The newly-elected Mower County DFL Executive Committee will hash out ways to raise funds Tuesday evening at Oak Park Mall.

At its first meeting since the Mower County DFL convention elected it on March 25, the new committee will focus on getting funds up to tackle its goals, Mower DFL Co-Chair Wanda Lunning said.

“Every year we have a picnic, usually in June or July,” she said. The event serves to pull money in for the party much like its annual chili feed in October. Lunning said there are other ideas floating around, including a possible rummage sale or prom dress exchange.

The party also plans to raise money through donations, which she said are always welcome but never required.

Funding will help the party with its plans to establish headquarters in Oak Park Mall and set up a booth at the Mower County Fair in August, Lunning said.

County democrats also plan to have the Mower DFL Central Committee more active this year. The central committee consists of the executive committee members plus the precinct chairs, who were elected at the caucus in February.

As election time nears, the party intends to register as many voters as possible, and arrange for ways to help them get to the polls.

Lunning said she’s excited about the new committee and the changes it may bring.

“There are more new people on the board than we’ve ever had,” she said, adding that about half of the committee’s 15 elected members are new. The party still needs to fill two open female director positions.

The variety of people attracted to the Democratic Party means it’s difficult to predict what action the committee will take on any given issue.

“We all come from different areas,” Lunning said. “There are areas that we can’t agree on.”

The party is interested in getting all ethnicities involved, she said. The convention brought Mower DFL one step closer to this goal with the committee addition of Vernal Lyle, a new U.S. citizen and former resident of Jamaica.

“He’s definitely going to be very good for getting this moving,” Lunning said. “Somebody with that much enthusiasm can make a big difference.”

The Mower County DFL meeting takes place 7-8:30 p.m. Tuesday in Oak Park Mall’s Cabin Fever 2 room. The meeting is free and open to the public.