Happy Labor Day

I hope you all are enjoying a safe and happy Labor Day.

When I was a kid, Labor Day to me meant no school and I spent the weekend with my Grandma Wilhite and we watched the Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon. She let me make a small donation every year and once (since the telethon was broadcast from Las Vegas until the mid-1990's) we even got to go and see the Telethon live. I loved my Grandma Wilhite (who passed on in 1995 at the age of 91) and I loved staying at her house. Of course, it didn't hurt that she spoiled me rotten. But I loved that Labor Day tradition and though I rarely watch the telethon any more, I still associate my best Labor Day memories with her.

As an adult I came to appreciate Labor Day for what it is supposed to represent, the celebration of the working man and the various labor organizations that began it. My father was a union steelworker for most of my life and I was worked as a union grocery clerk to put myself through school. You can say whatever you like about labor unions but we as Americans owe most of the industrial revolution in this country to unions and their members. And I owe my very survival to unions because without them my father wouldn't have been able to support us (and let my mother stay home with us kids.) Unions today may not have the same power, prestige and impact but I thank the men and women who fought and sacrificed for fair wages, benefits and working conditions. I, and this country, owe you a debt of gratitude.

Labor Day to you may mean parades or picnics or just the end of summer. (Which, frankly, growing up in Las Vegas I never understood since it will still be in the 100 degree range for another four weeks or more.) But whatever Labor Day means to you and your family, I hope yours is filled with love, peace and prosperity.