director for the Obama Campaign she served as the Chief of Staff to Department of Labor Secretary Hilda L. Solis.

Katherine had accumulated nearly 18 years of government experience. She was a senior aide to Denver  Mayor Federico Peña for 8 years and then his chief of staff in 1996 and 1997 during his tenure as Secretary of Transportation. She served as his senior adviser in 1997 when Peña was Secretary of Energy.

Prior to returning to Washington, D.C. to serve as Chief of Staff to Secretary Solis, Katherine was senior advisor to Mayor John Hickenlooper, starting in 2005. She was the City of Denver’s lead planner for the 2008 Democratic  National Convention.

Along with two Denver community leaders, John Parr and Peter Kenney, Katherine founded the Colorado non-profit Center for Regional and Neighborhood Action where she, Parr and Kenney advised local leaders on collaborative stewardship. She was also a cofounder of three non-profit organizations supporting Colorado women: The Colorado Women’s Foundation, Mi Casa Resource Center, and the Latina Initiative.

Katherine and her husband, Edmundo Gonzales, are the proud parents of Graciela Katarina Gonzales.

• Prepping the office (Monday-Saturday)
• Staffing the office opening (Sunday afternoon)
• Cleaning up after the office opening (Sunday evening)
• Food for the office opening
• Donations:* Refrigerator* Folding chairs* Tables (especially 6’ banquet tables* Desks

  * Trash cans & trash bags

  * Paper towels

  * Toilet paper

  * Surge protectors/power strips

  * Bottled water

  * Cases of soda

  * Coffee

  * Healthy snacks, dry goods

  * Liquid hand soap, antibacterial wipes

  * Paper plates and cups, plasticware

  Bring all supplies to OFA-VA Arlington Headquarters (2408 Columbia Pike, Arlington, VA 22204)

AYD is beginning to plan our wildly popular and successful Charity Date Auction, and we are looking for volunteers interested in helping us put this great event together!
We will be meeting tonight at Arlington Democrats Headquarters in Courthouse, to discuss planning the auction, which also includes auctioning off items donated to us from the area business community.

Headquarters is located immediately behind Cosi, across the street from the entrance to the Courthouse metro station. Look for the yellow awning located on the corner of 15th St. N and Uhle street; that is the entrance to HQ. Take the elevator to the second floor.

Email Ben at finance@arlingtonyoungdems.org to RSVP, or with any questions. Please also email Ben if you would like to help, but cannot attend this evening.

Like to Run? Like to Eat? Enjoy Community Service? Join us Saturday!
Saturday, April 10th
Bus Boys and Poets- Shirlington
4251 South Campbell, Arlington, VA 22206
Metrobus: Shirlington

7:45 AM- Start your morning off with the AYD Running Club’s first run of the year! We will do a short run for about a half hour in the nieghborhood. All skill levels are welcome. Please email Andrea at politics@arlingtonyoungdems.org to RSVP.

8-10 AM- Join AYD at the monthly “Second Saturday Breakfast” hosted by the Arlington Democrats. Details are available on facebook here. Special guests will be Sen. Adam Ebbin and Del. Alfonso Lopez. Email Charley at charleyconrad@gmail.com with any questions. Please bring cash for breakfast.

10:00 AM -12:30 PM- Following the breakfast, meet up with fellow volunteers as we get together with Telemundo Television, the AYD Latino Caucus, and the AYD Environment Caucus for a clean-up of Four Mile Run park. We will meet outside Bus Boys and Poets and walk across the street to the staging location.

Details are available on our website here, and also on facebook here. Please email Nicole at community@arlingtonyoungdems.org with any questions or to RSVP.

IMPORTANT: Please bring drinking water, a hat, work gloves, clothing and shoes appropriate for a park clean-up, that you won’t mind getting dirty.

Take the AYD Membership Survey and You Could Win a Prize!

Take our survey here!

AYD’s officers want to hear from you as we get ready to plan the rest of our activities for the year. Your participation in this survey is critical to our efforts; it allows us to tailor AYD events and offerings to what our members want and need. In addition to helping us make AYD better, completing our survey will give you the chance to win the following prizes:

$20 discount to any AYD or party ticketed event
$30 credit to any winning bid at the annual AYD Charity Date auction
$50 gift certificate to Toscana Grill in Courthouse.

This survey is completely anonymous, so please give us candid feedback and thank you!

Apply to be a Convention Delegate

As a first step toward the DNC convention in Charlotte, NC, Arlington is holding its own caucus to select our 78 delegates and 16 alternates to the 8th District (5/19) and Virginia State Democratic (6/2) Conventions, both in Fairfax County. To become a delegate or alternate, you must complete and submit a filing form to ACDC Secretary Charley Conrad no later than 5:00pm on April 16, 2012.

Access the filing form and get more information >>

April 15th: Obama For America Office Opening in Arlington

Join your fellow Arlington Democrats at the grand opening of the Obama For America office in Arlington on Sunday, April 15th from 1:00pm-4:00pm. The new office is across the street from Penrose Square on Columbia Pike (2408 Columbia Pike, 22204). More information can be found here. Please contact Gordon at vp@arlingtonyoungdems.org with any questions. RSVP on facebook here.

Join us at the New Toscana Grill for our April Membership Meeting
New Toscana Grill
2300 Clarendon Blvd, Arlington, VA 22201
Metro: Courthouse- Orange Line

Meet up for happy hour and an informal discussion about the environment and how to get more involved locally with this issue, as well as network with those in the environment community! Our discussion will be anchored by our own Miles Grant; blogger, activist, and former candidate for The Virginia House of Delegates. We’ll also be discussing our Environment Caucus and their 2012 kick-off meeting.

Toscana Grill is located at the rear of Velocity Five in Courthouse Plaza. Don’t be deterred by the construction in the plaza; the restaurant is open! Toscana Grill is accessible via Courthouse metro (Orange line). Free parking (after 6p) is available in the open lot on the corner of 15th St. and Courthouse Road.

Contact Gordon at vp@arlingtonyoungdems.org with any questions. RSVP on Facebook here.

New Campaign Opportunities on our website!
Visit the AYD Campaign corner for new postings on campaign opportunities! You can also sign up to volunteer on any campaign here in Arlington through AYD! Visit our campaign corner here and visit our volunteer registration form here.

Save The Date:
May 8th: Annual AYD Charity Date Auction at Clarendon Grill
May 19: 8th District Convention in Springfield, VA
June 2: Democratic Party of Virginia Convention at George Mason University in Fairfax
June 8: Arlington Democrats’ Jefferson Jackson Dinner
September 3 – 7: Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina

Please join the AYD Community Service Committee and the AYD Environmental Caucus on April 14th and help us clean up Four Mile Run in Shirlington. After ACDC’s Second Saturday breakfast which is from 8 AM to 10 AM, we will meet outside of Busboys and Poets in Shirlington (4251 South Campbell Ave). At 10:05 AM, we will walk and/or drive over to the Telemundo office (2775 South Quincy Street) to meet up with others who will also be helping with the clean up. We recommend that you bring drinking water, a hat, and sunscreen with you. Please wear old clothes and boots (or old shoes), Four Mile Run can get muddy. Gloves will be provided, but please feel free to bring your own work gloves if you prefer to use them. We will be at the clean up from 10:15 to 12:30 PM. If you have any questions or plan to attend please contact the AYD Community Service Director at community@arlingtonyoungdems.org or visit http://on.fb.me/HfttPx