Our Annual Seacoast Walk is going to look a little different this year!  The committee is still ironing out details but we have a date, a time, a theme and (hopefully) several locations.   

Because of COVID-19 concerns, thousands of Granite Staters might not vote this year due to fear of exposure to coronavirus and bringing it home to their loved ones.  The Secretary of State and Attorney General are allowing use of the absentee ballot for anyone who has this fear, but only 12% of Americans have ever voted by absentee. 

Our mission this year, is sending the message to everyone with whom we come in contact -- socially distanced contact, of course -- to encourage them to request an absentee ballot.  The date will be Sunday, July 5, 2020 2 PM.   To comply with New Hampshire's current COVID-19 orders, no more than 10 people can gather in one place, so we will have have groups of 10 people carrying "Burma Shave"-style sequential message signs letting people know about Absentee Voting.

Location #1: (This group stays in one place)  Lafayette Plaza Shopping Center, 775 Lafayette Rd., Portsmouth has great visibility and plenty of parking.  ALL PARTICIPANTS RALLY AT THIS LOCATION AT 2 PM FOR SIGNS & INSTRUCTIONS, THEN DISPERSE TO OTHER LOCATIONS.  BRIAN BEIHL WILL GO TO YOUR LOCATION BETWEEN 4:15 & 4:45 TO PICK UP YOUR SIGNS AND OTHER SUPPLIES.

Location #2:  (This group will walk into town and back)  Connect Community Church, 200 Chase Dr., off of Market Street, within sight of the Albacore submarine display.   You'll be walking from there in maximum visibility areas and return to your starting point.  

Expansion location:  Location #3: Pease Park & Ride, 185 Grafton Dr., Portsmouth.  Also great visibility and plenty of parking at the park & ride.   If used, we will provide more details as we get closer to the date.

More people = More visibility! More visibility means more people may vote!

We'll get back to you about which location you would prefer for walking or standing.   For every 10 people who RSVP, we will add another location.

If you are interested in participating, please RSVP immediately and let us know, so we can make enough signs and get the necessary permits.

You'll need to bring:

• A water bottle (we'll have refills)
• A hat and sunscreen
• Walking shoes
• A chair if you need one
• We'll have a COVID-19 "money mask" out of cotton money print fabric for all participants

We'll have:

• A sign for you to hold - We're making them so they look consistent
• Water refills and a few water bottles if you forget
• Some absentee ballot applications
• Snacks
• Enthusiasm!