School bells may be ringing and the calendar shows summer is approaching its climax, but Port Maritime Councils across the country remained ramped up in early September.
Two PMCs were very involved in Labor Day activities.

On the West Coast, the Port Maritime Council of Southern California took a leading role in organizing the 40th Annual Los Angeles/Long Beach Harbor Labor Coalition’s Labor Day Parade. PMC President Larry Barragan served as the event’s chair. He reported all of the council’s affiliates were very involved from planning to clean-up.
The parade featured tens of thousands of union members and their families. Marching among them in Wilmington were U.S. Representatives Nannette Barragan and Gil Cisneros as well as former U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis.

On the nation’s North Coast, affiliates from the Toledo Port Maritime Council joined with other trade unionists for that city’s annual Labor Day parade. PMC members marched in bright yellow t-shirts that featured the Port Council’s logo.
The following week, the Toledo PMC held its annual Great Lakes Grill-Out. PMC President John Clemons said turnout was very good for the September 12 gathering at the Carpenters training center with quite a few local elected officials in the crowd.

Friday, September 13, was lucky for the Michigan Maritime Trades Port Council as more than 170 union members and friends participated in its 40th Annual Ron Krochmalny Golf Classic in New Haven. PMC President Jeannette Bradshaw noted a little drizzle did not dampen the fun.
Dollars raised by the outing benefit a variety of area charities and scholarships.
