About the Card Campaign

elderly woman smiling

We are a volunteer grassroots team dedicated to disseminating verified information about the Trump presidency and how it impacts our democracy, citizens, and immigrants.

Our core group came together in January 2024 when Michele had the idea for the fact-spreading card campaign (not a mail campaign) and was almost immediately overwhelmed by the size of the task. Volunteers leaped in to help, and the team organically came together. Michele is exceedingly grateful for this team of volunteers, as she could not do it alone. We are all cheered by the vast outpouring of volunteers participating in card distribution.

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The Team

We may be a tiny group but that hasn’t slowed us down so far, I expect we will be around for awhile.

I was born in 1957 in a chicken shack that my father transformed into a tiny home, to immigrant parents—my mother was German-Jewish, and my father was Ukrainian. They met in a refugee camp in Germany, birthed my eldest sister and sailed on a refugee boat to America. Sailing into Ellis Island, they joined the millions who immigrated to America after WWII displaced them.  

When I was two years old, we moved into a proper household equipped with plumbing and other modern amenities. This new home was situated on a seven-acre property shared with three other Quaker families. My parents had met and joined this small Quaker Meeting before my birth. The Quaker community and neighboring farm families bestowed upon me invaluable blessings, forming a strong, principled foundation that has guided me throughout my life.

Leaping ahead to 2020, I began reading Heather Cox Richardson’s nightly letters in the spring. Her writings, which juxtaposed historical events with current events, sparked an interest in history, a subject I hadn’t previously paid much attention to. As the 2020 election approached, I was consuming news from many various sources. What an incredible relief that Biden won.

Fast forward to January 2024.

With an upcoming election, it was essential to sustain the positive momentum of the Biden administration’s first three years, with the goal of securing a second term. The ominous dark cloud on the horizon was Trump and Project 2025.

In December 2024, in a conversation with Heather Cox Richardson, I asked what I could do to support Biden’s re-election, especially for those who do not follow the news closely or pay attention to current events. She suggested I focus on sharing factual information about ongoing conditions as they affect people and on how both candidates are addressing them. She also recommended researching FDR’s rainbow flyers, which played a significant role in his re-election.

Inspired, I cobbled together a political campaign. And swiftly recognized I could not do this alone, I enlisted volunteers. Thanks to our dedicated team, the Card Campaign has grown into a well-organized, fact-based human political movement. 

Michele had the idea and got things started. As head writer, researcher, and contributor to all things campaign, she can be blamed for everything that goes wrong.

I’m Leslie.  More than two years ago, when Michele came up with the Card Campaign idea and commented about it on one of Heather Cox Richardson’s nightly letters, I immediately raised my hand to say, “I’m in!”  Michele took me up on the offer and I joined the team to research and co-author the cards, and co-admin our Facebook page.  I’ll be involved on other platforms as we expand our social media footprint. 

Having studied European history from the early 1900s through the end of World War II, I’ve been alarmed at seeing this country’s trend toward fascist authoritarianism.  An activist against the Vietnam War in my college years and for women’s rights early in my career, like so many others in this wonderful Card Campaign community, I truly didn’t think I’d be a pro-democracy activist at this point in my life.  Yet here we are. 

My working career was quite varied and included being a law enforcement officer, a tech writer, a small business owner, a real estate agent, and finally purchasing manager and HR director for a small manufacturing company in Vermont – all while tending to the animals on my farm.  Currently I live in small-town New Hampshire where I care for my mother (my best friend) and my very sweet, overly enthusiastic Australian Shepherd pup. 

Leslie jumped right into the deep end, willing to do it all. Her large skill set lands her as a writer, researcher, and database manager, and keeping an eye on everything else.

As for many of the Card Campaigners, my activism began as a teen, when protesting to end the war in Viet Nam, for racial equality, and for women’s rights were the issues. In the years since, I have witnessed the cycles of democracy fluctuate and know from experience that we need to advocate for ourselves and our country when politics goes off track. 

My work as a graphic and web designer has built the skills I use daily to communicate effectively, educate others, and advocate for change. For 17 years, I have been the founder and the Creative in Chief at Sirius Media and Associate Professor of Web Development at Clark College for a decade. I am a strong advocate for women’s rights, environmental protection, livable communities, and equal opportunities for all. 

