Above from left: Aldridge Elementary principal Vincent Payne; Francia Moss-Abbott, Local 551 Women’s Committee co-chair; Linda Salatas, committee chair, and Local 551 President Carlo Bishop with student Janniya Hodge. At left is student Amarion Thomas.

Members of UAW Local 551 from Ford Motor Co.’s Chicago Assembly Plant are always reminded of the community in which they work because it’s in a neighborhood with school-age children, working-class families and subsidized housing.

Aldridge Elementary is just a stone’s throw from Altgeld Gardens, America’s oldest housing project and a former stop on the Underground Railroad.

The school presents one step toward a brighter future for many students – and the local’s small but mighty Women’s Committee is there to offer steadying support.

This force of five (and counting) had made a difference in the lives of Aldridge students by donating two laptop computers, two learning devices and three backpacks fully loaded with every school supply imaginable.

The committee raised money to purchase the items by selling ice cream sundaes and baked goods, along with having hot dog and Polish sausage sales in the plant during lunch breaks.

“Women have that natural nurturing instinct. It’s part of us, and we want things to just be right,” said Francia Moss-Abbott, committee co-chair. “This is just something that I was meant to do. I’m here to serve. It gives me the energy to just keep going.”

Carlo Bishop, the local’s president, said taking advantage of their community presence to build relationships and mentor young people is a given.

“We want to showcase labor’s story for the students because it’s an integral part of America’s history, and it’s relevant on how the world functions today,” he said.

“The company has an automatic mouthpiece from the buildings to the cars on the roads. Labor has to be the face of the success of these outcomes,” Bishop added. “We are key to this process and the solutions. It’s time we tell our story.”

The local has also adopted a nearby highway and worked with Habitat for Humanity building houses. In addition, they will kick off the 33rd Annual Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk in the coming weeks with a goal to raise $2,500 in honor of Felicia M. Flores-Perez, a Local 551 union sister who is recovering from breast cancer.

Gwynne Marie Cobb

Local 571 helps support food bank in Conn.

You might say volunteerism is as natural to William Dwyer as breathing. He lives to do it and does it to live.

Dwyer, or “Bill” to those who know him, isn’t just a UAW Local 571 member working at Electric Boat (EB) in Groton, Conn. He’s chair of the local’s Community Service/Recognition Committee, a community activist and a volunteer.

“I believe I’m here on this earth for a short time, and it’s my job to use that time to make a difference. If you can give back to your community and your friends, you should,” Dwyer said. “Since the 1970s, I have lived my life supporting my country in the military, our youth in Little League and my community through the United Way.”

Dwyer has worked since 2005 with the Gemma Moran Food Center in New London, Conn., organizing his fellow EB workers to stack, pack and load over 192 tons of food from the showroom floors of the two area casinos for the food bank. He and his co-workers have donated more than 1,000 hours of labor to get the food into the community where it’s needed.

He’s also active with the Southeastern United Way, one of the only unionized United Ways in the Northeast. And he’s helped coordinate EB’s annual drive to help raise a record-setting $1.5 million last year alone. Dwyer also has coordinated several “Day of Caring” events aimed to help beautify the community whether it be a local resident, community organization or small business.

“People want to do more and they do it better if you recognize their efforts. It’s incredibly rewarding to hear the volunteers say how good they feel about helping a co-worker, a community member or a local nonprofit,” he said. “It’s just common sense. Recognition mobilizes people, and I put a high value on that.”

Not one to just talk about recognition, Dwyer organizes the annual “Thank you for giving back” event for his union brothers and sisters.

“My work with the Union Recognition Committee is a way to thank our members for spending the time waving our union flag in the community,” he added.

Beverley Brakeman