The EWMC volunteer crew at the VFW in Vacaville
The IBEW Electrical Workers Minority Caucus (EWMC) declared Nov. 21 to be its first International Day of Service, and union members from coast to coast took time out to participate in community service projects that support local military veterans.
Volunteers repair a broken light at the VFW
The Solano County Chapter of EWMC volunteered at the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post #7244 in Vacaville. The 26 volunteers spent the day performing light handyman work to help spruce up the building, including painting, cleaning, yard work and routine maintenance. The timing could not have been better, as the VFW is preparing to serve dinner to 600 veterans on Thanksgiving; 300 will be onsite, and another 300 meals will be delivered to the vets in their homes. The volunteer crew included three leaders from the VFW, four high school students and 19 IBEW members from Local 130 (New Orleans, LA), Local 180 (Napa, CA), Local 613 (Atlanta, GA) and Local 1245. Altogether, the volunteers put in 105 hours at the VFW that day, in addition to the 20 hours of coordination and prep time that the EWMC has put in over the past eight months, for a total of 125 volunteer hours. The event was coordinated by Local 1245 staffers Tonya Alston (President of the EWMC Solano County Chapter and EWMC National At-Large Member) and Jammi Juarez (Vice President of the EWMC Solano County Chapter).
EWMC volunteers helped clean up the yard of veteran Norm Fuggs
The newly created IBEW EWMC Central Coast Chapter partnered with Home Depot to provide some home renovations and safety improvements to a veteran in need in Lompoc named Norm Fuggs. Home Depot donated all the material necessary to install new security lighting in Fuggs’ home, as well remove and haul away old landscaping other materials from the home and re-landscape the front lawn. Another group of EWMC volunteers went to work at nearby Thompson Park, as part of the development of a memorial BBQ area to commemorate the life of Air Force Veteran and longtime Lompoc union activist Dwayne Fuggs, who passed away at work in 2012. He was instrumental in the creation of the Lompoc Employees
Some of the EWMC volunteers in Lompoc
Association and worked tirelessly to bring IBEW 1245 back to the City of Lompoc. IBEW 1245 members and the community have raised over $16,000 to honor Fuggs with this memorial at the park. The project has been in the works for about three years, should be complete by next month. Ten members of Local 1245 volunteered at these two projects, along with four individuals from the Home Depot. The event was coordinated by IBEW 1245 member Jaime Tinoco, (President of the EWMC Coast Valley Chapter).
Tonya Alston and Jaime Tinoco contributed to this report.