Welcome to the December Volunteer Newsletter from the Community Engagement team at Planned Parenthood! Each month, we will feature updates on our volunteer activities around the St. Louis region and give a look at future opportunities to get involved.
Get Covered During Open Enrollment
Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region has been helping individuals and families get covered with quality, affordable health insurance plans since the beginning of the Affordable Care Act. If you or someone you know is looking for assistance, our Certified Application Counselors are here to help you enroll in a qualified health plan that fits your budget and needs. Assistance is available by appointment only at our Central West End, West County, and St. Peters health center locations. The deadline to enroll is December 15 - schedule an appointment today at 314-531-7526 ext. 358. You can learn more about health insurance enrollment on our website and at https://covermissouri.org/.
Care Fair
Planned Parenthood participated in the 5th Annual Care Fair at the Overland Community Center on November 2. We joined dozens of other St. Louis-area organizations providing health care resources and advocacy in our community, including PROMO, Behavioral Health Response, Safe Connections, ParaQuad, and more. In addition, free flu shots and health screenings were available at the event to all community members.
St. Louis Jewish Book Festival
It was a full house at MaTovu on November 24 for the St. Louis Jewish Book Festival event featuring Taylor Lustig & Nita Contreras discussing Yes She Can: 10 Stories of Hope & Courage from Young Female Staffers of the Obama White House. Three of our wonderful Volunteer Table Captains attended the event and provided health services information, collected “I Stand with Planned Parenthood” petitions, and gathered Medicaid Expansion ballot initiative signatures from voters.
Washington University MedX Student Organization
The MedX student organization at Washington University learned how to collect petitions for the Medicaid Expansion ballot initiative and put together safer sex kits for Planned Parenthood! They plan to participate in upcoming opportunities to gather signatures for the ballot initiative. We always appreciate student volunteers who take the time to learn and get involved in issues that matter to our communities!
Volunteer of the Month
Each month, we highlight one outstanding Planned Parenthood volunteer. December’s Volunteer of the Month is Patty Clay. Learn more about Patty and her experience volunteering!
Q: Why is it important for you to volunteer at Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region?
I must volunteer because it is all I can do. There are people to reach. Sometimes it might be volunteer recruitment, if you checked "I would like to volunteer" on a petition or sign-up sheet at an event. There are constituents to contact when your representative needs contact about a legislative issue. And in 2020, it is critical to contact and educate voters about pro-choice candidates. Now it is very important that I volunteer for Planned Parenthood.
Q: Do you have a favorite volunteer experience with Planned Parenthood?
In 1977, one of the first times I volunteered for Planned Parenthood, I was working a table at a huge community event. From that event to now I have met people that have impacted my life. I was recruited to volunteer to counsel women when making a decision about their pregnancy. Later I was drawn to work on pro-choice issue politics, elections, and fundraising. In volunteering, I have learned to share the load (delegate) with others and pull people in with me. Most of all, I have learned that there are so many more folks out there that are pro-choice, and ACTIVE. I want to be with them.
Q. What else would you like to share about volunteering with Planned Parenthood?
Now we are gathering signatures to put the expansion of Medicaid for Missourians on the ballot. We need to see to it that all people can access the best medical care they need. Next there will be the legislative issues in the Missouri General Assembly and in Congress. I know I'll be volunteering to call to activate our supporters to visit, call, and write our legislators to voice Planned Parenthood's message: available birth control, accurate sex-education, and safe, legal abortion in Missouri. In 2020 I am looking forward to participating in any way I can in the election of pro-choice candidates.
Get Involved!
If you would like to request Planned Parenthood for an event or presentation, or if you have any questions about our volunteer programs, please contact Brenda Cross at [email protected] or 314-531-7526 ext. 358.
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