‘Driving’ Change in Virginia
Over the summer, members of the Loudoun Education Association-Retired (LEA-R), in Virginia, joined a car rally with more than 500 Loudoun County Public School staff and parents, calling for safety first in school reopening plans. Facing pushback from LEA-R, LEA, and the community, the school board switched from a hybrid opening to distance learning, until they could reopen more safely.
NEA-Retired Member Stars in Biden Ad
Former president of the Arizona Education Association-Retired Linda Somo and her husband, Gary, volunteered to appear in national television commercials for Joe Biden’s presidential campaign. Photographers and interviewers took over the couple’s home for two days—and put the them through many wardrobe changes. Clips from the interviews appeared in seven ads that aired from August through election day and spoke to issues affecting senior citizens.
The ‘Masketeers’ of FEA-Retired
Most of us are lucky if we know how to sew one kind of mask. Carolyn Underwood (right), president of Florida’s Pinellas Education Employees-Retired, taught herself how to make six different kinds, thanks to YouTube. With funds from her coronavirus stimulus check, she stocked up on supplies and started sewing masks for friends, family, and migrant workers. Meanwhile, Florida Education Association-Retired District 6 Director Nancy Johnson belongs to a Facebook group of some 500 people that sewed more than 32,000 masks for health care workers, students, and others.
Generosity Prevails in Tough Times
When the Nebraska State Education Association-Retired (NSEA-Retired) went virtual with their annual Representative Assembly and fall conference, they donated $20,000 of their financial savings to the Food Bank for the Heartland, which serves 73 counties in the state, and $5,000 to the Food Bank of Lincoln, which serves 16 counties in Southeast Nebraska. Hats off to NSEA-Retired and the many educators around the country who put their communities first.
