Faith E. Ruffing – 2017 Candidate for 1st Vice Chair
Bio
I am a 75 year old Environmental Scientist born and raised in Ohio, worked my way through college as a research assistant at Case Western Reserve and Northwestern Universities and earned by Bachelor Degree in Biology in 1970 Soon after I moved to Oregon where I earned my Masters Degree in Biology and was advanced to candidacy for a Doctoral in Environmental Science at Portland State University in 1980. I worked for the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, City of Portland Bureau of Water Works and the U S Army Corps of Engineers. I started an Environmental Science Consulting firm, Sun Mountain Reflections in 1980. My clients included the City of Portland and the US Army Corps of Engineers and is still functioning today. I was active in the City of Portland Neighborhood Associations, worked on the Neighborhood Plan for Goose Hollow and the Environmental section of the Central City Plan. I played an active role in City and County elections and most recently have focused my time with the Multnomah county Democratic Party.
Political Experience
I have been a life time supporter of the Democratic Party and helped candidates get elected through contributions of time and money. Recently, I have worked for the Multnomah County Democratic Party spreading the word of the party. As Chair of the Platform, Resolution and Legislation Committee, I oversaw the development of the 2016 Multnomah County Democratic Party Platform. The Committee solicited ideas from County Democrats for inclusion in the Platform. These ideas were incorporated into Articles and Planks on Education, Economy, Social Security and Health, Equality, Energy and Environment, Community, Justice and Immigration. At present this committee is developing a 2017 Action Plan to help enact Legislation Agenda Items in the 2016 Platform into law and to draw on the legislators and community through the PCP’s to draft the next Platform later this year. This Platform can be used by the candidates to address issues raised by the community in their campaigns and by the community to assess the effectiveness of the legislator in advancing the ideas of the Platform.
Vision for the Multnomah County Democratic Party
My vision for the MCD is for a Party with members actively interacting with the community and the elected to bring about legislation to resolve issues brought forth by the community and formulated by the PCP’s into the Platform. As the main duty of the a First Vice Chair is to train the PCP’s, I will enlighten them of the Rules and activities of the Mult Dems and use my experience as Chair of the PRL C to guide the PCP’s in effective strategies to engage the electorate in discussions of the issues as outlined in the Platform. I will also be on hand to fill in for the Chair when called upon.