 
 Happy Valentine’s Day! We wish everyone a wonderful Valentine’s Day filled with love and happiness.
  Jasmin Lilly Spells, District Court Judge, Department 23, and Emerge Nevada Class of 2020 encourages others for Black History Month “to learn about a Black historical figure in their own career field or in their local community. Black history is not limited to the Civil Rights era and wonderful leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. or Rosa Parks. Black history, like all history, is constant, living and surrounds us each day. I also encourage individuals to attend a Black history event in their local community.”  Belinda T. Harris, North Las Vegas Township Justice of the Peace, Department 3, is the first Black elected judge to serve in the North Las Vegas Justice Court. She explained that in her North Las Vegas neighborhood growing up, “there was a lot of injustice, and I always thought that it was because people didn’t have money and they weren’t being treated correctly by the system. So, at that time I said, ‘I am going to do something to change that.'” Belinda is certainly a woman of her word and every day is making our community a more just and equitable one.  Emerge Nevada is honored to have so many incredible Black Alumnae. They are powerhouse attorneys, elected officials, change-making activists, business leaders, and all making a positive impact on our State and their communities. This #BlackHistoryMonth we are focusing on black health and wellness – a timely issue as Black communities have been one of the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Black Americans experience healthcare disparities that result in limited access to high-quality, life-saving care. For these reasons, we are grateful to Black leaders such as our Alumnae Claire Thomas, Shondra Summers-Armstrong, and A’Esha Goins for their incredible work on reducing the maternal mortality rate for women in our state. Read about their work here! We will continue highlighting our Black Alumnae throughout Black History Month on social media. Alumnae can complete our Emerge Nevada Spotlight Form so we can share your leadership and success stories.
  Big News: Our Board Recruitment applications are open! Nominate a leader you know, or apply now to become part of the board that provides vision and strategy to help change the face of politics in Nevada. Our committees include Fundraising, Communications, Campaign Advisory Team, Recruitment and Selection, and more, so there are ways for everyone to get involved! Apply now or nominate a leader here!
 Congratulations to all the new Moms in our network – we know your Valentine’s Day will be filled with love, light and laughter! In celebration of Valentine’s Day, this year we wanted to highlight some of our newest additions to the Emerge Nevada family. Monica Trujillo (Emerge Nevada Class of 2020) and K. Lenore Jean-Baptiste (Emerge Nevada Board Member) are among a group of strong new moms in our network with gorgeous babies!  K. Lenore Jean-Baptiste’s best advice for other working moms is “to remember that your wellness and mental health are more important than any item on your to-do list. So please, create space to pause and check-in with yourself because you are worthy of the attention and love you give to others. When you are full, then you’ll be able to pour into those that you love and fulfill any obligations that you may have from a more peaceful and loving place.”  On being a new Mom, Monica shares that “like many other tasks I take on, I thought I could handle my bundle of joy all on my own (with my honey of course), but I quickly learned that we needed a baby kitchen cabinet! Thankfully, before I even left the hospital people were waiting to care for us. I am so grateful for these loved ones who delivered necessities, took care of all three of us, cleaned the house, completed other chores, took late-night phone calls and supported us during these first two months. Not only did we need a kitchen cabinet, but we needed an extended one! In everything we do, we must find our people because we will always need support, love, and encouragement.”  As a busy working mom, Anna Albertson shares, “I include my daughter as much as possible in work, social, and political events. We (my husband and I) make an effort to actively involve her by discussing where we are going and who may meet with her in advance of all new situations. She practices names and even sample questions she can ask or things she can say to the people we anticipate her meeting. I want her to learn early that she adds value to every room she is in, her opinion matters, and people want to listen to her.”
 CAT WORKSHOPS: Running for office? Emerge Nevada will support you the entire way! Join us on Wednesday, February 16th at 5:30 pm for our next CAT Workshop where we will cover the process of developing a field plan and organizing best practices with Field expert Briana Escamilla. We look forward to seeing you at an upcoming CAT workshop! Register here! If you’re running for office this year, join our 2022 Candidates Facebook group to stay up to date with training opportunities and to share best practices and advice with fellow candidates.
 
“Honoring Black History: Meet the women blazing a trail for Black judges in Nevada.” 8 News Now story featuring Tierra Jones and Dee Butler. “Black History Maker: Belinda T. Harris.” KTNV story featuring Belinda Harris. “Nevada Newsmakers Wednesday, January 26, 2022.” Nevada Newsmakers video interview with Nnedi Stephens. “In debates, secretary of state candidates cast wildly different visions.” Nevada Independent story featuring Ellen Spiegel. “Immigration reform is the right thing to do.” Las Vegas Sun story written by Selena Torres. “Proyecto de ley protegería de la deportación al padre de una activista de Nevada.” Nevada Independent story featuring Astrid Silva.
 Many thanks to our fantastic donors for their generous contributions in support of our continued work to train win women to run for office in 2022 and beyond. Your support ensures our class has the opportunity to learn from Nevada’s top political operatives and access to cutting edge tools and resources needed to run a successful campaign. We could not do this without you!
With the Class of 2022 in full swing, many Emerge alumnae and supporters are reaching out to ask how they can best support our newest class. The tuition for our Signature Training covers only a portion of our overall programming costs, and we depend on supporters like you to fill the gap so we can continue our work to identify and recruit women of the New American Majority. Especially as we approach the 2022 midterms, a consequential election for Nevada, we need your support now more than ever. Can we count on you to give a $25 monthly contribution to support the women in the Class of 2022? This will help ensure our long-term sustainability and success, so women have their voices heard in every room where decisions are made about them, their families, and their communities. Thank you for your generosity!  Thank you for your ongoing commitment to ensuring women are represented up and down the ballot in Nevada. Your support helps us provide the resources and high-quality training needed to elect women to represent us state-wide and locally.
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