Page 16 - Work Force May 2020

Welcome our new CSEA Region Presidents
Kenny Greenleaf, Central Region President
EAST SYRACUSE
— CSEA Central Region members have elected Kenny Greenleaf to a full, four-year term as Central Region President.
Greenleaf took over as region president after the retirement of former Region President Colleen Wheaton in November 2018. Before assuming his current office, Greenleaf had served in nearly every office on the region’s Executive Board.
Before serving as region president, Greenleaf worked as a cleaning supervisor at the Hannibal Central School District, where he had been employed since 1984. Greenleaf completed a supervisory course through Clemson University and
was the school’s adviser to the international student organization, Key Club, for 18 years.
In 1996, the Operations and Maintenance Department at Hannibal Central School District became a part of CSEA, joining other departments already affiliated. Greenleaf joined our union and was elected Unit President in 1998, a position he held until becoming region president.
“My guidance counselor from high school had convinced me to stay in the workforce because our employees needed someone like
me to stand up for their rights,” Greenleaf said. “I became an activist not only to stand up for everyone else, but I wanted to have a voice at the bargaining table.”
In addition to serving as unit president, Greenleaf also became more active in our Oswego County Local and the Central Region.
In 2000, Greenleaf was appointed to fill an unexpired term of 4th Vice President in our Oswego County Local. The following year, he was
elected local treasurer, a position he held until he was elected local president in 2009.
Greenleaf started his Central Region activism when he was instrumental in creating the Region Scholarship Fund. He served on many region committees, including in leadership roles. In 2011, he was appointed as the region’s 3rd Vice President and began to climb the ranks.
As region president, Greenleaf makes an effort to connect with
as many members at meetings, trainings, and workplace visits from Chemung to Franklin to create a more inclusive, transparent, and member-driven region.
“It doesn’t matter what title
any of us hold. At the end of the
day, we are all members and we’re
in the fight together,” Greenleaf
said. “What a title does is give us a different responsibility, and I take the
view this new normal as a period of shared opportunities and personal growth,” Healy said.
Healy says it’s also time for us to revisit our core mission, recalculate our values moving forward and reach out to the greater community.
“I would like to ask our community partners and allies to help us bring economic justice
to the workplace and to improve social justice outcomes,” he said. “During this pandemic, it has become increasing clear working people are the backbone of this nation and need to be treated with more dignity and respect.”
Healy says two of his executive board’s biggest priorities in the short term is to create and strengthen committee work and to increase membership numbers so more workers can have a say in how they can achieve the American Dream.
“It’s about getting back to focusing
responsibility as region president very seriously. I always want to include all of our activists and leaders.”
Greenleaf has continued to
take the responsibility of his position seriously throughout this unprecedented health crisis. Every day, he is on the phone or video chat, sometimes at the same time, connecting with leaders, members and CSEA staff.
“To be the Region 5 President, and to represent all of our members, it means the world to me,” Greenleaf said. “I’m very humbled by the opportunity to continue to do this. I’m grateful to have been entrusted to be the voice of so many people and to stand up on the front line
and make sure we’re fighting every day for what is best for all of our members.”
— Nicholas Newcomb
on the basics and streamlining
what works and eliminating what doesn’t work,” said Healy. “We will measure, benchmark and publish
all our efforts– settling contracts, making sure our members have due process, improving health and safety standards, raising our public profile, lobbying lawmakers, volunteering
in our communities, marching
in solidarity and organizing new members to strengthen our families.”
Healy says despite our day-to-day progress, we also recognize there is so much more for us to accomplish together.
“We will continue to prosper as long as we continue to invest in our most precious resource—the people and families who take an active role in making their communities better by delivering on the promise of a job well done,” he said.
— Ove Overmyer
Steve Healy, Western Region President
AMHERST — CSEA
members who live
and work in New
York’s 14 western
most counties
elected longtime
Ontario County
CSEA activist Steve
Healy as Western Region President.
Most recently, Healy served as the Western Region’s 1st Vice President and has been the acting Ontario County Unit and Local President for several years.
Healy was born in Geneva, NY, the second oldest of four siblings. He graduated from Geneva High School and the Finger Lakes BOCES Carpentry Program, as well as attending classes at Finger Lakes Community College and the Cornell ILR School.
Healy started his employment with Ontario County in 1995, working as a laborer in the Sustainability and
Solid Waste Department. Soon after, he was promoted several times to become a Motor Equipment Operator 4 in the same department where he is still presently employed.
For more than 25 years, Healy has been very active serving the CSEA membership by holding several
key leadership positions in many statewide, region, local and unit committees.
Steve is married to wife Tammy and they have two adult children, Stephen, 31, and Courtney, 30.
Soon after Healy took office on March 1, the COVID-19 pandemic began affecting New York. Healy requested members come together in a spirit of cooperation and rededicate our collective efforts to improving the lives of all working people everywhere.
“Despite the unprecedented challenges we are facing today, it would serve our organization well to
16 The Work Force
May 2020