from Liset Márquez, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
MONTCLAIR – From packaging food for holiday distribution to helping decorate for Thanksgiving, nearly 150 members of United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 1428 were volunteering at various Inland Empire locations on Monday for a “Day of Service.”
The day of action was to thank local communities for their support during the union’s recent eight months of negotiations, said Connie Leyva, president of UFCW Local 1428.
“We wanted to give back with a day of service for our community who supported us,” she said.
In Montclair, about 18 union members occupied two classrooms at Kingsley Elementary School where they helped pack socks and toiletries for up to 100 people. They also helped pack bright yellow bags of food as well as gift certificates for shoes. Flu shots were provided for children and family members.
Ron Dietzman, the school’s assistant principal, said UFCW Local 1428 has partnered with Kingsley for nearly 15 years, providing pre-packaged meals for Thanksgiving and toys for Christmas.
“They’ve been helping us for years, and it’s fantastic,” he said.
Rachel Almazan of Rancho Cucamonga was among the volunteers at the Montclair site.
Almazan, who works for Rite-Aid and has been a union member for 39 years, has volunteered at the school site before.
“We sort of adopted this school,” she said. “We just want to give back to our community for their support.”
Almazan, who was helping hand out food, said she enjoys volunteering.
In Pomona, members also assisted in similar services for family members at Trinity United Methodist Church.
Members of UFCW Local 1428 also decorated a facility for a Thanksgiving celebration at Ability First in Claremont. Families in Ontario were able to receive food for the holidays from union volunteers who were at Feed the Children.