There’s a very impactful group of Democrats in town that flies beneath the proverbial radar – Bernards Township Progressive Women. The cohort first came together as a very small private Facebook group started by Lisa Bahler in 2016 and grew exponentially after Trump’s first election. Today, the Progressive Women’s page boasts more than 500 followers.

Initially virtual, the team began meeting in person monthly, beginning in Feb 2017, after the first Women’s March in DC. Meetings were regularly attended by about 30 people, all of whom thought they were alone as Democrats in Basking Ridge. At one of these meetings, Karen Haase-Gray volunteered to become an admin to help Lisa in vetting the growing FB group. Susan Goldsmith ran the meetings with agendas and Google docs, and the group created a list of goals and objectives. 

Their primary missions were to unseat Leonard Lance from NJ-7, elect a Democratic governor, flip some county offices and get some like-minded people on the township committee. Lots of women volunteered to help. Although the BTDC was non-existent at that time, Nancy D’Andrea stepped up and resurrected it. Others such as Jennifer Kluger spearheaded postcard writing events to help get out the vote. Many people, such as Suzanne Glassman and Laurie Saloman, worked in local campaigns. 

While the group’s objectives didn’t become realized right away, slowly but surely, they assisted the BTDC in effecting change. Key victories included electing Joan Bannan to the Township Committee, Tom Malinowski to NJ-7, Phil Murphy as governor, and helping to elect democrats at the county level. Today, headed up by Claudia Hodges, Karen Haase-Gray and Lisa Bahler, Bernards Township Progressive women continue to help fuel the BTDC’s efforts.

There’s much to celebrate these days, too, as Bernards elected candidates from Mikie Sherrill on down the ticket to the first democratic majority on the township committee in nearly 90 years. If you’re interested in joining this group. Please see their Facebook page and apply for inclusion. https://www.facebook.com/groups/BernardsTwpProgressiveWomen

– Jen Aaron