Editorials
Tom Pappas: A giant retires
Jun 29, 2009 10:39 AM
UFT President Randi Weingarten describes him as “the heart and soul of the UFT, the embodiment of trade unionism and an opportunity agent for the city’s kids and teachers.”
Others describe him as the one person to go to for a “real world answer,” the one who delivers a message “clear and straight.”
Vice President Michael Mulgrew said, “I’ve learned more from that man in two years than from all the teachers in my life.”
That’s Tom Pappas, adviser to the last three presidents of the UFT and presently chapter leader of the Retired Teachers’ Chapter. He is retiring after more than 50 years of dedicated service to the union.
In those 50 years, he has served as chapter leader, strike leader, district representative, borough representative and staff director: always fighting to give teachers a voice. But the mere list of jobs doesn’t tell the whole story.
As the president said in her tribute to him at the recent retiree luncheon, “He uplifts us all.” She spoke of his fight over the years to keep class size down, to ensure classroom resources, to ensure that kids and teachers work in buildings that are safe and clean. “It’s what people like Tom Pappas do,” she said.
The standing ovation and thunderous applause retirees gave him are testimony to their appreciation for his leadership in mobilizing the battles to save Social Security and Medicare from privatization and his recurring boast that UFT retirees have the best retirement package in the country.
As he has reminded retirees over and over again in his relentless battle to protect pensions and benefits, not only for UFT members but for all working Americans, “The bad guys never go away.”
As soon as his retirement was announced, members and colleagues began contributing to the Pappas portrait. Tom, they said, is the Rock of Gibraltar, a tough guy, funny, decisive but not inflexible, a colorful linguist, a doer.
Adding to the picture, Weingarten noted, “Being a UFT president is no picnic, but Tom did everything he could to help us (UFT presidents) keep our eye on the ball.”
Tom is stepping down, not out. His leadership has inspired generations of members to be dedicated educators, trade unionists and political activists. The UFT will continue to seek his advice and guidance in the years ahead.
