Laborers 42 honors four with Larry Flinn Memorial Scholarships

$88,400 helped 79 Local 42 children afford college

Laborers Local 42 honored four members’ children with $1,250 scholarships as the 2014 winners of the union’s annual Larry Flinn Memorial Scholarship program. An additional Local 42 dependent won an Eastern Missouri Laborers’ District Council Scholarship.

Winners of Local 42 scholarships are:

• Chad Johnson, son of 19-year member Calvin Johnson, who will be studying computer programming at Lewis & Clark Community College.

• Chloe Escobar, daughter of 13-year member Carlos Escobar, who will be studying nursing at the University of Missouri, Columbia. Carlos is an organizer for the Laborers’ Midwest Region.

• An’yeal Welch, daughter of eight-year member Danyeal Crittendon, who is a junior at Southeast Missouri State University studying anthropology.

• Nathan Garcia, son of six-year member Richard Garcia who is attending Southeast Missouri State. Nathan also won this scholarship last year.

Winner of the Eastern Missouri Laborers’ District Council scholarship is Katelyn Louis, daughter of seven-year member Jeff Louis, who will be studying child psychology at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Jeff is an instructor at the Laborers High Hill training center.

Local 42 has awarded $88,400 in scholarships to 79 children of members since starting the scholarship program in memory of the local’s late business manager Larry Flinn in 1987.

“Just remember that it was your parents’ union and their struggles for better wages and working conditions that made this possible,” Local 42 Business Manager/Secretary-Treasurer Brandon Flinn told this year’s winners.

The presentations were awarded July 19 at Local 42’s Union Hall.

Winners are judged on grades, three letters of recommendation and an essay on a topic selected by the union. A special scholarship committee reviews all entries and makes the selections.