What’s LOHV been up to?

The League of Humane Voters started this quarter with two new chapter launches and a commitment to stop canned hunt facilities in NY State.

We interceded effectively in stopping a proposal for a canned hunt facility in Seneca County New York. Some of the details of that intervention are recounted elsewhere in this issue. That occasion again reemphasized the need to finalize our pending legislative proposal in the New York State legislature to outlaw canned hunt operations in the state.

Through our efforts, corresponding bills had been introduced in the two chambers of the New York State Legislature, the Assembly and the Senate, to outlaw canned hunts. A legislative session in New York State runs for two years. Since the bills had been introduced in 2007 they have to be approved by both chambers before the end of the 2008 legislative year and submitted to the governor for signature.

The Assembly passed bill A02612, sponsored by Assembly member Deborah J. Glick of the 66th Assembly district (Lower West side of Manhattan). The corresponding State Senate Bill S00784 sponsored by Senator Frank Padavan of the 11th Senate District (northern Queens) got stuck in the Senate Environmental Conservation Committee. Toward the end of the 2007 legislative year Senator Padavan using some extraordinary procedures crow-barred the bill out of the committee against the reluctance of the committee chair to pass the bill out of committee. There was not sufficient time left in the 2007 legislative year to get it to the Senate floor for a vote by the full Senate. So we are currently working on this final link to get the bill to the Senate floor for a vote and then on to the governor for his signature.

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New chapter launches in Florida look very promising at this time. Our first presentation was in Orlando on February 2nd. The venue was a great place called “Ethos Vegan Kitchen,” it had a full array of vegan baked goods ready for the attendees at 10:00 in the morning.

The presentation was enthusiastically received with much follow-up action in the week following.

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In the afternoon of the same day we drove to Tampa. The presentation had been arranged by Joan Zacharias and Jodi Chemes; it turns out that both are NY State transplants. We knew Joan from her activism in NY State and had the pleasure meeting Jodi Chemes a very active organizer in Florida—originally also from New York State.

The meeting was again enthusiastically received. We are expecting both groups to make substantial contributions toward the enactment of animal protective legislation in the very near future.

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With three chapters in PA already, another LOHV presentation was given in PA on February 16, 2008. Pittsburgh – where are you?

Tampa group in profound & intense discussion after the presentation.

In our last issue of C.A.S.H. we did not include the fact that the Duke Ellington Legacy Band graced LOHV with its presence at the NYC Dinner Cruise in October.

We hope to make up for that in this issue. Not only was the band there, but they were there with many of the musicians present. But for a brief dinner break, they played for almost two hours.

We thank Gaye Ellington and Edward Kennedy Ellington II., grandchildren of Duke Ellington. Gaye said: “Helping animals is good cause.”

We are grateful to all of the band members. Nancy Reed overcame her fear of water to join the band. Virginia Mayhew kept her balance regardless of the boat’s rocking in choppy, late October waters.

We also thank Nellie McKay, who also graced us with her presence. Nellie was a huge hit, delighting everyone when she sang Duke Ellington’s songs with the band. Here she is dancing to Duke’s music with his grandson!

The amazing vegan dinner that was prepared by Main Essentials chef, Enrique. Main Essentials is in Haverstraw, NY. It is all vegan, Caribbean cuisine.

Here is Enrique the chef and owner of Main Essentialsof Haverstraw, NY.

We regret not having a photo of the amazing vegan Caribbean food.

With Enrique is Marilyn Leybra, a wonderful wildlife rehabilitator and customer who is enjoying her time at the restaurant. Enrique’s mission is to bring healthful food to the world. He seems to be succeeding. This appeared in a Rockland Newspaper. For the first time in more than a decade, Rockland Country Day has changed lunch vendors from a commercial organization to a local restaurant. After a year of committee meetings, taste tests and student and parent comment, the school signed a one-year contract with Main Essentials, a Haverstraw vegetarian restaurant that caters to vegans — vegetarians who also don’t eat dairy or other animal products.