TULSA, Okla., September 15 — More than 300 members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) convened here today for opening ceremonies of the 80th annual and final Southwestern Convention Meeting (SWCM).
As with last year in St. Louis, attendance at the SWCM is the highest of any of the four BLET regional meetings this year. SWCM arrangements chairman Dana Marlow, 1st Vice Chairman of the Union Pacific-Southern Region General Committee of Adjustment, began the meeting by welcoming all members, families and guests to Tulsa.
After presentation of the flags, Brother Daron Watson, President of BLET Division 182, delivered the invocation. Sister Sereena Hogan, National President of the BLET Auxiliary, then presided over the empty chair ceremony. An empty chair, as well as various tools of the engineers’ craft, were left at the front of the meeting hall to honor the Organization’s departed Brothers and Sisters. Two BLET members were killed in the line of duty since the SWCM last convened in 2014, and the audience observed a moment of silence in honor of Alexander T. Sassman, Division 692, and Glenn W. Steele, Division 20.
BLET National President Dennis R. Pierce introduced members of the BLET Advisory Board and National Division staff who were in attendance. His remarks touched upon the BLET’s purchase of a new headquarters building in Independence, Ohio, as well as the ongoing attacks upon the labor movement and America’s middle class.
After his remarks, Brother Marlow and Brother Derrick Chick, President of BLET Division 179 (Parsons, Kan.), presented President Pierce with a piece of framed railroad artwork on behalf of the members of Division 179.
President Pierce then introduced keynote speaker Bill John Baker, Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. Additional guest speakers included: Oklahoma State Representative Richard Morrissette (District 92); Oklahoma State Representative Eric Proctor (District 77); and Teamsters Local 523 President Gary Ketchum.
Today’s afternoon session will conclude with a closed meeting for BLET members and an open meeting hosted by the BLET Auxiliary. Members will take advantage of numerous educational opportunities throughout the remainder of the week. Workshops will feature specialized training for BLET Legislative Representatives, Secretary-Treasurers and Local Chairmen. These workshops will also include an overview of the BLET’s Mobilization network. Also on the agenda are informational seminars with the Federal Railroad Administration, Railroad Retirement Board, and United Healthcare.
This will be the final SWCM. Delegates to the Third National Convention changed the BLET’s regional meeting structure so that there will be two annual regional meetings sponsored by the National Division beginning next year. They are the Eastern Regional Meeting, July 11-14, 2016, at the Hilton Drake Hotel in Chicago, Illinois; and the Western Regional Meeting, August 22-25, 2016, at the Hyatt Regency in Long Beach, California.
The 80th and final SWCM will conclude with a dinner banquet the evening of September 16.