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2014_calendar_cover_webThe SMART?Transportation Division is seeking quality railroad, bus and airline photos, taken by its members, for placement in its annual calendar and other uses.

The calendar is mailed annually to members of the UTU?Alumni Association as one of the benefits of Alumni Association membership.

High-resolution digital photographs should be emailed to news_TD@smart-union.org.

Printed photographs should be mailed to SMART?TD?News, 24950 Country Club Blvd., Suite 340, North Olmsted, OH 44070-5333. To be included in the 2014 calendar, photos must be received by Oct. 1.

Be sure to include the photographer’s name and local number, the name(s) of the person(s) in the photograph (left to right) and any other pertinent information, such as the date and location where the photograph was taken.

Due to federal or state regulations or company restrictions on employees’ use of personal electronic devices, including cameras, on company property or while on duty, all members are advised to always follow their employers’ guidelines on the use of such devices.

All members whose photographs are selected for use in the calendar will be named underneath the picture and will also receive copies of the calendar.

For more information about the UTU?Alumni Association, visit the SMART?TD homepage at www.utu.org. From the pulldown menu under “About UTU” at the top center of the homepage, select “UTU?Alumni Association.”

Retired UTU members, as well as those individuals nearing retirement or interested in pension and other issues affecting transportation-labor families, are invited to participate in this voluntary program.

All photographs submitted become property of SMART.

Carl Cochran; Cochran, CarlBy Carl Cochran
UTU Alumni Association Coordinator

So you’ve invested 40 years of your life working on the railroad or with a bus or transit agency.

You paid your dues – figuratively and literally – to your employer and to your union.

Maybe you were an officer in your local, or just involved. Maybe you even helped with the UTU PAC. Now it’s time for those young ones you probably helped to train to carry on in your stead. It’s time to go fishing, clean out the garage, paint the house, or just take a long break. You have it all figured out.

I’m with you. I’ve been retired from the railroad since 2005. And what we have in common is we are all drawing Railroad Retirement or Social Security benefits and we’re covered by Medicare.

Do you know there are about twice as many retired railroaders as there are active ones? This is important, because you may also remember how, every few years, while you were working, politicians wanted to get their hands on your Railroad Retirement? Well, they are at it again.

Do you also know that attacks on Social Security and Medicare are on Washington’s menu again? Those who want to balance the budget and control the deficits on the backs of folks who paid their dues all their lives have their sights and claws all over our present and future retirements. The business of protecting and improving benefits for you, your family and all those following in your footsteps never sleeps.

Given the threats surrounding us, we need you to stay involved more than ever.

The UTU Alumni Association gives you that opportunity to continue belonging – to stay in touch, to learn about the hot-button issues of the day affecting us, and to participate in helping stem the political tide washing over our livelihoods and threatening our retirement security.

UTU Alumni Association meetings and news keep you informed of threats, and provide an opportunity to take collective action. Retirees can’t match the political contributions of our former employers, but we are known to participate in politics and to vote more than any other demographic group in America. Politicians listen to retirees.

Please consider staying involved by joining the UTU Alumni Association.

In addition to keeping you up to date regarding your union and retirement benefits, the UTU Alumni Association provides additional benefits such as an annual calendar, an embroidered baseball cap, listing in the Final Call, membership in the nearest Alumni Association chapter, discounts on car rentals, cruises, airline travel and lodging, discounts on cellphone service, and much more.

Membership in the UTU Alumni Association also ensures you continue to receive the UTU News in your mailbox.

For more information and to download a membership application form, click on the following link:

https://www.smart-union.org/td/alumni/

Or you can call the UTU Alumni Association administrator at (216) 228-9400, extension 3012, and join by paying with a credit card.

For $9 annually, membership in the UTU Alumni Association is an investment you can’t afford not to make.

The UTU is offering the members of the UTU Alumni Association the vacation of a lifetime — an 11-day excursion to Alaska — at a group-tour price that is hard to beat.
This tour includes a seven-day cruise up the Inside Passage, a flight to Fairbanks and a two-day tour aboard the McKinley Explorer, a luxury train with domed passenger cars.
Vacationers will depart Vancouver, B.C., Aug. 15 aboard Holland America’s five-star cruise ship M.S. Statendam. This vessel boasts fewer passengers, larger staterooms and more space than any other plying the Alaska waters.
Aboard ship you can enjoy a massage in the Greenhouse Spa, a cooking lesson in the Culinary Arts Center or hundreds of other activities.
On day three, you will discover Ketchikan, possibly enjoying a flightseeing trip to breathtaking Misty Fjords National Monument.
On day four, you will explore Juneau. You can wander the lush Tongass National Forest, explore Mendenhall Glacier or go whale watching.
You will be in Skagway on the fifth day of your adventure. This is home to the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park and the historic White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad.
On day six, the ship will cruise Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska’s number-one glacier experience. You will cruise from the Reid and Lamplugh glaciers to the mighty Johns Hopkins — surrounded by rugged peaks and unforgettable scenery.
After a relaxing morning at sea on day seven, you will enter Prince William Sound and see the only place in Alaska that surrounds you on three sides with flowing rivers of ice, the College Fjord.
On day eight, you will disembark at Seward and board a motorcoach for a scenic journey through the Chugach National Forest to Anchorage, where you will board a flight to Fairbanks.
You will board the luxurious McKinley Explorer train on day nine where you will take in the sights and sounds of the Alaska Railroad. You will arrive at Denali National Park lodge that evening.
The morning of day 10 is for exploring and side trips. Then you will reboard the Explorer for a trip over the Hurricane Gulch Bridge, alongside lush mountains and raging rivers to Anchorage. You will depart Anchorage the following morning, or stick around and explore if you desire.
The UTU, through its association with Landfall Travel/American Express, is able to offer this once-in-a-lifetime trip beginning at only $1,352 per person. Certain other fees and taxes apply.
This tour is open to all UTU Alumni Association members, family and friends; other UTU members are welcome to join them as space permits.
For more information contact Landfall Travel toll free at (800) 835-9233; log onto the UTU Alumni Association page at www.landfalltravel, or email travel@landfalltravel.com.

The sign-up deadline is nearing for the UTU Alumni Association’s “Pioneer Adventures of the Old West.”

This eight-day adventure starts in Phoenix May 9, 2010. It includes Sedona, Ariz., and the Montezuma Castle National Monument; a ride aboard the Grand Canyon Railway through Grand Canyon National Park; a visit to Monument Valley in southwestern Utah and Lake Powell; Zion National Park; Bryce Canyon National Park; dinner at the Bryce Canyon Country Rodeo; travel through the scenic Virgin River Gorge into southern Nevada and on to fabulous Las Vegas.

The rate is only $1,525 per person based on double occupancy. Airfare is additional. The price includes seven breakfasts and three three-course dinners, as well as airport transfers, hotel taxes, tips for baggage handling and a sightseeing program.

For more information, contact Landfall American Express Travel at (800) 835-9233, e-mail travel@landfalltravel.com, or access the UTU Alumni Association page of Landfall Travel’s Web site, www.landfalltravel.com/UTU.html.

This tour, arranged through internationally known Brendan Vacations, is open to all UTU Alumni Association members, family and friends; other UTU members are welcome to join them as space permits.