The following press release was distributed last week by the AFL-CIO:

AFL-CIO to Sponsor Biggest Single-Day Women Voter Mobilization
in 300 Locations in 48 States
'Stirring the Pot' Events to Focus on Economic Issues 
and Encouraging Women to Vote

WASHINGTON, DC -- In what will be the largest, single-day, all-women voter mobilization for any mid-term election, thousands of women across the country will gather around kitchen tables, at coffee shops, in break rooms and in bars on Tuesday, Oct. 10 for "Stirring the Pot" events to discuss economic concerns going into the mid-term elections and to urge women to vote on Nov. 7. "Stirring the Pot" gatherings have already drawn women from 48 states -- from the small eastern town of Sharpsville, Pennsylvania (pop. 4,500), to the western metropolis of Los Angeles.

At the "Stirring the Pot" events working women will gather with co-workers, friends, neighbors and even strangers to discuss issues ranging from economic security to retirement to health care to education. Women at the events will also write postcards to women who have dropped out of voting to ask them to return to the polls. Examples of women who are hosting a 'Stirring the Pot' event on October 10th include:

WASHINGTON: Giving the unemployed a voice

Marcy McReynolds from Vancouver, Washington, is planning to host unemployed and disadvantaged women with the help of a friend who works at the YWCA. While she could have simply invited her professional friends who juggle motherhood while climbing the corporate ladder, Marcy opted to engage women she feels are among the most under-represented on the issues that affect their lives.

MICHIGAN: Singing the praises of first-time voters

Niki Nimmo and her 18-year-old daughter Kelsey of Caledonia are hosting an event with women from ages 18 to 80 at a local restaurant. Niki has invited her baby-boomer contemporaries as well as an 80-year old neighbor to be part of the discussion. Kelsey invited six friends -- all first-time voters. They've even invited a local folk singer to perform suffrage and Americana songs for the group.

VIRGINIA: Rallying women at the shipyard

Emily Harris of Portsmouth works at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard and is inviting women from various departments around the yard to discuss the issues generally but also those of their specific predicament: the threat of buyouts, retirement worries and the future of civil servants.

LOUISIANA: Returnees want to rebuild city, civic engagement

Rachel Levy, a recent Tulane graduate who has moved back to New Orleans to help in the city's rebirth, invited a few college girlfriends who have also returned to the city, as well as professors, to her "Stirring the Pot" dinner. Rachel thinks it is imperative for young women to be aware of the world around them and to be engaged in the political process.

MISSOURI: Bridging the left-right divide for women's sake

April Harris in St. Louis feels that politics has lost women's voices. She is inviting a nonpartisan array of women from multiple parties as well as media personalities and elected officials so that women can come together to begin making things run more smoothly again. She has 75 confirmed guests for her dinner.

MISSISSIPPI: Sorority sisters stress service

Tilda Neal is a reading specialist and project coordinator for an Ameri-Corp project, America Reads, at Mississippi State University. She's hosting a potluck dinner with friends, neighbors, co-workers and sorority sisters from Sigma Gamma Ro, the service sorority of which she's a member.

The "Stirring the Pot" gatherings are part of the AFL-CIO's largest voter mobilization program in the nation, aimed at increasing voter participation among working family households in one of the most important elections in generations. For more information, call 202-637-5018.