April 2002 IBEW Journal

Retired

A long and distinguished career of service comes to a close with the March 1, 2002, retirement of Third District Vice President Lawrence "Larry" Rossa.

Brother Rossa led the Third District since 1997, following years of increasing responsibilities in the IBEW. He was initiated into Local 142 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1957 following a three-year stint in the U.S. Army. An employee of a Pittsburgh utility company, Brother Rossa served on the local’s Executive Board and as president before his election as business manager of System Council U-10. At the time, Local 142 was one of six utility locals comprising U-10 (the System Council has since been dissolved and all of the locals merged into Local 29, Pittsburgh.) After 13 years heading the System Council, Brother Rossa was appointed an International Representative assigned to utility and manufacturing locals in western Pennsylvania. In that capacity, he testified for the IBEW in more than 150 arbitration cases and organized workers at a generating station into what is now Local 272 in Beaver, Pennsylvania.

He served on the Allegheny County Labor Council, the United Way, the Pennsylvania State Electrical Workers Association and the Pittsburgh Labor Management Committee.

Brother Rossa attended Pennsylvania State University, West Virginia University and the George Meany Center for Labor Studies.

At the 36^th International Convention in 2001, Brother Rossa was reelected to his post as vice president. He and his wife, Bonnie, plan to retire to south Florida, where they are building a new home. The IBEW members, staff and International Officers wish Brother Rossa a long, healthy and well-deserved retirement.1

The IBEW is pleased to announce the appointment of Donald C. Siegel as Third District International Vice President, effective March 1, 2002. He replaces International Vice President Lawrence E. Rossa, who retired.

An International Representative assigned to the Third District since 1994, Brother Siegel brings 31 years of experience in the trades, labor and local politics to his new office.

He was initiated into Local 743 in Reading, Pennsylvania, where he was a journeyman wireman in the electrical construction industry. At the local level, Brother Siegel served on the executive and examining boards before his election as business manager in 1989. He spent five years in that position before being tapped as an International Representative.

A committed labor leader, Brother Siegel represented the IBEW on the Berks County Central Labor Council and the Reading-Berks County Building Trades Council. He currently serves as vice president of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO. Active in grassroots politics, he is past campaign chairman for the Berks County Democratic Committee and worked as the full-time Berks County representative for the Carter presidential campaign. He has attended Pennsylvania State University, Cornell University and Reading Area Community College. Most recently, as a board member of the Berks County Convention Center Authority, Brother Siegel was instrumental in securing the county’s first project labor agreement in a public construction project. The $32 million project completed last August came in ahead of schedule and under budget.

Brother Siegel comes from a strong labor background. His mother, a retired technician with AT&T, is a 28-year member of the IBEW. His father was a member of the United Steelworkers of America. The IBEW wishes Brother Siegel much success in his new position.

International President Edwin D. Hill (right) administers the oath of office to newly appointed Third District International Vice President Donald C. Siegel.

Transitions

Retired

Peter J. Keenan

Lawrence E. Rossa

Appointed

Donald C. Siegel

Glenda Thomason

Deceased

Michael Broderick

William F. Ferry

Robert M. Macdonald

Clement M. Rush