Red Wine & Blue has a big announcement… we’re going into Virginia! And we’re not just going in for one election, we’re going to have organizers on the ground year-round. So much of what we’re talking about this year – school boards, the Freedom to Parent – has its roots in Governor Glenn Youngkin’s election in Virginia. We can’t wait to meet and empower more Virginia women!

Speaking of Virginia, we’re joined this week by Julie Shepard, a mom in VA who’s become an inspirational advocate for public schools and for military families. She says she’s had to step up and get involved in order to advocate for her kids. Julie also shares her personal experiences with having a nonbinary child and why she was so glad that they had safe teachers to talk to about it.

Then Jasmine gets the chance to sit down with Penny Blue, Red Wine & Blue’s brand new program director in Virginia! Penny shares her thoughts about Virginia as a lifelong resident of the state, including the lessons she learned from her father who taught her to stand up for justice and to never feel like a second-class citizen. She even wrote a book about him called “A Time To Protest: Leadership Lessons from My Father Who Survived the Segregated South for 99 Years.”

Finally, Amanda, Rachel and Jasmine raise a glass to passing the 6th grade and inspirational young scholars in this episode’s “Toast to Joy.”

Can you believe it's been almost a year since Roe vs. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court? We’ll be talking about it on the podcast and across Red Wine & Blue, and we want to know... How have you found your voice? What actions have you taken during this past year? Our stories are the way we connect with each other and you can submit yours at go.redwine.blue/Dobbs.

For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected].

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