A WORD FROM PRESIDENT JACQUES LOVEALL
Pictured on the cover of Voice of Action are my nieces, Aviana and Abigail, along with their friend hailey. Like other children their age, they look ahead to lives of fulfilled dreams and adventure.
If trends of the the past 200 years continue, they can expect plenty of time to make those dreams and adventures come true.
Researchers at the University of Southern Denmark studied the life spans of past generations and evaluated the current accelerating pace of developments in medicine.
Their conclusion: many, if not most, of the babies born since 2000 in Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the United States will live to be 100 years old or more.
This is good news for me, because I have plans to attend America’s tricentennial celebrations in 2076. I've already put it on my calendar. At that time I will be 114, which all of a sudden doesn’t look too far out of reach!
Staggering consequences
If the danish researchers are anywhere close to accuracy in their forecast, the consequences for our society will be staggering. Imagine the things we could accomplish if our working careers were followed by several decades of learning, leisure, volunteerism and travel!
Union members already enjoy a superior standard of health care that undoubtedly contributes to their longevity. Studies regularly show that life spans are shortest in states where the percentages of union households are lowest. That is certainly not a coincidence.
Advancements in health care and unions are the driving force behind widespread availability of health care to ordinary people. The more union members there are, the longer we can expect our lifespans to become.
Unions will continue to perform an essential role in the lives of Aviana, Abigail, Hailey and other citizens of the future. As a result, they will be happier, healthier and more prosperous than they would be if they didn’t have unions.
You may have seen the bumper sticker that says “Live Better, Work union.” Soon I expect there will be an alternative version that says “Live Longer, Be union.”
My nieces might want to put one of those on their hovercrafts — a hundred years from now.
Solidarity Works!
He Never Met a Stranger
A WORD FROM PRESIDENT JACQUES LOVEALL
On July 16, we lost a kind, good and talented man who devoted his life to advancing the rights and living standards of working Californians.
The obituary of Obie V. Brandon appears on page 4 of this issue of Voice of Action. It describes how he grew up in West Sacramento in a Union family and put the values he was taught into action as a Union leader.
Born with an unwavering sense of justice, Obie was a formidable champion of underdogs everywhere.
Obie had a genuinely sincere interest in other people. He was a good listener who was great at identifying what others needed and then finding a way to get it to them. He gave a lot of selfless and thoughtful guidance to those who sought it.
He also had a great sense of humor, as well as a voracious appetite for life. For a person who was so physically imposing, he had an amazing amount of energy, yet he was surprisingly humble.
The priest at Obie’s memorial service said he could not give a sermon that said more about Obie’s legacy than the standing-roomonly crowd that filled the church. The pews, aisles and balcony overflowed with evidence of a life well-lived.
Obie knew what was important in life: family, friends and people in general. What mattered to him was his relationships with other people. He never met a stranger.
Above all else, Obie realized that the most important role in his life was being a father. And, as his son said in his eulogy, Obie believed the best move he ever made in his life was marrying his wife, Kathy.
Obie Brandon was a special individual who left an indelible mark on his family, his friends and all working people in the great state of California and beyond.
There will never be another Obie Brandon, but we can keep his spirit alive by remembering the things we learned from him, and then conducting ourselves accordingly. UFCW 8-Golden State
On July 16, we lost a kind, good and talented man who devoted his life to advancing the rights and living standards of working Californians.
The obituary of Obie V. Brandon appears on page 4 of this issue of Voice of Action. It describes how he grew up in West Sacramento in a Union family and put the values he was taught into action as a Union leader.
Born with an unwavering sense of justice, Obie was a formidable champion of underdogs everywhere.
Obie had a genuinely sincere interest in other people. He was a good listener who was great at identifying what others needed and then finding a way to get it to them. He gave a lot of selfless and thoughtful guidance to those who sought it.
He also had a great sense of humor, as well as a voracious appetite for life. For a person who was so physically imposing, he had an amazing amount of energy, yet he was surprisingly humble.
The priest at Obie’s memorial service said he could not give a sermon that said more about Obie’s legacy than the standing-roomonly crowd that filled the church. The pews, aisles and balcony overflowed with evidence of a life well-lived.
Obie knew what was important in life: family, friends and people in general. What mattered to him was his relationships with other people. He never met a stranger.
Above all else, Obie realized that the most important role in his life was being a father. And, as his son said in his eulogy, Obie believed the best move he ever made in his life was marrying his wife, Kathy.
Obie Brandon was a special individual who left an indelible mark on his family, his friends and all working people in the great state of California and beyond.
There will never be another Obie Brandon, but we can keep his spirit alive by remembering the things we learned from him, and then conducting ourselves accordingly. UFCW 8-Golden State
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