Home Town Pride: Lodge 811 Continues A Long-Standing Commitment to Community Service with Annual Toy Drive for Pediatric Cancer Patients

Commitment To the Community: Local 811 Toy Drive for Pediatric Cancer Patients

Local Lodge 811’s Women’s Committee recently dropped off a large donation of toys from their latest toy collection project for Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston, Texas.

In previous years the local donated any type of toy to all children at the hospital, but this time, the committee chose to collect specific toys for bed-ridden pediatric cancer patients: puzzles, word games, books, and hand-held electronics.

Local 811 Secretary Treasurer Sarah Monderoy Garcia has been on the Women’s Committee since 2013. She, Lodge 811 Vice President Nelson Yanes, Trustee Adrienne Coleman, Charlotte Lazard, and Evelita Everitt make up 811’s Women’s Committee, which is continually collecting donations for different organizations.

“We’re always doing some type of drive, whether it’s toiletries, clothing, or toys. We like to target different areas of need in the community,” said Garcia.

The committee encouraged members to bring donations to union meetings and advertised with flyers on the break-room bulletin boards at George Bush Intercontinental Houston Airport (IAH) where Local 811 members work for United Airlines as ramp service employees, ground crew, and stores material specialists (members who work side-by-side with mechanics to provide parts for planes).

The committee strategically decides to host their toy drives in the summer time, the “off-season,” because hospitals typically receive an abundance of toy donations over the holidays but are running low and have new patients come summer.

Richard Johnsen, General Vice President of the Machinists’ newly formed Air Transport Territory, expressed optimism that the Machinists and the ALU could forge a strong alliance. “We are more than just unions,” said Johnsen. “We’re also part of a movement. People are tired of sitting on the sidelines. They want to act, they want to make changes. That’s why this campaign at JetBlue is so exciting; it’s a vital part of a larger movement to prove that working people deserve just as much respect as managers and executives.”

Johnsen also pledged to work closely with the ALU, including hammering out a potential agreement to open the renowned Winpisinger Education Center to ALU members. “The Winpisinger Center is the largest labor school in North America,” he said. “It has an expert teaching staff that holds classes on things that matter to unions. Things like contract negotiations, leadership training, arbitration, organizing and more. It’ll be a great asset to JetBlue Crewmembers once they come on board, and I hope that ALU members will look into the opportunity to find out more about the Winpisinger Center.”

Southwest Airlines Union Contract; Top Out Pay Rate $35 per hour

Southwest Airlines IAM Members Vote In Industry Leading Contract; Top Out Pay Rate $35 per Hour Justice at JetBlue16 December 2022IAM members at Southwest Airlines voted yesterday to approve an industry-leading contract. The four-year contract provides for the below...

JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes Extends his Contract

JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes Extends his ContractJustice at JetBlue14 December 2022In a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing yesterday, JetBlue Airways announced that CEO Robin Hayes’ CONTRACT has been extended two years to 2025. At the same time, JetBlue...

JetBlue Ground Workers to Vote for Machinists Union

JetBlue Ground Workers to Vote for Machinists UnionJustice at JetBlueFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASENovember 29, 2022, WASHINGTON DC—The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) today announced that the National Mediation Board (NMB), the federal...

Historic Union Alliance at Delta

Delta is now facing three of the largest unions in North American at the same time. Get ready for pizza parties. Historic Union Alliance Forms at DeltaGOIAM.org28 November 2022North America's three largest airline unions have formed a historic alliance to unify tens...

Related News

United Airlines Negotiations Update

United Airlines Negotiations Update

Our primary focus was discussing Article Four issues in the Passenger Service and Fleet contracts. Unfortunately, there continues to be a significant gap in the discussion over improving quality of life issues that are very important to our members, such as shift...

Jill Hazamy Named Vice President at Large for IAM District 141

Jill Hazamy Named Vice President at Large for IAM District 141

Jill Hazamy Named Vice President at Large for IAM District 141IAM141.org1 March 2025Jill Hazamy Brings Experience and Dedication to New IAM RoleJill Hazamy, a dedicated union leader at United Airlines, has been appointed IAM District 141 Vice President at Large by...

IAM District 141 Appoints Sue Weisner as Vice President, West

IAM District 141 Appoints Sue Weisner as Vice President, West

Sue Weisner Appointed Vice President, WestIAM141.org1 March 2025Sue Weisner Steps Up to Support IAM Members in the WestIAM District 141 President Mike Klemm has appointed longtime United Airlines leader Sue Weisner as Vice President, West, effective March 1, 2025....

Share This