I am grateful for this opportunity to be part of the Card Campaign, and am excited to build the next-generation website that will be easier to use, engaging, and accessible. Please let us know if you have any issues using the site, so we can make it better for everyone! 

Fellene Gaylord, our fabulous print and web graphic designer, has design skills that are a dream come true for this team. Learn more about her work at https://sirius-media.com

I’m Katya. Growing up as a fourth-generation Washingtonian (DC, not state), with Watergate as local news and the Post in its glory days with Katharine Graham at the helm and Herblock’s cartoons on the editorial pages, made me a lifelong news and politics junkie. After finishing university and realizing that my degree in Russian and Chinese language was perfect preparation for selling my soul to the CIA, I landed first at a bookstore where I was one of only two non-native Russian speakers, with co-workers who had come out of the USSR through Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, and China (great for speaking practice, less so for my bank balance) and then at a scientific society as a proofreader and, later, copy editor for papers on Earth and its environment in space.

I live just outside DC with my husband of 40 years (yikes, how did that happen?), youngest daughter, and geriatric tabby cat. When not lending my electronic blue pencil to the Card Campaign, I can be found working on various other volunteer projects such as baking for worthy causes including a local soup kitchen, helping coach the high-school quiz team, and other pro-bono editorial work for family and friends; solving crosswords, Wordle (98% average), and other puzzles, and hosting a weekly eclectic folksinging and chocolate-tasting society. 

Katya, the editor, improves all the written material and contributes her own good ideas. She is a valuable member of the team.

Ed is the owner of Howling Print and Promo.  The rainbow sheep of the family, Ed and Howling Print and Promo hold the distinction of being the only nationally certified LGBT owned business in his very red home county in Ohio.  He believes in ensuring a future not just for himself, but for his two adorable young nephews.

When not printing up the next postcard, Ed can be found drinking too much coffee, reading a book, listening to music, or otherwise absorbing some Sci-fi or classic TV shows.

Ed began working with us last year when he offered to print the cards. His work has enabled many more people to use the cards. See his website at https://howlingpromo.com

smiling woman with curly hair

I’m Rochelle, the newest contributor to the Card Campaign.  I’m a portrait and political artist living in Seattle Washington, originally from the Boulder, Colorado area. Before discovering my passion for portrait art and painting political figures, I worked as a small business coach, a corporate buyer and merchandiser, and the owner of a children’s face-painting company. I am also an ordained, non-denominational spiritual peace minister. When I’m not painting, I’m learning about and experimenting with food forest creation and permaculture gardening. This year, in addition to gardening and raising chickens,  I will finally be getting my first beehives, a long-held dream come to life.

I see myself as a someone who searches to find the spark of divinity in people, and when I’m painting or doing anything else, that’s really what drives me. I am very moved by issues of social-justice, democracy, sustainability, simplicity, and equality.  I believe we are living in a truly remarkable, though difficult time, where the world is pivoting from a power-over to a power-together paradigm. It’s horrifying and amazing to be a part of this transition.

I come to the Card Campaign with a hope that I can help shine a light on the connection we all have to one another, and to serve my neighbors as we all move into a better world. I believe strongly in the work we are doing, and I believe that with truthful, sincere, and loving information, good people can come together on the issues that matter to us all.

When Rochelle offered to create original paintings for the website, we jumped at the chance. See more of her artwork at http://www.rochellewalden.com/

About the Artwork

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smiling woman with short hair

This piece is called The American Family. I painted these portraits individually and then placed them together into a composition. To me, this signifies the way we are each born sovereign and unique into very different communities and families, but come together to make-up a beautifully balanced American family. 

Women and girls make up the majority of Americans shown in this group, because they are the most disenfranchised citizens across all socio-economic lines. Being female in the United States means we earn 83% of what men earn for the same work, yet we comprise the largest number of college graduates, start the greatest number of small businesses, and carry the largest burden of poverty and primary caregiving for children and the elderly.

I have chosen colors and people that tie our communities together. We see lgbtq , black, white, asian, immigrant, alternately-abled and indigenous Americans represented here. We see workers, elders, people of different faiths, children, parents, and childless Americans. Red, white, and blue are woven throughout the portraits.  I wanted this piece to show how we are so diverse, yet we somehow match perfectly. There is a good will and a bright glow to this piece which I hope shows how we share the same hopes and dreams for our lives, our families and our communities.

— Rochelle Walden, April 2026