After twelve years working at the TWU International, with decades of experience at Local 208, COPE Director and Administrative Vice President Hubert Snead retired in April of this year. Under his leadership as COPE Director contributions to TWU COPE reached the highest amount the union has ever seen. "Hubert is a dedicated union man who has a keen sense of how to use our COPE funds to make the political system work for labor," said TWU COPE Coordinator Trish Rodican.

TWU President James C. Little added, "We wish Hubert well in his retirement, but we are sorry to see him go. We could always depend on Hubert to explain the importance of COPE to members and attract donations that he carefully allocated to promote a political agenda that favors working families."

A native of Columbus, Ohio, Snead came to the TWU in 1971 as a Bus Operator with the Central Ohio Transit Authority and member of TWU Local 208. He started representing workers as a Shop Steward in 1972 and 1973. He was subsequently elected Local Recording Secretary, Transportation Vice President and finally President of Local 208 in 1988. In that role, Hubert always reminded members and management, "A Bus is Nothing Without Us!"

During his time at Local 208, Snead came to understand the importance of politics in the everyday lives of our members. So when he joined the TWU International Staff in 1997 he started to work in the COPE department expanding TWU's COPE presence in the locals he supervised. In 2004, Snead was named Director of the Transit Division, and then became the COPE Director in early 2009. Alex Garcia named COPE and Political Field Director International President James C. Little has named Alex Garcia to succeed Snead as Director of COPE and Director of Political Field. Garcia became a TWU member when he worked as a Fleet Service Clerk at American Airlines in 1989. Three years later he became a Shop Steward and then a Chief Steward and a member of the election committee at Local 568.

Garcia's interest and passion for politics led him to take an internship position in Senator Bob Graham's office from 1998 through 2002, where he helped with Graham's 2000 presidential run and worked on fundraising for the senator.

In 2002, and again in 2005, Garcia was elected President of Local 568. In April 2007 International President Little assigned Garcia to serve as a TWU political representative in Washington DC, where he met with legislators on behalf of the TWU membership's political interests. In early 2009 he became the Legislative and Political Field Representative when he was tasked with beginning a Political Field Service Program.

Garcia holds a minor in political science from Miami-Dade College and a Bachelors degree in Labor Studies and Political Economy from the George Meany Center, now named the National Labor College.

You can read more about Garcia's plans for the COPE Department and Political Field program in his column on page 15.