See you on the other side!

Bill McKibben, for Third Act

Flash forward to the present, and now I’m one of those Third Act staffers listening to and learning from hundreds of amazing volunteers each week. As the Network Campaigns Lead, I interact with our working groups every day, so I know that these volunteer-led groups are the heart and soul of Third Act.

Most working groups are geographically based, but some are nationwide affinity groups, based on passion or past professional experience. All of us believe that elder power can be harnessed to fundamentally transform our culture and our politics. Taking on the financial and political forces that threaten our climate and our democracy is a daunting task. But Third Actors are committed to  sustained, collective action to tip the balance of power away from fossil fuels and fascist tendencies and towards clean energy and a healthy democracy.

We embrace a relational model of organizing where we build trust and confidence in each other over time. Our tiny yet dedicated staff trains and organizes groups which then make it a priority to reach out and engage an ever-growing number of Third Actors, finding a place for everybody to make a difference. Volunteers research local issues, write postcards, and lobby decision makers. They attend outreach events, work with local media, register voters, and organize public protests with Third Act staff supporting them as needed.

All of this takes time, dedication, and a lot of resources! In addition to our thirty existing working groups, the Third Act staff is committed to establishing a vibrant group in every state as soon as possible. This is no time to think small! We know we have no time to waste.

Which brings up another Third Act working principle: “Be generous, but not to a fault.” We all want our generation to leave a legacy to be proud of, so we give generously of our time, talent, and treasure. In just two years, we have grown to 70,000 strong. But we need at least twice that number to meet the urgency of the challenges we face in 2024 and beyond! To meet that goal, we have set up a new fundraising campaign called the  No Time to Waste  fund, with a goal of raising $500,000 in 2023.

Third Act is the nation’s home for activists over sixty working to protect our climate and our democracy. Won’t you join me in supporting this urgent  No Time to Waste  campaign so we can start off strong in 2024?

Happy Holidays!

In Solidarity,
Melanie L. Griffin

Third Act co-founder Bill McKibben tells us that the best thing an individual can do to address the climate crisis and attacks on democracy is to stop acting like an individual.  That is why we all joined Third Act.  With fellow Third Actors, we will be more powerful and able to take action collectively.

It has been so satisfying to work with local Third Act volunteers who are eager to join and make a difference with the most vital issues of our time. So many fellow elders have been searching for this home to fulfill their commitment to making a difference for our families and our future.

One of the best ways to make this happen is to get active in a Third Act state or affinity working group.  But in over half of the country, our members still do not have a local working group to join.  We have made amazing progress in organizing working groups over the past two years, but much more needs to be done. All of our members need access to state working groups to plan and implement dynamic and effective local and state campaign actions.

Third Act needs additional resources urgently so that we can recruit, train and empower volunteers to establish working groups in every state and Puerto Rico.  Right now we are organizing as quickly as we can, but we are at capacity.

Your donation to the No Time to Waste Fund can help us reach our $500 thousand goal and then we expect to:

• Add two additional organizers to our team to expand the support we can provide, and start Working Groups where we don’t yet have them, 
• Increase the direct support we can offer to Working Groups for their own trainings, actions, and materials,
• Add digital support for Working Group leaders building a web-presence, coordinating events online, and for maintaining our CRM, data, and privacy work;   
• Support two (out of five) in-person regional convenings

Your support can build Third Act communities ready to fight for a better future. Working together we can get much more done than we can as individuals. Can you chip in now to help resource Third Actors to respond quickly—as needed, when needed, where needed?

Your fellow Third Actor,

Bruce Hamilton, National Volunteer

Nevadans saw first-hand the power of Third Act in the last election—CNN highlighted your powerful work to knock on doors and rally voters to protect Sen. Cortez Masto’s Senate seat in northern Nevada. Third Actors were ambassadors at over 800 schools in the U.S. to set up voter registration drives for high school seniors, which reached 100,000+ new voters. You’ve sent over 46,000 postcards to voters to help raise turnout. This commitment to free and fair elections is crucial, and it’s inspiring. 

If you haven’t already done so, I hope you will donate to support Third Act’s No Time to Waste Campaign to build an even stronger movement going into 2024. To build communities and a society that we can believe in, it will require everyone’s participation. We’re counting on you!

This election week, and each week between now and November 2024, we need to defend every eligible American’s right to vote, remove barriers to voter participation, and make our elections as transparent as possible to maintain the public trust. Third Act can be an invaluable help. I’m glad to be on side with you all in the fight to protect our precious democracy.

Yours in service,
Cisco Aguilar
Nevada Secretary of State

Meanwhile, Donald Trump is polling ahead of Joe Biden a year out from the 2024 elections. That’s terrifying too, but if we fight like heck we can win this contest, and in the process push back authoritarianism for a generation.

Third Act is going to be key. We’ve identified a new, massive, and under-organized demographic: Americans over 60 who care about the future but need a vehicle to get involved. We’ve provided that vehicle, and it’s working powerfully in place after place.

Which is why we’ve launched this No Time to Waste fund. We’re hard at work to raise $500,000 by the end of this year to supercharge our organizing work and bring on a few more staff to help hold it all together. If you can pitch in, this is the time. Donate Today.

At the moment we’ve got more than 65,000 members, and a staff of about ten to tend to them. That’s one staffer per 6,500 volunteers, which is not good enough. We volunteers can accomplish a huge amount, but we need people pointing us in the right direction, coordinating our actions for maximum effect, and linking us up with other progressive groups.

We’ve been consciously putting the brakes on new recruitment because we lack the staffing to deal with the volunteers who come flooding in whenever we put the word out. But if we can raise some money before the year ends, then my guess is we’ll have 100,000 volunteers hard at work by the spring of next year—as the northern hemisphere heats up, and the election too.