On Monday, my husband Wes and I joined other members of ONE to meet with Brad Smith of Congressman Ron Kind’s staff. Of the nearly 28,000 ONE members in Wisconsin, over 3,000 are in the 3rd Congressional District – a number we are looking to grow!

We asked Brad to thank Congressman Kind for being a supporter of ONE, particularly as a cosponsor of the Berman-Kirk bill, also known as the Initiating Foreign Assistance Reform Act of 2009. Mr. Kind also voted against cuts to this year’s Foreign Operations bill and voted for its passage, for which we are grateful.

We were pleased to be joined by Rosine Urujeni, an exchange student from Rwanda currently studying at Viterbo University. Hearing her unique perspective and how important United States aid is to her country simply underlined the importance of our meeting. Rev. Kent Johnson of the Lutheran Office for Justice and Peace in La Crosse brought Rosine, knowing her first-hand knowledge of the poverty, disease, and daily African struggle to survive.

We encouraged Congressman Kind to add his voice as a member of the Wisconsin delegation to urge Speaker Pelosi and Chairman Obey to fulfill the President’s request and fully fund the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Brad assured us that Congressman Kind has been and will continue to be a supporter of our efforts. He agreed to pass along our concerns and requests to continue in the fight against global poverty.

-Joyce Dunbar, Wisconsin ONE Member

Pictured: Kent Johnson, Amy Lunde, Brad Smith, Staff to Congressman Ron Kind, Joyce Dunbar, Wes Dunbar, Rosine Urujeni

On Wednesday, ONE members in the Fox Valley area met with Amanda Dietrich, who serves on the staff of Congressman Steve Kagen (D-WI). Chuck Steinbach, Tammy Jo Berg, Mike Randerson, Stacy Mallette, Jackie Thiry and Susan Halverson talked to Amanda about ONE’s overall goals to end extreme poverty and how we believe Congressman Kagen can help.

We thanked Representative Kagen for voting in favor of the House Foreign Operations Appropriations bill which contains the majority of funding for ONE’s priorities, and urged his continued support for funding.

As the only WI Member to sit on the House Agriculture Committee, Congressman Kagen can play a critical role in the fight against hunger. We asked him to cosponsor H.R. 3077, the ‘Global Food Security Act of 2009’ to develop a long-term approach to improving agricultural development and sustainability.

Amanda said she would follow up on the status of each bill we discussed and pass along our message to the Congressman. We look forward to Rep. Kagen’s support for those in need across the globe!

-Amy Lunde, ONE Wisconsin

AIDS Walk Wisconsin 2009 was a great event for ONE. Walkers at this event are always very generous and warm to the ONE message. They come, listen and want to take action to be a part of the effort to fight extreme poverty and AIDS – not just in Milwaukee, but all around the world.

This year, ONE had a table at the AIDS Walk and saw over 120 new volunteers sign up to join ONE. Many people took information and will hopefully visit the website as we encouraged them to do.

I especially enjoyed engaging new sign-up members this year because my home country Liberia was highlighted in ONE’s “Past Campaigns” section, detailing ONE’s efforts to engage the IMF to eliminate the $800+ million debt which has been a huge obstacle in Liberia’s economic growth and stability.

I was able to explain to new members how ONE played a direct role and why it’s so important for more people to join the larger voice tackling important issues like these. I look forward to more of these success stories from all over the world to be able to encourage more to join the fight against global poverty.

We will continue to represent ONE in Milwaukee, WI!

-Sando Johnson, Milwaukee, WI ONE Member

ONE member Branton Kunz of Madison, Wisconsin submitted this great letter to the editor which was published in the Cap Times. Interested in writing a letter to the editor of your local newspaper encouraging your elected officials to support continued development assistance? We compiled some helpful tips and information here.

Excerpts from Branton’s letter below, full piece here.

I joined ONE members from Madison last week to meet with Sen. Herb Kohl’s staff to encourage the senator’s continued work on behalf of the impoverished around the globe. ONE is a growing grass-roots force across the globe, and over 27,000 strong in Wisconsin.

We requested that Kohl sign on as a co-sponsor of the Sen. Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2009, a bipartisan effort to provide 100 million people with access to clean water and sanitation. We also know how critical it is that the senator support the international affairs budget this year and fully fund the Global Fund for AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

As we commit to global aid, we are improving the world’s health and increasing economic development and stabilization. The Global Fund has already saved an estimated 2.5 million lives. These advancements are consistent with our security interests, our economic interests, and our moral and national values.

