Congratulations, Story Challenge Winners!
Team of Story Challenge Evaluators representing private and public sectors, drivers, steel workers, Department of Corrections, and Teamsters staff.
Last year, we launched a Story Challenge competition seeking union stories across all sectors of our membership, and now the results are in! It was a tough challenge — to pick the winning story. Each one reflected the incredible challenges that Teamsters overcome every day from struggles of a young single mother to surviving the horrific aftermath of Vietnam war.
To deal with this daunting task, we brought together a group of seven Teamsters from different industries. After long deliberation the winners were chosen as follows:
1st place: Adrian Johnson PENSKE
2nd place: Eric Sacks Pierce County
3rd Place: Cuong Huynh (Van) Swire Coca Cola
Honorary Mention: Jessica Poston South Sound 911
Honorary Mention: James Shepard King County
The awards were presented during our Holiday Membership meeting where winners read their stories and captivated the audience. Despite limited number of awards, all participants will have their story featured on our website. Visit www.familystrengthcommunity.org/stories to read the stories and stay tuned for more!
Teamsters Story Challenge
In our time, the word “freedom”, can be loaded with lots of different meanings. There are entities claiming to be able to give it to you, sell it to you, or instruct you on how to get it yourself. However, freedom fundamentally is defined by your ability to think, speak, and act in response to your own beliefs, choices and individual life experiences.
There is no one way to define the word, just like there is no one way to define what it means to be part of union. Through winning strong contracts and improving our workplaces, Teamsters 117 members have unique stories of freedom to share. We want to hear them!
Reflect on how the various benefits, protections, and job improvements have created freedom in your life for you and/or your family. Participate in our story challenge by answering the following question:
Through your experience as a Teamster, how has being part of a union afforded you more freedom in your life?
PRIZES!
1st place - $1000
2nd place - $400
3rd place - $150
Honorable mention and
other awards!
RULES OF ENTRY:
Entries must be between 300 – 500 words. The deadline for submitting stories has been extended to November 1. All entries will be judged blindly by a member-committee. Don’t let not writing since High School or English as a second language stop you from entering the challenge. Everyone is welcome to participate and content will be valued over writing skill level.
All entries may be used for publication by Teamsters 117 or read at union events.
Open to all Teamsters Local 117 members or retirees 18+ years of age residing in the US.
Each participant can submit only one story.
Winners will be notified by December 11, 2017 via letter to the provided address.
The winning story will be read at December Membership Meeting at Tukwila Hall.
JOHN'S STORY
In 2004, the oldest of my three daughters, Anastacia, was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes. She was only five. Anastacia was fully insulin dependent which required multiple injections, blood-sugar tests and general oversight all while entering her first year of kindergarten. At that time I was a single father with full-custody working the night shift at Food Services of America. Being part of the union was what allowed me to earn a decent wage and have job security to take care of my daughter. Now my wish is that every worker has the right to enjoy the freedom that union fought contracts bring, and I fight for that every day as Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local 117. Freedom to me is the ability to be there for my family.
Please submit your story here or send an email to yulia.issa@teamsters117.org.
If you would like to be on the members evaluating committee, click here.
You cannot submit a story and be on the evaluating committee at the same time.