MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT Dear Fellow Liberals:

The weekend of September 15th to 17th 2017 was a Liberal Immersion experience for me. On the Friday evening we had an amazing Mackenzie Club party at the beautiful home of Judy and Lou Scherlowski. On Saturday evening I went to Petrolia with my good friend Anne Hummel to see Margaret Trudeau at the VPP, and on Sunday evening Joe and I travelled to Kitchener to a Liberal fundraiser featuring the voice and piano styling of Tim Louis the LPCO President of the southwest region. It was quite a weekend.

It was back to reality as four of us went door to door on our recent Day of Action in October. Rosemary Haughey, Stephen Cheetham, Bob Sutton, and yours truly were pleased by the response we got. People appreciate the Child Tax Benefit and the way our PM and his team are handling the challenging NAFTA negotiations, to mention just two issues that were raised. And Trudeau himself remains popular with many.

We do have a lot to be proud of as Liberals – the Paris Climate Accord, the Health Accord with the provinces, the Canada-EU Free Trade Agreement (CETA). The Trudeau government has shown unprecedented respect for the voices of women, scientists, and First Nations. Let’s keep the conversation going. I invite all of you to attend our monthly meetings which feature a “Speakers Series” at 10:30 following the regular business part of the meeting, which you are also welcome to attend.

Thank you for all your encouragement and support and a warm welcome to all of our new members. Do join us at our monthly pub nights.

Yours in Liberalism,

~Eileen~

GET INVOLVED: We welcome ALL our members, new

and old, and encourage you to

introduce yourself in person at our

December 7th pub night at the Sarnia

Golf and Curling Club.

This is also pasta night where many

Liberals stay to enjoy some pre-

Christmas socializing. We would love

to meet you!

Keep an eye on our website or

Facebook Page for announcements

for our upcoming Speaker Series.

They are informative presentations

on current issues and they are open

to all members, friends and family.

Have you seen our ad in The Sarnia

Journal? Ask your friends if they have

seen it too.

Make sure you check out our GETTING

STUFF DONE article on the Website.

This month, we are discussing the

upcoming tax changes.

The Lambton Compass Charting a new course for Liberals in Sarnia-Lambton NOVEMBER 2017

CHECK US OUT ONLINE: Website:

http://sarnia-lambton.liberal.ca

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/

SLFedLiberals

Twitter:

http://www.twitter.com/SLFedLiberals

DONOR APPRECIATION MACKENZIE CLUB SOCIAL 2017 Well, we did it again. Another successful Mackenzie Club Appreciation Event full of stimulating conversation, laughs and a genuine feeling of camaraderie.

We enjoyed spectacular local food from Personal Touch Catering and libations from around Ontario – both served as a perfect compliment to the members of Mackenzie Club who are the heart of our riding association.

There is no doubt in my mind that we have the strongest and most tightly knit riding association in Canada, and an event like the one we held on Friday, September 15th has proven that once again.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Lou and Judy Scherlowski for being such generous and gracious hosts. You have a beautiful home

that provided the perfect venue to welcome our members and our guest from the riding of London North Centre, Peter Fragiskatos.

The visit from this young and dynamic MP was long-awaited as h e w a s p u l l e d f r o m o u r Mackenzie Club event last Fall when the Governor General asked him to join the Canadian contingent visiting the Middle East. Peter did not disappoint anyone in attendance as he gave an impromptu speech from the back deck at the Scherlowki home with the sun setting over Lake Huron. The discussion was lively and Peter answered

questions until the mosquitoes finally chased everyone back inside.

With another successful Mackenzie Club Appreciation Event under our belt, the pressure continues to build to keep up the momentum. We are looking for hosts and we already have volunteers willing to be part of this new tradition. If you think you are up to the challenge, let us know because we can help you throw one heck of a party that will go down in SLFLA folklore! ~Alex Palimaka~

OUT AND ABOUT... MARGARET TRUDEAU

It was a pleasure to finally meet Margaret Trudeau in person at the VPP in Petrolia on

September 16, 2017. She appeared as part of the Speakers Series and spoke about mental

health and her own struggle with bipolar disorder.

She described her amazing life with startling honesty, keen

insights, and an unmistakable sense of fun. Speaking to her

later in the lobby I showed her my “President of SLFLA” card

with info on one side and on the other a picture of me with

Justin (shown on the front page of the newsletter).

When she saw the picture of her son she kissed the card! She

has obviously not lost her spontaneity!

