Lake of the Woods Democratic Club

Shannon Doherty, education manager for Historic Germanna, will represent the Wilderness Battlefield Coalition at the LOW Democratic Club on Feb. 13, speaking about issues facing Orange County as a result of the planned Wilderness Crossing development on Route 3.

The 2,600-acre development is expected to include data centers as well as other commercial and residential enterprises.

The club’s meeting will take place in Classroom 2 of the LOW Community Center. A gathering period will begin at 1 p.m. and the program will commence at 1:30 p.m. All are welcome to attend, regardless of political affiliation.

The Wilderness Battlefield Coalition (whose partners include the American Battlefield Trust, Central Virginia Battlefields Trust, Cedar Mountain Battlefield Foundation, Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks, Friends of Wilderness Battlefield, Historic Germanna, Journey Through Hallowed Ground, National Parks Conservation Association, National Trust for Historic Preservation, Piedmont Environmental Council and Preservation Virginia) formed to build legal and public pressure on officials to reconsider allowing the project to move forward and to educate the public about the proposed development and its impact on the battlefield.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Wilderness Battlefield Coalition announced that the Wilderness Battlefield was named one of the nation’s 11 most endangered historic places due to the threat of a massive 2,600-acre development that is proposed for neighboring land in Orange County.

The American Battlefield Trust, the Central Virginia Battlefields Trust, Friends of the Wilderness Battlefield, and neighboring landowners have filed a lawsuit challenging the rezoning.

Dave Leichtman, director of global elections for Microsoft Corp., will be guest speaker at the Lake of the Woods Democratic Club’s January 9 meeting.

The meeting will begin with a gathering period at 1 p.m. in Classroom I at the LOW Community Center. The program will start at 1:30 p.m.

Leichtman’s experience has given him a informed perspective on the state of democracy throughout the the world and expertise on the accuracy and security of elections in the United States.

As part of Microsoft’s Democracy Forward program, Leichtman leads nonpartisan civic engagement efforts and works with election officials and those upholding democracy worldwide to address tech, security, and AI needs. He also leads the company’s internal U.S. and international election strategy.

According to its website, the goal of the Democracy Forward program is “to preserve, protect, and advance the fundamentals of democracy by safeguarding open and secure democratic processes, promoting a healthy information ecosystem, and advocating for corporate civic responsibility.”

Leichtman has held this and similar roles for 10 years at Microsoft. Prior to that, he held leadership roles at several U.S. political technology firms. He also served as state leadership of Virginia Democrats for over a decade. Dave holds a B.S. degree in physics and computer science from the College of William and Mary and an M.S. degree in particle physics from the University of Washington. He lives in Arlington, Virginia.

Microsoft’s Democracy Forward Program