[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 9 (Wednesday, January 16, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Page S267]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO RON POWELL

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I want to take a moment to thank a leader 
who has worked for nearly 60 years to create a strong economy built on 
pride, progressive values, and shared prosperity for all Americans.
  Ronald Powell is the legendary president of Local 881 of the United 
Food and Commercial Workers International Union. He is also a vice 
president on the UFCW International Union and a vice president of the 
Illinois State AFL-CIO. He is retiring this month after an astonishing 
58 years as a proud union member and leader.
  You may not be familiar with the initials UFCW, but you almost surely 
benefit from the good work of its members. The men and women of the 
UFCW include grocery store workers and bakery clerks, hospital and 
nursing home employees--even barbers and beauty shop employees.
  When Ron Powell joined the United Retail Workers union, a forerunner 
to Local 881, in 1961, the union had fewer than 5,000 members. Fifty-
eight years later, UFCW Local 881 represents more than 34,000 working 
men and women in Illinois, northwest Indiana, and parts of Missouri and 
Kentucky. The growth of Local 881 in an age when the labor movement is 
under relentless attack and many unions are losing members is a 
testament to Ron Powell's leadership and his commitment to dignity and 
fairness for working people.
  Ron Powell became president of UFCW Local 881 in 1983, just 2 years 
after the local was chartered. Strength, vision, and compassion are the 
hallmarks of his service. Illinois' working families and our State's 
economy have both benefited from his progressive and innovative 
leadership.
  In addition, under Ron Powell's leadership, Local 881 Ron has raised 
hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, 
with the hope to find a cure. It has also raised funds for the Jackson 
Park Hospital in Chicago and for the Little City Foundation, which 
helps Chicago-area children with developmental disabilities.
  My old friend, Senator Paul Wellstone, liked to sum up his definition 
of good economic policy by saying, ``We all do better when we all do 
better.''
  Ron Powell believes in that same, proven plan for economic growth and 
justice. Working families in my, State of Illinois and far beyond are 
better off because of his decades of service on their behalf. I am 
honored to join those families in honoring Ron Powell on his 
distinguished career, and as a former member of UFCW's early unions, I 
wish him the very best as he begins the next chapter in his remarkable 
life.

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