Page 3 - CSEA Retiree News Fall 2018

Heater honored for lifetime of unionism
ALBANY — Sally Heater learned about unions while at her family’s dining room table as a young child.
As part of a family of several generations of union activists, Heater’s family stressed the importance of unionism.
Heater has taken these lessons through her entire life. She has served our union for more than 40 years in many leadership roles, including with our Onondaga County Local, Syracuse Area Retirees Local, CSEA/VOICE Local 100A and numerous region and statewide committees.
For her many years of activism, Heater recently received our union’s Donald Webster Award
for Mission Achievement, which is awarded to a retiree who shows the importance of staying union and staying strong.
“[Heater’s] been fighting for our members forever,” CSEA President Danny Donohue said while presenting the award to Heater
at our recent Retiree Delegates Meeting. “She helped build our union and she has always worked for our members.”
“For more than four decades, Sally has worked nonstop for working men and women,” Central
Region President Colleen Wheaton said. “She keeps fighting to keep our union strong and she will never quit on our union. Sally really deserves this award for all of her hard
work on behalf of our retirees and working members.”
Heater, who became a CSEA member soon after starting a job with Onondaga County in 1971, said she realized the benefits of belonging to our union early in her employment through CSEA member-only insurance.
Heater’s dedication extends beyond our member-only benefits.
“One of the benefits of belonging to a union is making a good life for my children,” she said. “Our union made a nice life for me. I wanted to [make a nice life] for everyone else in our union.”
While employed with Onondaga County’s Health Department, she served in unit and local leadership roles with the Onondaga County Local, including helping negotiate contracts.
Heater retired from the county several years ago, but didn’t retire from our union. In fact, she serves our union in many roles today, including secretary of our Syracuse Area Retirees Local, as treasurer
Shortly after Syracuse Area Retirees Local 913 Secretary Sally Heater, second from left, front row, accepted our Donald Webster Award for Mission Achievement, she is congratulated by, from left, Syracuse Area Retirees Local 913 President Charlotte Adkins, Central Region President Colleen Wheaton, Syracuse Area Retirees Local 913 Treasurer Kathleen Zabinski and CSEA President Danny Donohue.
and Onondaga County Chapter Representative of CSEA/VOICE Local 100A and many committees.
“She has been a union activist for virtually all the years of her membership and she is always out front,” said Syracuse Area Retirees Local President Charlotte Adkins in her nomination of Heater for the Webster Award. “CSEA is Sally’s family almost as much as her own family.”
Heater, who is known for
involving her children and grandchildren in union and community activities, said she keeps up her activism because she believes in our union.
“We have to work hard to tell our children and grandchildren what we have worked for,” Heater said. “I am sticking with our union and we all need to stick together. My dying breath will be CSEA.”
— Janice Gavin
FALL 2018
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In this 2017 file photo, from left, Central Region activists Sally Heater, Lori Nilsson and Janet Jackson, far right, discuss our union’s concerns about the state budget proposal with State Sen. John DeFrancisco in his Syracuse district office.