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April 2016

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'A Brawler for All of Us'

On Feb. 1, Manchester, N.H., Local 2320 Sister Linda Horan passed away. She was known to most of us as a fierce advocate for the rights of others and a fighter for anything that she thought was unfair, or anyone that she thought was being treated unfairly. Whether the rights were union ones that many of us have known her for, or the civil ones, she challenged, scrapped, and brawled for all of us.

Local 2320 Business Manager Steven Soule said he'll always remember her as a passionate advocate for the rights of people in the labor movement. "She had no hesitation to speak to what other people felt but lacked the courage to say."

Sister Horan was on the executive board for many years and was a steward in her unit. She chaired the local's political action committee. She was a delegate to several international conventions, New Hampshire AFL-CIO conventions, Second District progress meetings, and served as vice president for the state AFL-CIO.

After Sister Horan received a lifetime solidarity award, the local union created a commemoration in her honor for members who go above and beyond to encompass what it means to be a true union member.

She was on the School-to-Work committee with Verizon, and worked tirelessly to bring this program to fruition. One of her crowing achievements was helping establish the New Hampshire AFL-CIO Scholarship Fund, which was renamed in her honor in January.

Sister Horan testified in Congress and protested against right-to-work in New Hampshire on multiple occasions, and was always willing to take a road trip to rally for fellow union brothers or sisters.

During the longest strike in our local's history, members from unions in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Tennessee made the trip to New Hampshire during the blustery winter of 2014-2015 all because of the hard work done by Sister Horan.

Sister Horan will forever be in our hearts and her memory will live on in our spirit as we continue to fight for the rights of workers and people everywhere.

Cara Delahanty, Local 2320 member
Manchester, N.H.


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Linda Horan





Recognition at Last

I would like to thank Cumberland, Md., Local 307 Brothers Irvin "Butch" Johnson and George Smith for their service to our great country. In today's often troubling times we tend to forget just what our past and present brothers and sisters went through and go through to keep our country safe. Great story.

Brian Lewis, Local 9 member
Chicago

I did enjoy the story on the back page of the March issue ("At Long Last, Recognition for IBEW Hero," page 20). I see the writer incorrectly noted D-Day as June 1943. Well, sir, D-Day was actually June 6, 1944. As a war history buff and a Vietnam era veteran, I do hope you will correct that in your next issue.

Joseph Marley, Local 146 retiree
Decatur, Ill.

[Editor's Note: Thank you for your note, Brother Marley. We apologize for the editing error and appreciate your sharp eye. The longer, online version correctly placed D-Day in June 1944 and we hope everyone will visit bit.ly/IBEWHero to learn more about Brother Butch Johnson and his heroism during World War II.]










IBEW_Facebook  From Facebook: Every month the IBEW Facebook page receives thousands of comments from our dynamic and engaged community of members and friends.

Right-to-Work Blues

Bought-and-paid-for politicians! How many voters do you hear asking for [a new right-to-work law in West Virginia]? Zero! There is no positive economic impact to this legislation. It doesn't create jobs. Doesn't improve working conditions. Doesn't increase wages or benefits. The only thing it does is lower wages and increase profits for business.

Robert DeNoto, Local 86 member
Rochester, N.Y.