CLEVELAND, April 1, 2010 — Terry L Todd was reelected Chairman of the BLET’s Arkansas State Legislative Board at meetings in North Little Rock, Ark., on March 17-18, 2010.
Brother Todd has served as Chairman of the Board since 2002. He first joined the BLET on September 1, 1978, and also serves Division 585 (North Little Rock) as President and Legislative Representative. He has been Division 585’s Legislative Representative since 1996.
Other officers were elected as follows:
• James Hoskins Jr. of Division 182 (North Little Rock) was elected First Vice-Chairman;
• Steve Christian of BLET Division 524 (Van Buren, Ark.) was reelected Secretary-Treasurer;
• Shane McCuan of Division 182 was elected 2nd Vice-Chairman;
• Earles Carpenter of Division 858 (Pine Bluff, Ark.) was elected Guide; and
• Leon Shipman of Division 116 (Batesville, Ark.) was elected Chaplin.
Brother Christian has held the Secretary-Treasurer position since 2002.
“Steve is our most senior member on the Board, having served for over 20 years,” Chairman Todd said.
Representing the National Division at the meeting were: First Vice-President Dennis Pierce; National Secretary-Treasurer Bill Walpert; and Vice President & National Legislative Representative John Tolman.
Also in attendance were: Texas State Legislative Board Chairman Terry Briggs; and Louisiana State Legislative Board Chairman Arlin Todd.
Four different Region 5 Inspectors from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) were on hand to make presentations on hazardous materials, signal issues, on-duty cell phone use, the Hours of Service Act, and various other mechanical issues. More than 25 BLET and United Transportation Union members attended the FRA presentations.
BLET National President Paul Sorrow congratulated Brother Todd on his reelection and for hosting a successful, informative, and well-attended meeting. President Sorrow also thanked all Legislative Representatives in Arkansas for their continued hard work and expressed regret at not being able to attend the meeting in person due to his busy travel schedule.