Welcome to the Wood County Green Party, 2024!
Thank you to everyone who voted for Joe DeMare for Mayor of Bowling Green in the November, 2023 elections. Joe received over 26% of the vote, not bad for a Green. Unfortunately, this means business as usual in Bowling Green with a continuation of BG's penalty on rooftop solar, and the plan to tear down BG's iconic wind turbines. The City will continue to get 60% of its electricity from the Prairie State Coal Plant in Illinois, one of the dirtiest coal plants in the nation. One thing we learned in the campaign is that the overwhelming majority of BG residents don't agree with any of these policies. Unfortunately, they weren't yet comfortable with voting for a Green in order to reverse them. Thank you, again to those that had the courage to step out of the two party system and vote for change.
We will continue to be a voice for reason in Wood County, following the Green's Ten Key Values of Ecological Wisdom, Grassroots Democracy, Non-Violence, Social Justice, Feminism, Locally Based Economics, Personal and Global Responsibility, Decentralization, and Future Focus.
We have a busy month in April. On Saturday, April 6 at 1 PM, we are bringing a free movie to the cinema at the Woodland Mall. Salt of This Sea is a story of a Palestinean American woman who travels to Palestine to try to reclaim her grandmother's inheritance. She runs into the brutal reality of Israeli occupation. This is part of the Palestine Film Festival organized by the Media Decompression Collective of Toledo. They are showing films all over NW OH. Next we will have a table at the Eco-Fair at BGSU on April 10. We need volunteers to sit at the table between 11 and 2. On April 22, Joe has his annual Earth Day Party, all Greens are welcome.
Also, we are now participating every Sunday at a protest against the continued slaughter of innocent Palestineans. The protest runs 2 to 4 in the afternoon at the corner of Main and Wooster. Come and join us!
We meet the last Friday of each month at the home of Joe DeMare, Co-Chair contact him at joe.demare@woodcountyohgreenparty.org for details. We'd love to have you join us!
HOME
Wood County Ohio Green Party
Welcome to our webpage! The Green Party is the only Party dedicated to Ecological Wisdom, Non-Violence, Grassroots Democracy, and Social Justice! Help us as we work towards a Green future!
Why a Green Party?
It's clear neither Republicans nor Democrats are making the changes we all need to survive. We need Greens in office in Wood County if we hope to tackle problems like global warming, income inequality, and growing violence in our society.
Greens follow the Four Pillars of; Ecological Wisdom, Grassroots Democracy, Social Justice, and Non-Violence. That's how Green campaign, and that's how they'll govern when they're in office in Bowling Green. If you believe in these principles, join us and consider running for office!
Save Rooftop Solar!
In 2020, BG's Municipal Utility Board imposed a penalty on rooftop solar panels, cut the reimbursement rate for solar in half, and established other policies designed to block rooftop solar. This is the opposite of what is needed right now. We need to elect people who will encourage solar and wind and get us out of our 50 year contract with the Prairie State Coal Plant in Illinois!
Bike Lanes!
Enough excuses! In poll after poll, a vast majority of BG residents say that they want bike lanes. The City Council has been talking about bike lanes for over a decade. It's time to elect Greens who will actually make it happen. One thing most BG residents agree on is that the current system of "Sharrows" is a failure.
Volunteer!
Come help us build the Green Future in Wood County! It's going to take hard work and a lot of people working together to create a real alternative to the two ordinary parties. We had over 20 volunteers for our booth at the Wood County Fair, last year. In 2023, we had many volunteers going door-to-door for Joe's campaign almost every night. One thing you can do is help us get the word out! Go to the Contact page to hook up!
Meet BG's next Mayor!
Joe DeMare has owned a home in Bowling Green for over ten years. His son, Joseph D. DeMare, graduated from BGSU. His wife, Carolyn Kawecka passed away in 2021, but Joe has decided to stay in the community he has come to love so much. For the past ten years, Joe has been a consistent voice of progress in Bowling Green, fighting to end BG's penalty on rooftop solar, fighting for bike lanes, and supporting his friend Neocles Leontis's call for inspections of rental properties that would keep BG renters safe from substandard housing. As Mayor, he will fight for policies that will benefit all BG residents, not just the landlords.
Joe is retired now, but he spent most of his last years of working as a machinist at an industrial ceramics plant in Perrysburg. Before that, he had worked as a teacher, a professional grant writer (where he administered multi-million dollar budgets), a computer consultant, in corporate america, and even in retail and food service. He feels that his broad work experience helps him relate to a broad range of people in Bowling Green.
