Cissy Rasmussen/ Getting Stronger Together
Cissy Rasmussen moved around quite a bit growing up, but she was happy to put down roots almost three decades ago in Orem, Utah, her husband’s hometown. They’ve raised their six children there, and Cissy always made it a point to know her neighbors, be involved in her kids’ classrooms, and serve on school community councils and the PTA. But beyond those circles close to home, she was somewhat disconnected from the civic scene. “I didn’t even know about my local school district and its board members,” Cissy relates, and it wasn't until the last decade when she was out of the “baby and toddler” phase that she was able to pay more attention.
As Cissy tells it, “I think my advocacy and ‘politics’ started when my kids’ elementary school was slated for closure. Initially, I was upset, but after meeting with people and asking a lot of questions, I ended up not just supporting the closure but helping the parents advocate for that closure.” A few years later when a larger school issue was being discussed in Orem, Cissy knew her voice mattered. She commented in City Council meetings and posted on social media, and other Orem residents with similar concerns noticed. Though they didn’t all know one another before, they connected and coordinated and their efforts snowballed as they spoke up “calmly, persistently, with facts and experience.” They formed a political issues committee, Stronger Together.
The group’s efforts paid off, and the issue they were against was defeated at the ballot box by 72%! But Cissy and the other Stronger Together leaders didn’t rest; they knew how important these local issues are and they knew they could make a difference. Through their enthusiastic Facebook group, their PAC called Stronger Orem, and eventually their nonprofit organization, they have worked to find common ground on local issues and have supported nonpartisan candidates for local offices who do the same.
When asked what the most important part of her experience with Stronger Together is, Cissy says, “It has been the healing experience of seeing people of all political parties, religions, backgrounds, ages, etc. come together on common ground. Our country seems to be constantly dividing into tribes; what I saw in the 2022 and 2023 elections defied all those boundaries. It was inspiring and life-changing for me to see people, some who had never voted in a non-presidential race before, come together and work hard for something they all believe in. It was the kind of energy and teamwork that we would hope to see in our community.”
Cissy passionately encourages people to become familiar with local issues and local government, because those areas impact people’s lives more than they realize. Also, she hopes people will get out of their comfort zones and take the time to discuss these issues with their neighbors and friends, even if it doesn’t feel polite or comfortable. She says that talking to people about local issues in real ways “is a simple, but important community-building action.”
So what does Cissy recommend you do if you want to find the feeling of community engagement that local political involvement gave her? “Find your passion and work on that. We don’t all have to be experts and problem-solvers for everything. Do your small part, and if you can, make it a little bigger later. Then share that passion with friends, and our actions become, as Desmond Tutu said, drops of water that can come together and almost overwhelm the world.”
Cissy adds, “And vote. Always vote. If you don’t know who or what to vote for, find people you trust and listen to them. But always vote.”