Operating Engineers Local 513’s Children’s Charity purchases more than 140 coats for needy children

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GIVING THE GIFT OF WARMTH, Operating Engineers Local 513’s Children’s Charity raised enough funds in this year’s raffle to purchase more than 140 coats for needy children at schools in Local 513’s jurisdiction. Displaying some of the new, warm coats are (front row, from left) Instructor Gabe Suddarth, Trustee Ben Ballard, Business Agent Aaron Gray, Recording Secretary/On-the-Job-Trainer Roger Struckhoff, President/Business Manager Tim Sappington, Business Agent Byron Saunders Sr., Collection Coordinator Rob Duffy, Business Agent Keith Zancauske, Director of Marking/Business Agent John Bachinski; (back row, from left) Trustee Charlie Shaw, Business Agent Lealon Vaughn, Business Agent Nate Sellinger, Business Agent LaDonald Townley, Vice President/Business Agent Bill Suddarth, Business Agent Steve Straatmann, Dispatcher Phil Nicolay, Auditor/Instructor Mike Femmer, Instructor Brian Graff, Instructor Eric Aholt, Instructor Rick Hickerson, Training Center Administrator Dan Bottoms, Business Agent Gary Howard and Instructor Mike Jones. – IUOE Local 513 photo

Operating Engineers Local 513’s Children’s Charity has been busy this Christmas season.

With money raised from a raffle, they purchased and distributed more than 140 coats to needy children in schools throughout Local 513’s jurisdiction, which is the eastern half of Missouri and consists of 58 counties and the City of St. Louis.

Local 513 President and Business Manager Tim Sappington said Local 513 started the Children’s Charity a couple of years ago and, due to the outstanding response and participation in this year’s raffle decided to purchase coats.

“We contacted counselors at different schools in the different counties in our jurisdiction and asked them if they had any needy children,” Sappington said.

“We picked schools in our agents’ areas and they supplied a list of names with the gender and age of the needy child. We purchased the coats and delivered them to the counselors to give to the kids in time for Christmas. There’s going to be a bunch of happy kids.”

Local 513’s coat drive is yet another example of the good things union members do, just because it is the right thing to do.

“The counselors were just ecstatic that Organized Labor does things like this,” Sappington said. “Hopefully, we put a smile on these kids’ faces this year for Christmas and winter. That’s the main thing.”

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