IAM141 Supports Pins for Pups Charity Event
Union Comes Together to Help Puerto Rico
The good reports keep coming in from the recent Union sponsored relief effort for the people of Puerto Rico. In this 2 minute video segment we hear from our own V.P at Large from District 141 Bill Wilson, fellow AFL CIO Sister union TWU VP Angelo Cucuzza , AFL CIO Nick Alpers and IAM member from 1776 Milo Dabney.
Big Weekend for Guide Dogs of America and IAM141
IAM members from the US and Canada along with District 141 and its locals membership support the Guide dogs of America charity events!
5 Simple Tips from One of the Top Union Fundraisers in the Nation
Fundraisers are great tools for union activists. They are excellent ways to raise awareness for a cause, and to establish your local lodge as one of “the good guys.” Spending time and effort helping support a worthwhile cause will improve the unique culture of your local, promote the values of your membership, and can provide a valuable networking opportunity for your local to connect with outside activists and community groups.
Chicago’s Local 1487 has established itself as a leader in the world of union fundraising. It’s Annual Golf Outing, for example, has become one of the largest and most successful charity sporting events in the IAM. Each year, they raise thousands of dollars in support of various charities, while simultaneously attracting the active participation of hundreds of members and dozens of business partners.
Here are some very simple tips from Greg Klujewski, the Recording Secretary of Chicago’s Local 1487, and the mastermind behind some of their most successful charity events.
1. Before you do anything else, make sure that you get help, and can get attention.
According to Greg Klujewski, the first step to organizing any successful charity event is to build a team. Any big event will need to be fun and engaging, but it will also be a lot of work. Having a team of event organizers that are dedicated to seeing the project through all the inevitable challenges that it will face will be critical. It helps if the team has at least one or two members that can make on the spot decisions. For example, Greg frequently works with the Secretary Treasurer Mike Finn and Tony Licciardi, the President of Local 1487. Together, the team has all the needed authority to make binding decisions about whatever project they are working on.
Once a team has been put together, it is important to ensure that your event has the support of the membership. Every charity project at 1487 tries to attract as much member support as possible. This is also an important part of advertising the event–activists at 1487 build up a “buzz” around their events as they allow the membership to see how much work goes into the charity events.
2. Partners are better than Donors.
It may seem obvious, but donor support is a two-way street. Good friends do not only come around when they need money. You need to develop and maintain healthy relationships with donors and sponsors – even when you aren’t asking them for money. Greg Klujewski doesn’t think of these businesses, individuals and organizations as “donors” that may help fund a project as much as “partners” that help make it happen in the first place.
Generally speaking, it is better to invite donors to participate in your event than it is to ask them for money. If they can’t attend or participate directly at your event, then they may want to donate financially.
3. Set a budget based on your level of support.
Once third party support has been determined, and organizers have a good idea of how much support the event will have, a solid budget can be set up. It’s a little tricky to determine a budget before business partners and donors come on board, since they will be carrying a part of the financial workload.
4. Make it personal.
The President of Chicago’s Local 1487, Tony Licciardi, is a ‘people’ person. He likes the people that he works with, and they like him back. He relies on healthy relationships with the membership, including personal friendships and networking to make sure that everyone is invited and feels welcome to charity events, and that nobody feels left out.
5. Give it time.
The biggest secret of success in charity fundraising, based on the amazing work being done at Local 1487 is…that there is no secret formula. If there is one single outstanding feature of Local 1487 fundraisers it is that they are very methodically planned out, and no shortcuts are taken. They are not planned out and executed quickly. It takes time for potential sponsors and business partners to be contacted in person. It takes time to make sure that everyone finds out about the event, gets properly invited, and for them to make plans to attend.
Does your local hold charity fundraisers? Do you have any tips or advice for union activists that wasn’t on this list? We would love to hear about the important work that your local lodge is doing. Send your ideas and stories to us at Contact@IAM141.org.
Courage and Solidarity Amid the Destruction of Harvey
Airline workers have grown accustomed to working long hours in terrible weather. They are comfortable in high-stress, time-sensitive situations where the margin for error almost does not exist.
It should come as no surprise, therefore, that airline workers were often at the forefront of community responses to Harvey. Here are a few of their stories.
