Last week, it was announced that South Dakota Federation of Republican Women (SDFRW) won the NFRW March Madness competition. South Dakota President Catherine Barranco was asked to share with us the ideas and techniques her volunteers employed to achieve this win. Here is her response:
"We are overjoyed to win NFRW’s March Madness Membership Competition! As is usually the case in business, sports, and politics, hard work is a precursor to success: coming together as a team, putting in the long hours and legwork necessary to get the job done. But that’s hardly a secret. To help SDFRW grow, we also adopted a series of policy “hacks” that helped us thrive.
"One example was that we pledged to avoid negativity and to share a positive, patriotic message. There’s no denying our national crises, yet at our gatherings, we offer a respite from this nightmare. We don’t focus on cataloguing Biden’s many failures. Instead, we create a positive, uplifting environment where good, honest, law-abiding citizens feel welcome. At statewide events, we forgo long speeches, allowing more time for members to socialize, collaborate, learn, and network.
"We tailor events to various stages of life: For single gals, we have Pachyderm Pedicures. For families, we gather at Republican-friendly businesses for play dates, letting kids jump on trampolines or build formidable laser tag teams. Our programs go beyond politics to actively engage the youth, the military, and the community. There’s truly something for everyone in SDFRW!
"Thanks to these and other ideas, we’ve become more than a social club, more than a political organization. We’ve become a family – something many Republicans are desperately seeking as the GOP fractures continue to widen. As a result, we have the support we need to win important elections, and we’ve set new SDFRW records in membership, fundraising, traditional media coverage, and online influence, where views increased 2,000% over the last 20 months.
To learn more about specific things we’re doing, check out our Facebook page at @SoDakFRW or enjoy a quick overview through our 2023 End of the Year Slideshow.
CAPTION: The South Dakota FRW Executive Board are Catherine Barranco, Karen Brandt, Sandy Rhoden, Debbie Schnell, Laci Sosa, MaryLee Plut and Lauri Davis. (Not pictured: Penny Sattgast, Connie Wagner, Beka Zerbst, Jen Boerger and Nancy Ziegeldorf.)