NYSPAC held its annual Spring Conference in Albany this past week. The New York State Public Affairs Committee of the Junior League is comprised of nineteen leagues from around New York State and represents over 7,000 women. Approximately thirty-five of women gathered in Albany on Monday to attend the conference which included guest speaker Susan Arbetter, Host of “New York Now”. Ms. Arbetter was so impressed with the Junior League she felt compelled to write a piece in her blog after her presentation:

There is nothing Junior about them. In fact, they’re pretty major. The Junior League of NY invited me to speak at their annual luncheon on Monday in Albany. It was a small but enthusiastic group of about 20 professional women who came from all over the state to meet with legislators about issues like childhood obesity. I didn’t know much about the Junior League (other than what I’ve heard about their collective affinity for pearls), but apparently the League is considered one of the best volunteer organizations in the country committed to helping underprivileged communities.

If you check out this little photo on your left, you’ll see Operation Back-To-School where Junior Leaguers ensure that kids from struggling families are given backpacks before school. The group I addressed was a multi-generational one with curious minds and excellent questions/analysis about state government. In fact, it was such a pleasure that I hope they invite me again. In return, they gave me a Junior League cookbook that I’ll be using tonight for dinner.

PS — I didn’t see a single strand of pearls in the room, so how’s that for generalizing.

On Tuesday, April 8, NYSPAC delegates attended legislative appointments throughout the day to advocate for three separate bills which support the nutritional well-being of New York’s children, provide funding for domestic violence shelter services for all victims of human trafficking and domestic violence and grant merit time for incarcerated domestic violence survivors.

If you are interested in reviewing these bills please go to the following websites:
Assembly: http://assembly.state.ny.us/
Senate: http://senate.state.ny.us/senatehomepage.nsf/home/openform

At the end of the day on Tuesday, Senator Mary Lou Rath from Buffalo was presented with a plaque to thank her for service and long-time support of NYSPAC and the Junior Leagues throughout the years. All in all it was a successful day for NYSPAC.