“Mainers
helping Mainers”
Maine Potato Blossom Festival Parade July 19th
Thank You to all the Members of Teamsters Local 340
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to view pictures from the event!
MORE pictures from the Food Drive here!
Teamsters Local 340, through its Women’s
Committee, headed
up a state wide food drive to benefit the Catholic Charities Maine “Feed
the County” program in Caribou which supplies food to 24
food pantries in Aroostook County and maintains their own food
bank.
The Teamsters Joint Council 10 tractor trailer
began traveling the State of Maine on Friday, July 17th. The
truck stopped at 13 designated locations along Interstate 95
to load non-perishable food donations collected by the members
of Teamsters Local 340.
Each stop was well planned to enable convenience
for donations to get on the truck and keep it moving. The
road crew, driver Paul Flynn, retiree Terry Hanlon, UPS Freight
Lorne Smith, business agent Sylvia Hebert, Elmet Technologies
Geri Jean, business agent Dan Walsh, UPS preloader Jen Batchelor,
Trustee and Business Agent Alan Churchill and Native American
political consultant Ben Collings.
The truck headed north starting at Exit 2,
Kittery Town Hall at 7:00 am. Thank you to Meredith Clark, John Brosnihan, Brett
Howard and Ed Laing for giving a helping hand at our first stop. We
also thank the Town of Kittery for the resting stop for the Joint
Council 10 tractor trailer the night before.
Our next stop was Exit 32, Biddeford. Thank
you to Ed Dalton Jr. and Sr., Ray Nadeau, all from the City of
Biddeford; Sue Seaman from York County Jail and Dick Lambert
with the City of Saco. Just up the road we made a stop to Interstate
Brands, thank you Ed Noyes, Nelson Lavoie, Paul Burgess and Steve
Hilton for all your help.
On to Teamsters Local 340, a short distance
from Exit 45 South Portland. We had donations dropped off from
New Penn, ABF, UPS Wells, University of Maine-Portland/Gorham,
Portland Water District, UPS Freight, Keebler Foods, Interstate
Brands, Town of Wells, City of Saco, Town of Ogunquit, Local
340 employees and the Teamsters Local 340 Women’s Committee. Thank you to Hannaford
Brothers for your generous donation. Then to Exit 75, Auburn. Thank
you UPS retiree Sonny Mercier, UPS local sorter Le-Ann Kropa and
Tim Coleman from Pionite for your help.
The truck makes a stop at Associated Grocers
in Gardiner, thank you Tim Boynton, Richard Crocker, Willie Ellsworth
and Jeff Bellfleur. Thank
you to the City of Gardiner Public Works employees. Next to exit
112B, met by Karen Tangeman from Greater Augusta Utlities. It
is here where we find out that the Potato Blossom Parade is being
postponed to Sunday for inclement weather headed our way.
The show must go on so off we go to Exit
132 Fairfield, thank you to Rob Mercier from the City of Waterville
and his wife Stacy, Tim Lawler, Lee Amalfitano, and Cameron Noyes
all with UPS. Marlene Angers with the Town of Fairfield and Lynn
Woodard from Kennebec Sanitary. Off to Exit 157 Newport,
finally a rest.
Next to Exit 180, Dysarts Truck Stop in Herman. There we
met up with Shannon Smith from the University of Maine-Orono, Shawn
Ireland, Vianney Soucy, Tim Kenney, Jim Dunn, and Beth Anderson
all from UPS and Bob Goodwin from Garelick Farms. We are
now at about the half way mark.
Now we are on our way to the long and lonely
road to Exit 244, Medway. Thank you John Rush from the Town of Millinocket
and David Hasey from Interstate Brands. Then off to Exit
302 in Houlton and yes, you can get there from here. Thank
you Roger and Karla Brewer from UPS and Peter Duff from the Aroostook
County Jail.
It’s now about 6:30 pm and we are going to head to the home
of business agent Traci Place in Easton to park until the parade
on Sunday. Along the way the tractor trailer meets up with
an Amish Buggy on the road, one member states it’s like two
worlds colliding.
On such short notice of the postponement
of the parade we thank business agent Traci Place for putting
her home up for some tired Teamsters. She managed to pull together a tent in the rain
and a great cook out. She tells me at one point she went
to unload her car from pickups she made from the University of
Maine in Presque Isle and Fort Kent, City of Presque Isle, Towns
of Baileyville and Calais, Lane Construction, TAMC and UPS. She
turns to see others unloading their vehicles into the truck. She
was quite emotionally overwhelmed by the whole thing.
Saturday turned out to be a rainy day but
everyone managed to have a good time and get some rest. On
Sunday we ended the run by participating in the Maine Potato
Blossom Parade on July 19th which ends a weeklong festival that
has been around since 1937, the same year the Teamsters of Maine
were founded.
Along the parade route we collected more
food from the community, Paul had Traci’s son Chris for some company in the cab, in
the back of the truck were retirees Mickey Maynard and Terry Hanlon
with Houston Putnam. Walking to collect food were Collen & Karen
Putnam, Robert Lavoie, Amy Hartley and her son Damien, all from
Lane Construction, Business Agent Traci Place, Catholic Charities
Maine Dixie Shaw, JoAnna Leavitt from WAGMTV, Gloria Towle with
UPS, Mike Morneault also from UPS and his three children Micah, Michaela,
and Marshall. From TAMC, Cuppy Johndro with her daughter
Ashley. Business Agent Alan Churchill with son Alexander and friend
Ben Collings. It was a great day; the weather could not have
been more perfect after it “rained in our cheerios” the
day before.
I would like to send a special Thank You
out to Interstate Brands, Keebler Foods, Associated Grocers,
and Garelick Farms for the generosity shown to this food drive. It certainly is quite rewarding
to know that we all can and do work together when the call for
need is there. Thank you to all the members and their communities
who donated in a monetary fashion.
The Teamsters collected 25,000 lbs in food
and $850 in monetary donations. With the generous help of members, families, and
friends the donations were delivered and unloaded to the Catholic
Charities “Feed the County” program in Caribou following
the parade. A special mention to Chris Johndro, Chris Hansen,
Ben Stroud and Aaron Rogers who worked hard helping us get the
truck unloaded. Thank you to the staff of Catholic Charities
for your help at the warehouse receiving end.
I have not said Thank You enough. Many families will benefit
from the work of many of us who realize that a helping hand can
reach a long way. I am very proud of how the membership
responded to the call for need.
On behalf of the membership of Teamsters
Local Union 340…Thank
You.
Fraternally,
James E. Carson Sylvia
Hebert
President & Business
Agent
Business Agent
Dennis Sisti Traci
Place
Vice-President Business
Agent
Carl Guignard Daniel
Walsh
Secretary-Treasurer Business
Agent
Kenneth Eaton Stacy
Nunley
Recording Secretary & Office
Staff &
Business Agent Bookkeeper
Alan R. Churchill Peggy
Timmons
Trustee & Office
Staff &
Business Agent Secretary
Steve Malia Sheena-Jo
Randall
Trustee Office
Staff &
TITAN
Operator
Tim Boynton
Trustee
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