Labor lawyer Cary Hammond was remembered in two significant ways at the Greater St. Louis Labor Council meeting Feb. 19.
First, he was unanimously voted in as an honorary delegate to the Labor Council on a motion by Tony Rippeto, directing business representative of Machinists District 9, which Hammond represented.
Then, Laborers Local 110 made a $2,500 donation to the Labor Council’s “$5 for the Fight” fund in Hammond’s honor.
Hammond, 65, the president and founding partner of Hammond & Shinners law firm, died on Jan. 21 after a brief battle with cancer. Hammond spent his entire career representing, and fighting for, labor unions and union members. At one time or another, he worked with or for almost every labor union in the St. Louis area.
“Carry Hammond spent his whole life working for the working men and women of the Saint Louis labor community, including District 9,” Rippeto said, outlining his reasons for nominating Hammond for the posthumous honorary delegateship. “His whole career, if you ever needed help, you could turn to him, not only for District 9 but for anybody who ever worked for the labor community in Missouri.”
Laborers Local 110 Business Manager Don Willey said the union made the donation to the “$5 for the Fight” fund in Hammond’s honor in keeping with his final wishes, which included a request for memorial donations to the “$5 for the Fight” fund to help union members in times of need, and support for St. Louis-based Action for Autism, which Hammond supported in its efforts to assist children and their families with Autism Spectrum Disorders.
Laborers Local 110 also made a $2,500 donation last week to Action for Autism.
“Carry Hammond was a beautiful man,” Willey said. “He was a good guy. He was our Fund attorney for many, many years. He always thought about the working man, the union guy, the rank and file guy. He structured his whole career to help the working guy.
“Just this past summer we had a negotiation with U.S. Silica that was coming up and on a Sunday he took a couple hours of this time and came out and talked to those guys about the value of their pensions and health care and refused to send me a bill. He was just that type of guy. To him, that was a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon, talking to the guys about pensions and health care.”
KEEP THE DONATIONS COMING
You can keep Hammond’s support for labor unions alive by donating to the “$5 for the Fight” fund. There are three ways to give:
• Mail: Check/money order to “$5 for the Fight” mailed to: $5 for the Fight, c/o St. Louis Labor Council, 3301 Hollenberg Drive, Bridgeton, MO 63044; please include your union affiliation.
• On line – www.labortribune.com, click “$5 for the Fight Donations” that takes you to a secure payment site.
• Reoccurring credit card donation: www.labortribune.com, “$5 for the Fight Donations.” Click: “Automatic monthly deduction,” the amount and how many months you want the deduction to be made.
ACTION FOR AUTISM
To support Action for Autism, write to
Action for Autism, 15834 Clayton Road, Ellisville, MO 63022, visit them online at www.afastl.org, or call (636) 227-2339 for more information.
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