GPWA Coordinating Council for 2019-2020
CHARLES LAW – GPWA Coordinating Council – At-Large
Charles Law is a former member of the Green Party of Whatcom County. His point of political view has always been far-left of center. While president of the Whatcom County wing of Jesse Jackson’s Rainbow Coalition, he pushed the group to adopt a worker’s rights position to their local platform.
Since his move to Port Townsend, he has been attending general gatherings of the Green Party and keeping track of the party through moderation of the Green Party of the Olympic Peninsula Facebook group. At present, he is a general member of GPWA. This is all due to the fact there isn’t an active Green Party chapter in Jefferson County.
At present, he tweets for the Local2020 Action group, Beyond Waste. The group is dedicated to making waste a thing of the past and reducing consumption into the future. As Charles says, “I like that!”
“Why do I want to join the GPWA Coordinating Council? I’m hoping the council can supply me with the tools to build our local Green Party chapter on the Olympic Peninsula.”
JODY GRAGE – GPWA Coordinating Council – At-Large
Jody’s previous relevant experiences include being a teacher, community activist, organizer of the Seattle Nonviolent Peacekeeper Pool, and an early participant and advocate for both Sustainable Seattle and Voluntary Simplicity.
Jody has been involved with the Green Party in Washington State since the 1980s. She was Treasurer from 2001-2003, an at-large CC member from 2003-2004 and 2005-2006, a member of the Interim Advisory Board in 2010, and an at-large CC member from 2010-2013, 2014-2017 and 2018-2019. She was a member of the GPUS Steering Committee from 2004 – 2010, the last four years as Treasurer and was elected Secretary in 2017.
Jody brings with her institutional memory, an appetite for agendas and minutes and other helpful paperwork, a willingness to toil in the trenches, a determination to develop a robust campaign support system, and a vision of Green Party locals all across our state. As a GPUS Delegate, she brings with her extensive knowledge of the connection between GPWA and GPUS.
KATHRYN LEWANDOWSKY – GPWA Coordinating Council – At-Large
Kathryn is running for GPWA Coordinating Council for a second term. Kathryn has been working hard along with the rest of the GPWA CC to develop working policies and procedures that will enable the Green Party of Washington to become an influential party in our state.
“We need to develop a party that is capable of successfully fielding candidates that can win locally and at the state level. We need a state CC that can support an active membership, a local chapter structure and candidates who want to run for office in Washington. Although we made a lot of progress towards those goals in the last year, there is still a lot of work to do in order to achieve the results we need to become an effective political party in the future. Our 10 key values are what guide us in this work with special emphasis on our 4 pillars, Grassroots Democracy, Social Justice, Peace and Ecology.”
“Thank you for allowing me to continue working for those values here in Washington.”
MARY ELLEN KNOOP – GPWA Coordinating Council – At-Large
Mary Ellen is a founding member of Green Party Tahoma (Pierce County).
Her Personal Background – Loving parents, small New England farm, B.S. Degree and Registered Nurse, married 49 years, two daughters, lived overseas. Voted Democratic until 1999, thereafter voted for Ralph Nader and later Jill Stein.
Green Party Now – Current status of local chapter in Pierce County is inactive. She plans to check on chapter funds and reactivate account; monitor Nation Builder for new members.
Green Party Future Related to the Climate Crisis – “I believe it is imperative that the Green Party liaise with organizations whose goals are compatible. We need immediate community building measures to create wide spread awareness of necessary actions. Building this awareness will require speaking to groups and writing to editors of newspapers and magazines.”
RICHARD REDICK – GPWA Coordinating Council – At-Large
Richard Redick joined the Green Party in January 2018 after spending roughly equal portions of his adult life as a Republican and as a Democrat. The events of the 2016 election cycle impelled Richard, as a matter of conscience, to permanently leave the 2-party system. With a degree in economics, and 21 years working for major corporations, he is convinced that, until Big Money is barred from influencing politics, the desires of the people will take a back seat with policy makers.
Deeply concerned, yet optimistic regarding the future, Richard sees a definite role for technology in both developing livable communities, and in linking them together in meaningful ways that are socially and ecologically healthy. He sees the Green Party platform oriented toward that constructive and hopeful end, and he is invigorated by it! Richard resides in Kennewick, Washington; presently sharing his home with 3 of his young adult children, and one playful, tabby cat.
GPWA Treasurer and Deputy Treasurer for 2019-2020
SCOTT THOMPSON – GPWA Treasurer
Scott grew up in Los Angeles but was very happy to move his family to Northwest Washington in 1993 to raise his kids in a more rural environment. Married over 38 years, he lives in a beautiful and peaceful place a bit up Sumas Mountain enjoying time with his three grandkids. His bachelor’s degree is in Psychology with a Business minor. He worked as a Control Systems Engineer since moving to Washington, then took an early retirement in hopes of reducing his biological footprint. In 2001 he founded the Whatcom County Bicycle-Pedestrian Advisory Committee and now facilitates the local Green Party.
