PBA GETS OUT THE VOTE
The home team
From left, Woodbridge Local 38 State Delegate Bruce Chester, SOA
President Bob Brady and Captain Roy Hoppock lead members at the
PBA Election Day Phone Bank.
Now, this is what the NJ State PBA had in mind when the call went
out to Locals to take political action.
At the Central Phone Bank set up inside The Forge Banquet Hall
in Woodbridge, members of Woodbridge Local 38 and Woodbridge
SOA Local 38 showed up in waves to get out the vote. By day’s end,
92 Woodbridge officers took it to the bank, and the leader of this
pack savored what had transpired.
“It reminded me of a boxing match with Muhammad Ali,”
expressed Local 3 State Delegate Bruce Chester. “We rolled up our
sleeves, went into the right and kicked ass. We sent out a major statement. The people who lost these races will look back and wonder if
we are the guys that inflicted the pain.”
Chester pledged to motivate more than 100 Local 38 members to
get on the phones. After 92 showed up, Chester declared that they
reached their goal.
SOA Local 38 President Bob Brady was part of the group that was
present most of the day. And the department’s Chief Law Enforcement Officer, Captain Roy Hoppock, worked a shift. And even
Woodbridge Mayor John McCormac came down to show support,
Local 38 members at the Phone Bank with Woodbridge Mayor John
McCormac (third from left).
noting the impact of the effort his officers showed.
“They’re a formidable lobbying block,” recognized Mayor
McCormac. “When people get a call from somebody who identifies himself as law enforcement, it makes a significant impact.”
Brady said the troops were motivated to be on call, not just by
Chester but by the opportunity to take the political action that
would bring back lost benefits. Once on the phones, he noted
how responsive voters were to the calls.
“Several people were appreciative that I called to remind them
and that they were absolutely going out to vote,” Brady
explained. “I think that shows the support we’re getting.”
Woodbridge members came on their off days, on their lunch
hours, after their shifts and before their tours. As Chester made
the rounds to thank each person who came, he noticed that
none of them looked at this as work.
“They were into it, and I think everybody had a good time,” he
commented. “It was all good karma. We’re back in the game now;
a force to be reckoned with. We mean business and we’re in it to
win it.”d
Bad break can’t keep Settle from answering the call
How do we measure what members are willing to go through to answer the call to make the calls at the
Election Day Phone Bank in Woodbridge?
Check out East Orange Local 16 State Delegate Elaine Settle. She whipped down here during her lunch
hour to get in a couple hours of dialing up voters. On crutches.
Seems Settle broke her left ankle on the job the week before the election. But 40 minutes into her calling,
she had talked to five people, made five new friends – you know Elaine and her overall gregariousness - and
confirmed they were voting for the PBA-endorsed schedule.
Still, none of that impressed Settle as much as what was taking place on this day.
“I’ve never seen anything like this before,” she marveled. “It’s long overdue. We should have been doing
this a long time ago, making sure these politicians care about our benefits and making sure we get the right
people into office to do it.”
Settle has seen PBA political action initiatives come and go in her longtime service to the union. But it
was not difficult for her to see what was different this time around.
“People know what’s at stake and know what they have to do,” Settle added. “With (President) Pat (Colligan) and (Executive Vice-President) Marc (Kovar), I know they have the best intention of this ogrnaization
in mind, so whatever they need done, we’re all like, ‘What can I do to come out and support them.’” d
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NEW JERSEY COPS
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NOVEMBER 2015