I also attended a fundraiser in Kitchener-Conestoga that

weekend, featuring entertainment by Tim Louis, former

Liberal candidate, and President of the Southwest Region of

Ontario. I am very fond of Tim. He communicates often with

our ridings and he is a wonderful musician who plays piano

and sings like Michael Bublé! ~Eileen Viola~

DAYS OF ACTION In 2015, the Days of Action program was critical to our successful campaign. The Days of Action have a threefold purpose:

to engage our supporters who want to become more involved

to train future leads for the 2019 campaign

to speak with Canadians on the phone, doorstep and at community events

This program is an opportunity to engage our community and ensure that we are

prepared for the 2019 election.

In May, June, July, August and October a group of very dedicated volunteers,

dressed in red, canvassed several Polls throughout our Riding. For two hours on one

Saturday in each month we knocked on doors, spoke with people and distributed

literature about the Liberal Party.

The volunteers were given extensive training on how to record the responses on the

MINIVAN app on their respective devices. After a great deal of trial and error we are

now efficient at using the technology.

Overall the responses were very favourable and we discovered that there is a strong

support for the Trudeau and the Liberals. Prior to the next election, the goal is to

engage the people who indicated their support.

After the initial fear of knocking at doors, the volunteers became very confident and

enjoyed talking to the people. A wonderful camaraderie developed among the canvassers. We ended each session with lunch at a

nearby spot.

We will be doing more Days of Action in 2018. We encourage you to volunteer. In addition to door canvassing, there are many

other opportunities to help especially with phoning. High school students can use their volunteer hours as community service.

Please contact Rosemary at rosemary.p.haughey@gmail.com

Thanks to Kim Fyfe, Joe Viola, Eileen Viola, Liam Cronan, Steve Cheetham, Bob Sutton, Lou Scherlowski, Jared Valdes, and Anne

Marie Gillis for volunteering so far for this worthwhile exercise.

NEW MEMBER! The SLFLA is always delighted to welcome our new members and we are pleased to feature new member Stephen Cheetham who hails from the Toronto area and has chosen Sarnia as a retirement destination along with wife Jan.

Stephen spent his working life in Broadcast sales and in the Ministry of Municipal Affairs.

He always harboured an interest in the Liberal Party despite not finding the time during those busy years of family and career to actively engage in the political party process. Has that ever changed!

Steve has gone door to door with us on every single Day of Action since May. He has also been active on the Communications committee which recently composed an SLFLA ad that appeared in the Sarnia Journal on November 9, 2017 (page 6). Shown below.

We are thrilled to welcome such a friendly and enthusiastic Liberal to our riding!

THE BACK PAGE

Website:

http://sarnia-lambton.liberal.ca

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/SLFedLiberals

Twitter:

http://www.twitter.com/SLFedLiberals

CHECK US OUT ONLINE:

TREASURER’S CORNER

As always thank you to ALL for your ongoing

and generous financial support.

It makes it possible for us to both promote

the Liberal brand and message in Sarnia

Lambton and prepare to elect a Liberal MP

in the next federal election in 2019. We have

enhanced and strengthened our financial

position over the years by continuing to

build our number of VICTORY FUND (VF)

monthly donors.

We currently have 88 VF donors and our

objective is to reach 100 monthly donors by

year end.

If you are not participating currently, we ask

that you to go online to https://

go.liberal.ca/page/contribute/donate and

consider donating monthly to both the

SLFLA and the Liberal Party through the

VICTORY FUND. If you are already

participating, then please think about

increasing your monthly contribution or

TOPPING UP your annual contribution

before year end. Remember that a $240

minimum annual donation via the VICTORY

FUND will qualify you for the benefits of

Mackenzie Club membership (See Alex’s

piece in this issue regarding this year’s

wonderful Appreciation Event). Also, when

deciding on how much to contribute, please

be aware of the generous tax credits

available. Remember that there is a 75% TAX

CREDIT available on the first $400 you

donate. This means that a $400 donation

costs you only $100 after your $300 tax

credit.

If monthly donations are not your thing, we

are always happy to accept your cheque for

a one time annual donation.

If you have any questions or need help

signing up you can call or email me or Alex

Palimaka. Otherwise, THANK YOU for

responding when we ask and THANK YOU

for your ongoing loyalty to both the SLFLA

and the LIBERAL PARTY of Canada.

Let me be the first to wish everyone a Happy

Holiday season and a healthy and

prosperous New Year.

~Your Treasurer — Joe Viola~

519 869 4268 — joleen@cogeco.ca