Succinctly, speaker Gail Evans hit home her point. "When are the voters of Minnesota going to elect a woman to the U.S. Senate? When the women of Minnesota decide they want one!''

The resulting cheers for U.S. Senate candidate Amy Klobuchar were loud and long, rising from a crowd of about 500 at the Pantages Theatre in Minneapolis. Amy was the reason, after all, that Gail came to town—that and the fact Gail wants people to buy her best-selling book, "She Wins, You Win,'' a tome that inspires women to team up for success at work and in life.

The audience nodded knowingly as Gail, a former aide in the Lyndon Johnson White House, talked about gender inequities in America and the need for change. The 64-year-old lamented women's small numbers in top management positions in corporate America as well as in the halls of the U.S. Congress. Women are virtually half of the work force, but last year women held less than 15 percent of the directors' seats in Fortune 500 companies and only 14 of 100 U.S. senators are women, Gail said.

But those numbers can change if women quit going it alone and start working together, she said. Women need to connect and network just as men do in their good old boys' networks. "We've all been operating with the slogan, 'I can do it,' but the big slogan is, 'WE can do it,'We need to support each other,'' Gail said.

That's true in politics as well, she stressed. "I don't want you to favor a woman, but I do want you to lead your lives so that you always consider a woman." Look at the woman dentist, lawyer, drycleaner, businessperson or candidate with the same lens you would consider a man, she urged.

The crowd rose to its feet to welcome Amy to the stage. The candidate acknowledged that Minnesota has "had some trouble" electing women to Congress but said she aims to change that, outlining her positions on major issues, including education, national security, universal health care and energy. (For details, check out www.amyklobuchar.com)

The event itself was an example of the power of networking. In May, four Angels – Rebecca Yanisch, Margo Abdo O'Dell, Sue Wollan Fan and Steffany Stern - met over diet Cokes and popcorn. They brainstormed ways to monetarily fuel the Klobuchar campaign and introduce Amy to women not normally hooked into politics. Margo had the glistening idea to ask Gail Evans to speak and then single-handedly coaxed Gail to waive her speakers' fee and come.

Networking, the team reached out to other women. Seventy-five female hosts scrolled through their electronic address books and flipped through their Rolodexes, inviting friends to the event.

Monetarily, "It shattered our goals," Margo said, and significantly contributed to Klobuchar's record-setting fundraising quarter. Klobuchar raised$1.8 million this quarter, more than her opponent Mark Kennedy.

"Connections" is a quick-read email newsletter for women concerned about their countrCynthia y and the direction it is headed. It's commissioned by Amy's Angels - more than 500 women who intellectually and financially support Amy Klobuchar and her candidacy for the U.S. Senate. Look here for news and information about Amy and her campaign. Please forward this letter to others interested in learning more about Amy.

To learn more about Amy's Angels and how to become one, email or contact Jessica Wright at 651-714-2006. To learn more about the campaign, check out www.amyklobuchar.com.

-Cynthia Boyd Buoen, Volunteer and Connections editor and writer

-Courtney Kiernat Cushing, Photography

Amy has a strong lead against opponent Mark Kennedy, according to the Star Tribune's Minnesota poll released July 17. Amy polled 50 percent of likely voters' support, compared to Kennedy's 31 percent. Further, Amy has more support than her opponent in nearly every demographic category: men, women, liberals, independents, lower-and upper-income Minnesotans, seniors, urban dwellers, suburbanites and people living out-state.

In the gender category, she has the support of 54 percent of women, according to the newspaper's representative survey of 813 randomly selected adults.

The newspaper poll appears to reflect findings of a survey conducted last year among 2,000 women nationally for EMILY's List, a political network that supports pro-choice Democratic women candidates, including Amy.

That poll showed more than half of the women voters questioned believe the country is on the wrong track, including 60 percent of the Republican women interviewed.

"When voters look for change, they especially value women candidates. They don't see women as part of the old boys' network that's gotten us into this mess," explains Ellen R. Malcolm, president of EMILY's List. Check out that group at www.emilyslist.org. Amy has led every public poll in the U.S. Senate race.