Niagara Falls, New Orleans – The Niagara-Orleans AFL-CIO Central Labor Council and its Affiliated Member Unions adopted a record 38 families for this Holiday Season.
The program donated $20,000 in clothing, toys and daily necessities. The need for help has risen over the years and the Labor Council’s total of families helped has risen also – from more than 10 several years ago to 28 last year and now 38. Working Union has allowed so many across Niagara County to maintain a good life for themselves and their families – so when it comes to giving back, Labor and its Members are usually the first in line to reach into their pockets when the call goes out.
“It ‘really amazes me,’” Niagara-Orleans Labor Council President Jim Briggs told WNYLaborToday.com. “We started out with ($200) per family because we ‘wanted to draw even more (Unions) into what would be a successful effort.’ Now, we’d budgeted ($300) per family, ‘but you can’t get much for ($300) these days – gas is up at the pump, people are experiencing double increases in their health care, paychecks are smaller… so we spent more.”
“Children ‘understand when their parents are struggling,’” Briggs continued. “So, ‘we thought – we have to got to do this right, so why not just do it and spend some additional money’ (on each family). The Union Movement ‘has a lot of people who do care about their neighbors and adopting families are just one of the things we do throughout the year’ (to benefit local communities – ranging from Labor’s Night at The Races to the United Way of Greater Niagara). ‘Think about all the hours it took to shop, wrap and deliver those gifts – but we did it and we did the right thing because it was the right thing to do for these children.’”
United Way of Greater Niagara/Niagara-Orleans Labor Council Labor Liaison Beth Pyskaty confirmed the 38 families are the “most ever” the Council has ever assisted during the Christmas Holidays: “It’s gone up from (teens) to (28) last year and now (38). ‘Every year the total goes up.’”
“People have been ‘very, very’ generous,” she continued. “It’s ‘really hard to put into words – we’re surrounded by people in the Labor Movement who care about their communities.’ And when you see a room ‘overflowing’ with wrapped gifts, ‘you have a hard time’ (not being emotional). ‘You get teary-eyed’ when people ask you: ‘How can I help?’ ‘It makes me proud to be a Union Member.’”
The donations were delivered to three entities for distribution to the families: The Community Missions of Niagara Frontier, the Salvation Army in Niagara Falls, and to several Military Service Families stationed at the Niagara Falls Air Base who were negatively impacted by the recent shutdown of the Federal Government. Many Unions got involved including: United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 686, United Steelworkers (USW) Local 6992, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 2104, Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 1115; as well as other labor organizations. Labor Council Officials estimated $20,000 in donations were made.
