Congratulations on Your Retirement Nina

Dear Steve, Officers, Executive Board & Members of Local 66,

Having grown up with my Dad being a Laborer, I was taught the value of a Union and how it provided for its members. When I became an adult and the opportunity arose, I left corporate accounting to come to Local 66. Since January 1992 when I started at Local 66, it has been my pleasure and passion to serve the Local Union.

I was recently thinking back over my career and realized I worked with four different Business Managers and LIUNA Trustees throughout my 29 years of serving Local 66.

During my years here, I saw the Union's office change from a manual bookkeeping system and enter the world of technology with the application of faxes, then computers and now email. I saw the implementation of the hiring hall system at Local 66. There have been many other changes, including office staff, but my personal goal has remained the same: to support this organization to the best of my ability.

It's unbelievable to think 29 years have passed, and during that time I worked with over 15 Business Agents and watched as many of you rise through the ranks to become our future leaders and officers. We celebrated many joyful occasions together such as weddings, children, anniversaries and retirements. We supported each other in our time of grief, both personal and professional, with the passing of our members and their families and the heartfelt losses of Pat and Bobby English.

Together we watched as 9/11 changed our world and together we worked as a team to support those directly affected by the loss of life and of work. And now, we once again band together as COVID-19, and the national lockdown changed our lives and our world once again.  It is in these difficult moments, when the compassion and concern in our staff and our members made me the proudest. There has been a willingness to once again help in whatever way was possible. It is in these times, the difficult, the painful, the joyful and the proud, we changed from a collective group of workers into a caring extended family, always there to lend a hand to those in need.

I share these memories now because March 26, 2021 will be my last day of employment with Local 66. It is time that I leave my extended family here, at Local 66, and turn my attention to helping my family through a difficult transition.

To our membership, the Brothers and Sisters that I have had the opportunity to work with, you have been unique, caring, supportive and hilarious with your stories and jokes that made me smile and laugh. I will miss you all, especially those with nicknames that will always make me smile in the future when I think of you.

Please know you all hold a special place in my heart. Leaving was not an easy decision, but I know it is the right one for my family and I leave a better person for having the honor of working for this organization.

I wish for all of our leadership, officers, staff and members to remain safe and healthy in these unusual times. And I pray that our organization will continue to thrive and grow for many years to come.

In friendship and solidarity,

Nina