Labor Day 2015

Though the American labor movement coursed throughout my political life, I grew to appreciate it powerfully only as a young man in the West Virginia state Capitol in Charleston, watching a great Governor's plans fall short time after time in the Legislature - only to be saved by the efforts of a small, well-dressed, serious man named Miles Stanley.
He was not part of the heavy-handed mine-workers, who were co-opted too often by the all-powerful Consolidation Coal Company of Pennsylvania.
Miles Stanley was an extraordinary figure in my state; well-educated, soft spoken (except when crossed), and methodical. He was the President of the West Virginia AFL-CIO.

He led me to never-ending respect for the American labor movement.

My recollection of Labor Day events there ... ? only one .... rising early with my dad - who had the grocery in town, to receive on our front porch dozens of 10-gallon containers of ice cream ... from Groves Dairy in Canvas, WV, a 'suburb' just across Brock's Bridge and up the hill .... belonging to dozens of families planning outings of one sort or another where the centerpiece was one of these large, round containers - with two lids - the first holding a block of dry ice, to keep the contents cold and firm for hours until removed by families in search of the second lid .... which led to wonderful, cold delicious ice cream!

Dad's customers had placed orders for these - or smaller containers - for pickup at the store, but Dad always closed it that day and, not wishing to turn this holiday chore over to another, he had check-out clerks tell all who placed orders to pick there ice cream up at the house!

We were also on that porch early every morning the day before my birthday - July 5!

Happy Labor Day, America. It still counts!