Jo Angel Hernandez and his sister look over their mother’s flooded home. Jo helped at least 30 residents save their vehicles as his own apartment flooded
About an hour before daybreak on Monday morning, August 29, the San Jacinto river reached Kingwood, Texas. The floodwaters, which had been partially controlled by a network of Texas bayous, suddenly broke free, and destroyed dozens of homes in a nearby apartment complex.
IAH Ramp Agent, Jo Angel Hernandez and a friend began waking residents, alerting still sleeping families to the danger. They were soon joined by fellow United Ramp Agent and IAM141 member, Nate Kardachi, who also helped them push disabled vehicles through the rising water to safety.
Together, they were able to prevent the destruction of at least 30 cars in their apartment complex. Unfortunately, while helping to save so many of their neighbor’s vehicles, Jo and Nate both lost their own homes to the flood. Jo Hernandez also watched as his mother’s home was inundated in the creeping, relentless water.
Rather than simply ride out the storm, volunteers like Steve Dovi helped rescue their neighbors.
Steve Dovi, a member of Local 811 in Houston, set out to help people.
“Monday was eye opening experience. I saw the kindness of people coming together to help each other out. I spent most of the day helping with water rescue and driving families to local shelters.”
Together with other volunteers, Steve was able to successfully rescue evacuees ranging in age from infants to the elderly.
Flooding is a nearly silent, deceptively slow moving disaster. It is very easy to underestimate the danger posed by flooding. Without help from alert volunteers like Steve, Harvey would have been even more devastating to Texas residents.
Rey Hernandez helped save his community.
Rey Hernandez is member of Local 811, a Ramp Lead and a proud Houstonian… who just happens to own a truck with a 6-inch lift and a boat.
Those elements combine to create someone that isn’t willing to let a flood wipe out his community.
Rey used his boat and his high-profile truck to rescue over 100 people in 3 days and get them to shelter. “I had to help, and 6 feet of water wasn’t going to stop me,” Rey said.
Brother Kevin Bejerano organized his neighbors in a donation drive to help those in need. He is a Member of local 811.
“I’m glad my immediate family wasn’t impacted this time. That wasn’t the case for us in the Tax Day Flood, so I know how it is… and I know how it feels to see your house under water. We can all help. We gathered up some donations between us and my neighbors and headed to George R Brown.”
-Kevin Bejerano
Jorge Revuelta is a United PCE agent at IAH, and a member of local 2198.
On August 28th, Jorge set out from his Woodlands, Texas, home to help his neighbors. At 9:00 Jorge got a call from his son in law telling him that they needed to help out in a nearby neighborhood.
They grabbed their boat and headed out to the flooded streets, facing water more than 7 feet deep.
They first rescued an elderly couple who gave them a bottle of vodka.
Naturally, they accepted the gift…because they didn’t want to be rude.
Throughout the day, Jorge and his son in law saved more than 20 families. Most of the evacuees were elderly people and their pets.
Jorge had joined a small fleet of rescue boats that had formed to help the community escape the rising water. Jorge’s hard work and leadership attracted the attention of television crews, and he was featured on Fox 26 Houston. Firefighters showed up 4 hours after the community had started rescue services.
Jorge recounted that, at the end of the ordeal, he was almost to the point of collapse; seeing so many people lose so much had taken a painful toll on the volunteers.
Jorge was struck by the amazing diversity of the rescuers, saying, “Out there were rich and poor, white, black, Asian and Hispanic, Republican and Democrats… we were all the same on that day.”
80% of the endangered families in that area were saved thanks to help from Jorge and the other volunteers.
Most of the rescued families were on roofs and second floors.
According to early estimates from EAP Regional Coordinator Bahiyyah Wright, at least half a dozen members of Local 2198 and at least another dozen members of Local 811 in Houston
have suffered the total loss of a vehicle or the use of their home – or both. “We expect that the number is much higher, but we haven’t been able to speak with others affected directly,” said IAM141 Trustee, Maria Tusa. “Hopefully, today we will be able to touch base with more members.”
There is currently an ongoing and critical need for emergency assistance in the Houston area. Please visit the IAM Disaster Relief Fund page or an EAP Peer Coordinator to find out how you can help.
We are looking for stories of IAM141 members helping to make the world a better place. If you know of a story that you would like to share with us, please contact the IAM141 Communications Department at info@IAM141.com, or call (224) 239.3496 and tell us about it.