Teamsters Local 89 donated and delivered 21 pallets of water to Texans in need after last week’s disastrous winter storm.
On Tuesday, February 23rd Business Agent Trey McCutcheon was sent to procure the 21 pallets of water from Louisville’s Kroger Distribution Center, home to hundreds of Teamsters Local 89 members at Zenith Logistics and Transervice. The pallets were loaded onto the Joint Council 94 semi-truck, being driven by Teamsters Local 89 Business Agent Mac Moore.
“It has been an honor and a privilege to be allowed to use the talents I have learned in my years as a Teamster to help these folks in need,” said Mac Moore. “I am grateful our Local is blessed to have the resources to help others in this way.”
After being loaded, Mac drove the semi fifteen straight hours to arrive at Houston, Texas right at midnight. The next morning, Mac drove the semi to a warehouse operated by the National Association of Christian Churches (NACC) specifically for disaster relief. The NACC is a longtime partner with the Teamsters for providing aid and relief during such natural disasters. The Teamsters efforts with NACC in Houston are being coordinated by Roy Gillespie, an International Representative out of Saint Louis. Sequetta Baldwin, a Teamsters Local 988 member who works at a UPS hub in Houston, is assisting Gillespie by providing administrative support for the relief operation.
Upon arriving at the NACC warehouse, Mac unloaded Local 89’s donation and then assisted members of Local 988 who were at the facility for a pickup by operating a forklift to load them up with their supplies. Afterwards, the Joint Council 94 semi was re-loaded with six pallets of water and nine pallets of food and other supplies from the NACC warehouse. Mac then drove to Boynton Methodist Church, one of many relief centers, and assisted dozens of neighborhood and community activists in unloading the supplies.
“Teamster Locals are always helping one another,” said Local 89 President Fred Zuckerman. “Today we helped by sending supplies to Houston. Somewhere down the line the Locals in Houston are going to do the same thing and help others during their time of need.”
“We’re proud to be a part of this relief effort, along with many other Locals,” added Secretary-Treasurer Avral Thompson. “This is what Teamsters do.”
