by Sheila Gilmour, USA President
Dear USA members,
Please join me in wishing a fond farewell to one of USA’s unsung heroes – Dave Litterer! Those of us who were lucky enough to work with Dave will miss his warm, cheerful demeanor, and the calm level-headedness he brought to USA’s Elections Committee.
I called Dave to wish him a happy retirement and ask for his parting thoughts, and my oh my, did he have some stories to tell! He has been a member of our campus community since 1969 when he attended fourth grade at Marks Meadow, a public school that used to be attached to our very own College of Education. Both of his parents were UMass employees, and Dave came to school here to earn a bachelor’s degree in economics before being hired as a campus employee. He started as a non-benefitted employee but joined USA right away as soon as he landed his first full-time position on campus. It wasn’t long before he needed assistance from a steward. The University was facing budget cuts in the early 90’s and Dave was at risk of being laid off. His union leadership helped him find a new position, and he was grateful to return the favor by helping count ballots in a union election in 1990.
This is where things got interesting. Dave enjoyed helping the Elections Committee stuff envelopes and count ballots, so he agreed to join the committee as a full member. In 1992, two competing factions emerged, both vying for top leadership positions within USA. At the time, USA used paper ballots sent via campus mail to conduct elections, and one of the candidates happened to work in the mailroom. When that candidate’s side prevailed, the opposing side accused him of tampering with the ballots in the mailroom. The losing side demanded a recount, and when that didn’t happen, they broke into the ballot box to perform their own unofficial recount – a recount that showed the losing side should have won.
The losing side demanded an official recount based on this evidence, and the entire Elections Committee resigned out of exhaustion and frustration. That is, everyone except for Dave. Dave knew that USA deserved a fair, unbiased election, and he stayed on through the trials and tribulations. The newly elected leaders moved to have their opponents shut out of union elections by declaring them “members not in good standing,” and tried to ram through changes to our Constitution that would have further secured their power and insulated them from opposition.
A new Elections Committee was appointed, and thankfully, all of them remained neutral during the election. Dave, as the most experienced member, became the Elections Chair, and implemented a locked ballot box to prevent any further meddling.
Dave has served as our Elections Chair ever since, although no USA election has ever called for as much diligence as his first official election in 1992. Dave frequently attends MTA Annual Meeting, the NEA Regional Assembly, and used to maintain our USA listserv. In his free time, he volunteers to maintain 75 miles worth of trail in the Amherst Conservation Area, a task he plans to continue into retirement.
Farewell Dave! We’re going to miss you, and your dedication to union democracy.
In solidarity,
Sheila Gilmour
USA President