-Chris Scott

Last week I joined several Milwaukee ONE members to meet with Rebeca Lopez of Senator Russ Feingold’s staff, to encourage the Senator’s continued work on behalf of the impoverished around the globe. As we met, we thanked Senator Feingold for his efforts to alleviate poverty, including his support of HIV/AIDS relief.

We told Ms. Lopez of ONE’s growing grassroots force across Wisconsin with over 27,000 members and mentioned our uniting with various groups in the state- from campus organizations to the United Nations chapter in Milwaukee.

We asked that the Senator consider the effects of climate change on many underdeveloped countries and devote 5% of climate legislation revenue to the world’s poorest people to adapt to climate change.

Finally, we requested Senator Feingold sign on as a cosponsor of the Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2009, a bi-partisan effort to provide access to clean water and sanitation to 100 million people. Rebeca informed us that the Senator has requested of the Foreign Relations Committee that the bill be brought up for a vote this year.

Rebeca assured us that our requests and concerns would be passed on and that Senator Feingold, already an advocate for poverty-stricken nations, would continue to support the fight against global poverty.

-Andrew Hable, Wisconsin ONE Member

Yesterday President Obama made a visit to Green Bay’s Southwest High School to discuss healthcare. I was part of the ONE volunteers present to thank President Obama for his work on behalf of the world’s poorest people, and encourage him in the fight for the $51.7 billion for the International Affairs Budget.

While we work to improve America’s healthcare system, President Obama understands that we can’t back away from our responsibility to help fight the global health care crisis that sees millions of people dying every year from preventable diseases.

Lieutenant Governor Barb Lawton, Wisconsin’s newest Ambassador for ONE, was also present at the event.

We found new ONE supporters on the spot and excited to “Fan” our facebook page! Join ONE Wisconsin’s grassroots team in Wisconsin by emailing onewisconsin@one.org or on Facebook.

-Jim Weigand, ONE Member, Green Bay, WI

Yesterday ONE volunteers in Wisconsin met with Lois O’Keefe of Representative Gwen Moore’s staff and Rebecca Young of Senator Herb Kohl’s staff.

What a great meeting to be a part of! ONE came together with representatives from the Cultural Alliance of Greater Milwaukee, World Trade Center Wisconsin, American Red Cross in Southeastern WI, Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative Corporation, and the U.S. Global Leadership Campaign.

We thanked Senator Kohl for his vote in support of PEPFAR and discussed the importance of the International Affairs Budget. ONE Ambassador, Susan McGovern, was gracious enough to discuss our commitment to the Millennium Development Goals and Volunteer Jim Carpenter explained how the International Affairs Budget will help us continue to promote economic development in impoverished nations, and in turn benefit America over the long run.

Both Lois and Rebecca were in support of our asking Representative Moore and Senator Kohl to support full funding of the International Affairs Budget. Rebecca also assured us of Senator Kohl’s commitment to America’s food assistance and fostering sustainable agricultural and economic development in less-developed countries.

-Mark Graul, WI ONE Member

This Saturday ONE Wisconsin hit the Dane County Farmers’ Market on Madison’s downtown Capitol Square! The Madison Farmers Market is actually the largest producer-only farmers’ market in the country.

Volunteers, like Meri DeGarmo, had the chance to talk to folks about the important issues of poverty, hunger, and disease facing millions of people around the world. We also signed up a bunch of new ONE supporters.

What a great reception! ONE will be back on the square each Saturday morning to raise awareness.

We need volunteers to help at the Dane County Farmers Market throughout the summer. To RSVP to help click here.

- Amy Lunde, ONE WI Member

As ONE members across the nation continue to take action and urge their elected leaders to fight extreme poverty and preventable disease, we are exploring more and better ways to support ONE members in their own community.

If you live in Wisconsin or Illinois, please join us in the first of a series of local ONE Conference Calls to update you on important local actions, events, and opportunities. Your voice is critically important in making sure that our nation is doing all we can to help save millions of lives around the world.

Please RSVP and join us for these calls and look to the ONE blog for more local calls and actions in your community.

RSVP for the Wisconsin call.

RSVP for the Illinois call.

We hope to hear from you soon!

-Matthew Bartlett