DEC Chair Kim Lorimier Addresses DWC

 

With her own story of hope and persistence, Democratic Executive Committee of IRC Chair Kim Lorimer encouraged fellow Dems to continue their efforts for the party.

I have “an unfailing belief that things can change,” Lorimer told members of the Democratic Women’s Club of IRC at the group’s November luncheon. Together the DEC, Young Democrats and the DWC can make a difference, she said.

Since becoming the DEC chair a year ago, Lorimer said the party has increased the Democratic vote in the county, opened a new downtown Vero Beach office with a constant stream of volunteers, and elevated its presence with events like Downtown Fridays.

Raised in Arizona, Lorimer said her childhood was conventional, with a solid education and good healthcare. She graduated from the University of Michigan, where she majored in performance music. She also has completed studies in advance web design at Sessions College of Professional Design.

Before gay marriage was recognized, Lorimer married her “soulmate,” Sue, in a civil union. Though initially her parents had misgivings regarding the relationship, at the wedding, she said, her father acknowledged that he had not lost a daughter but gained one.

A mother of two, her youngest daughter was born with a rare metabolic disease, requiring multiple hospitalizations and surgeries, including a multi-organ transplant when she was 8. She is now 16 and a junior in high school.  Though a transplant patient’s life is difficult, Lorimer said her daughter’s fortitude serves as her inspiration.

Two years ago, Lorimer moved to Vero Beach. When she arrived, she couldn’t find many Democrats.  So, after 48 years of being completely uninvolved in politics, she became an active Democrat.At the luncheon, Lorimer read an email she sent to Democrats the day after the election urging them to keep working for change.

“Rest, recover, shed tears, hug each other, go sit by our precious ocean and be reminded of the vastness of our world. Then join me in looking to the horizon with courage and hope. Nevertheless, they persisted.”

The DWC’s annual holiday party will be held at the Grand Harbor Clubhouse on Dec. 8.