Kim Heaney elected first female officer of Machinists Lodge 777

By LINDA JARRETT
Correspondent

Kim Heaney, a service advisor at Bommarito Mazda and member of Machinists Lodge 777, has been elected as the union’s first female officer since Lodge 777’s inception 102 years ago.

In January, she became conductor sentinel, which entails asking people coming to meetings to check in as a union member. She also attends Lodge 777 Executive Board and IAM District 9 meetings.

MEANINGFUL WORK
“By being a part of the union, I feel like I’m doing something that is meaningful and has an impact on people’s lives,” Heaney said. “I am working not just for myself, but all of the other brothers and sisters in the union to help us move us forward.”

Heaney joined Bommarito and Lodge 777 in 2021 and has been active in the union ever since. President Scott Hargis commended Heaney for her work.

“It’s quite an honor for her, and she’s highly qualified,” Hargis said. “She was on our negotiating committee for contracts and the scholarship committee. She does a wonderful job.”

UNION FAMILY
Although she’s only been a union member herself for two years, she has some ideas on what she would like to accomplish. That’s because she’s been part of a union family for over 25 years. Her husband, Tom, is an electrician at Proctor and Gamble and a member of the Independent Oil and Chemical Workers union.

“My son Tommy works at Proctor & Gamble with Tom, and my daughter Meg works with me at Bommarito in the parts department,” she said. “And she’s in the Teamsters Union. Everyone is union in this family!”

MAKE A DIFFERENCE
She feels people need to remember how workers have gotten to where they are, and she wants to make a difference.

“At the end of March, we are going to Jefferson City for four days to lobby for Labor,” she said. “I’m very excited about being part of that.”

WOMEN IN THE AUTO SERVICE INDUSTRY
For women considering a career in the auto service industry, she tells them they can go as far as they want to, provided they are willing to work.

“The benefits of being a union member are fantastic,” she said. “It covers your entire family with insurance, and while it’s not physically hard, it’s more mental.”

ABOUT LODGE 777
Machinists Lodge 777 was chartered on April 3, 1920. The local union represents more than 3,200 members at St. Louis-area automotive dealerships, independent collision and auto repair shops, beverage distributors, and other companies in the delivery trucking, car rental, bus, truck body, glass replacement and marine repair industries.