CLEVELAND, September 11 — David K. Brown was reelected by acclamation to his third term as Chairman of the Minnesota State Legislative Board at its quadrennial meeting in Bloomington, Minn., August 31-September 1, 2015.
Brother Brown is a member of BLET Division 517 (St. Paul, Minn.) and has 44 years of service with the BNSF Railway. He hired out with the BN on September 9, 1971, and first joined the Brotherhood on December 1, 2002.
“I am grateful and honored to serve my Brothers and Sisters for another four year term,” Brother Brown said. “We have a lot of work ahead of us, and our efforts on a two-person crew bill will continue and we hope to turn the tide back to labor-friendly candidates in our state in 2016.”
The delegates elected the following officers — all by acclamation — to four year terms: 1st Vice Chairman Wally Czerwinski, Division 202 (Dilworth, Minn.); 2nd Vice Chairman Chuck Loomis, Division 549 (Wilmar, Minn.); Secretary-Treasurer Joel Mueller, Division 9 (Waseca, Minn.); and Alternate Secretary-Treasurer Mark Anderson, Division 333 (St. Paul, Minn.).
Elected by acclamation to serve on the Executive Committee were: Jason Perkovich, Division 768 (Thief River Falls, Minn.), and Tom Gaisor, Division 369 (Minneapolis, Minn.).
Elected by acclamation to serve on the Audit Committee were: Jason Perkovich, Division 768 (Thief River Falls, Minn.); Tom Gaisor, Division 369 (Minneapolis, Minn.); and Mark Anderson, Division 222 (St. Paul, Minn.).
Guest speakers included: BLET National President Dennis R. Pierce; First Vice President E. Lee Pruitt; and Vice President & National Legislative Representative John P. Tolman.
“Brother Brown’s passion, experience and determination are assets to our Brothers and Sisters in Minnesota. On behalf of the BLET Advisory Board, I offer congratulations to Dave Brown and all officers of the Minnesota State Legislative Board. I know they will continue doing an excellent job of representing the best interests of our members in the proud state of Minnesota,” President Pierce said.
Also in attendance were: BLET Auxiliary National President Sereena Hogan; BLET Special Representative Paul T. Aird; Illinois State Legislative Board Chairman Paul Piekarski; and General Chairman Dick Crow, Union Pacific-Northern Region General Committee of Adjustment.
Delegates also heard from U.S. Representative Betty McCollum (4th District); Minnesota State Representative Frank Hornstein (61A); Teamsters Joint Council 32 Legislative Director Ed Reynoso; and National Association of Retired and Veteran Railway Employees (NARVRE) National President Tom Dwyer. Brother Brown noted that Alison Anderson, daughter of Alternate S-T Mark Anderson, sang the national anthem to kick off the meeting.
The delegates had the honor of participating in a first of its kind “digital classroom” training session thanks to the BLET Education and Training Department. Using state of the art technology housed at the BLET Training Center in Cleveland, the Minnesota delegates participated in real-time training via the Internet with Jason Wright, Director of the BLET Education and Training Department, who was presenting Trustee-based curriculum at an Advanced Local Chairman Class in Cleveland, Ohio. Brother Brown spoke highly of the session and said it was “just as good as being there in person,” and noted it would be a good way for smaller Divisions working with a limited budget to attend training sessions.
The officers and members of the Minnesota State Legislative Board thanked all those who helped make their meeting a success. The Board is comprised of 11 Divisions representing nearly 1,100 members.