Scott admires all the Green Party 10 Key Values. However, he believes that Non-violence is clearly the most urgent… “Most US citizens have been manipulated into redirecting our country’s resources into unconstitutional wars that benefit international corporations and an imperialist agenda, but only harm the other 99%. If we could stop the wasteful practices of the military-industrial-intelligence complex, then we could easily implement the remaining 10 Key Values in our country. Let’s reject the fear-based narrative imposed on us from 9/11 by those that have benefited and work on awakening our fellow citizens to a brighter, sustainable future.”
LISA CANAR – GPWA Deputy Treasurer
Lisa has been a member of the Green Party since 2016. She volunteers as social media and communications coordinator for GPWA, overseeing Green social media presence, posting news to the GPWA website, publicizing events, and sending organizational emails. She attended the GPUS annual convention in 2016 as a Nominating Committee delegate and has served on the GPWA Coordinating Council for three years.
In her professional life, Lisa tries to keep up with the latest science and research on natural health and integrative medicine. She trained at Bastyr University in Naturopathic Medicine, and she practices as a Medical Support Physician for a non-invasive diagnostic testing laboratory. She recognizes the interconnections of individual, community, and planetary health, and she strives to create a just and sustainable world for all.
GPUS Delegates and Alternates for 2019-2020
JODY GRAGE – GPUS Delegate
Jody’s previous relevant experiences include being a teacher, community activist, organizer of the Seattle Nonviolent Peacekeeper Pool, and an early participant and advocate for both Sustainable Seattle and Voluntary Simplicity.
Jody has been involved with the Green Party in Washington State since the 1980s. She was Treasurer from 2001-2003, an at-large CC member from 2003-2004 and 2005-2006, a member of the Interim Advisory Board in 2010, and an at-large CC member from 2010-2013 and 2014-2017. She was a member of the GPUS Steering Committee from 2004 – 2010, the last four years as Treasurer and was elected as GPUS Secretary in 2017.
Jody brings with her institutional memory, an appetite for agendas and minutes and other helpful paperwork, a willingness to toil in the trenches, a determination to develop a robust campaign support system, and a vision of Green Party locals all across our state. As a GPUS Delegate, she brings with her extensive knowledge of the connection between GPWA and GPUS.
NOAH MARTIN – GPUS Delegate
Noah Martin has been a community activist from a young age, when he would accompany his mother to Iraq War protests and “helped” sample frog populations and surveying birds to protect local wetlands. After receiving his B.A. from Oberlin College, Noah worked managing an in-school mentoring program for at-risk youth, as a counselor in a Seattle homeless shelter, and as a caregiver. Today, he works in Olympia as a policy analyst and legislative advocate for Quaker Voice, a faith-based, grassroots organization that advocates for bold ecological action, criminal justice reform, and economic justice. He has worked with a range of organizations in Olympia, including Thurston County Progressives, Just Housing, Olympia IWW, Olympia Assembly, Olympia DSA, and as a founding member of Tenants of the South Sound.
Noah decided to vote for Jill Stein in 2012, his first vote ever cast for president, after President Obama signed the 2012 NDAA that stripped American citizens of their right to habeas corpus, which opened the door for President Trump to indefinitely detain anyone without cause. Noah has been a bonafide member of the Green Party since 2016, alternately serving as the membership coordinator for the Green Party of South Puget Sound, as its delegate to the GPWA CC, and as GPWA’s alternate delegate to the NC. He also served as volunteer coordinator and field organizer for Renata Rollins’s successful 2017 campaign to put a Green on Olympia City Council. Noah believes that the Green Party must be built from the ground up as a revolutionary, anti-capitalist alternative to the Democratic-Republican Party, engaging in mutual aid and direct action in addition to electoral politics. He is particularly interested in seeing the national party support these local efforts.
FRANK LOCKWOOD – GPUS Alternate
Frank is a former teacher, news reporter and hobby gardener who became an eco-socialist in 2016 and switched to the Green Party after the Democratic preliminaries of 2016. Soon after, he began texting for Jill Stein and working toward forming a new Green Party local – the Green Party of the Mid-Columbia. This new chapter was fully incorporated on January 1, 2018, joined protests, monthly Green gatherings, and hosted events.
“I like the Green Party because of the Four Principles and Ten Key Values, as well as the dedicated people I have met and befriended here. I expect to vote in agreement with the Green Party of Washington State and the Pillars and Values of our party. I am committed to serving the Green Party to the best of my ability. Thank you for considering me as an alternate candidate.”
Local Green Party Chapter Representatives
RICHARD REDICK – Green Party of the Mid-Columbia
CHARLES LAW – Green Party of the Olympic Peninsula (forming)
JODY GRAGE – Green Party of Seattle
WOODY DERYCKX – Green Party of Skagit County
KATHRYN LEWANDOWSKY – Green Party of Snohomish County
NOAH MARTIN – Green Party of South Puget Sound
BOB CONE – Green Party of Southwest Washington
LIAM TURNMIRE – Green Party of Spokane County
MARY ELLEN KNOOP – Green Party Tahoma
MELVIN MACKEY – Vashon/Maury Island Green Party
SCOTT THOMPSON – Green Party of Whatcom County