Showing Spirit on October 20, 2011

Victory comes From the Courage to step up – and out.

 I’ve just completed a year long campaign to serve my city of Nashville TN as a Metro Council representative.  It was the first time an openly gay women has run for this office.  My partner Joan and I live in was was once considered are strongly conservative area of town.  When redistricting occurred in the middle of our campaign and had us suddenly facing an incumbent when before it was an open seat. We continued on and gathered the support of hundreds of fellow Nashvillians and from dozens and dozens of new friends and supporters through The Victory Fund.

 In  2003 the city of Nashville tried to pass a nondiscrimination ordinance for its employees.  It was a dramatic time. Some of the council members that supported it received threats. It did not pass because of a tie-breaking vote.  We were disappointed and waited for change once again, because of the promise that “It Does Get Better”.

 In  2008 I made the commitment to never work for a client or an employer that does not have a fully inclusive nondiscrimination policy.  In 2009, friends and colleagues began asking me if I had any interest in running for office.

I knew that I would only run if the new nondiscrimination ordinance offered that year, passed. -It did.  “It Does Get Better”.

It takes courage to step up fearlessly.  It takes time to gather that courage and to find and build the support system that will keep you from harm.  It Gets Better because of all of these things.

Let me say again, I would have never run for office in 2011 if the 2009 Metro Nondiscrimination Ordinance had not passed.  I received 44% of the vote. I am now looking toward taking what I learned about my community and serving it in other ways.

It gets better when you step out.  It gets better when you step up.

It gets better.

itgetsbetter.org

victoryfund.org

Using all the tools available for online communication for any of your projects may seem daunting.  That’s because it is.  Just because it looks tasty, doesn’t mean it’s nutritious. You don’t need to do everything just because if seems like everyone else is doing everything.  Trust me, they aren’t. I spend a lot of time with my clients returning back the to core questions:

• “Who is the audience?”
• “Where are they gathered?”
• “Have I taken the time to listen to them before I speak?”

I was recently interviewed by  Stacy Nunnally Consulting via Skype into a breakout session at the conference Advancing Tennessee Women in Public Service & Politics on the use of Social Media in political campaigns.  We talked about using the tech available while knocking on doors and we talked about why I’ve chosen not to have a Politican Facebook Page but rather encourage my friends on Facebook to like my Campaign Website Page instead.

“When something happens to one of us, it happens to all of us.”

The historic flooding of May 2010 destroyed many of our neighbors’ homes, but our community of residents, friends, and volunteers demonstrated that the spirit of Nashville – the very thing that makes this community unique and a great place to live – is alive and well.
Nancy VanReece is running for the District 4 seat on Metro Council to help continue to improve all of Nashville – beginning in the Madison area.
Whether you live in District 4 , another part of Davidson County or anywhere in the country, your selfless contribution to her campaign today will ensure that the entire city is a place where all Nashvillians can grow and thrive. Your help is needed now.

Please give today and add your name to the growing list of supporters

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No donation is “too small” to make a difference. Every donation brings us one step closer and each contribution helps build the critical resources needed to continue our conversation about the future of Madison and Nashville, Tennessee.

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