I hired out on the Great Northern Railroad in August 1962 which later became BNSF in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was through my employment on the railroad that I became involved in the my local labor organization. I was elected Legislative Representative of BRAC Lodge 1310 (Brotherhood of Railway and Airline Clerks) on January 1, 1972. In August 1981 I was elected Minnesota State Legislative Director for BRAC and held that position until I retired in February 1997. In 1989 I became a full-time legislative representative primarily working in Washington, D.C. and at the state capitol in St. Paul, Minnesota. BRAC changed their name to the Transportation Communications Union (TCU) at the 1987 BRAC Convention.

Through my activities in TCU/BRAC I became involved in the Minnesota labor movement as well. I was appointed as a Delegate to the Minneapolis Central Labor Union Council AFL-CIO Committe on Political Education (COPE) in 1975 and held that position until retirement in 1997. Today the council has been renamed the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation AFL-CIO.

I also served as a COPE member and a Vice President of the Minnesota AFL-CIO from 1975 to 1997. After retirement I was elected a vice president of the Minnesota AFL-CIO Retiree Council in 1997 and still hold that position today.

As a railroad worker I joined the National Association of Retired & Veteran Railway Employees, Inc. (NARVRE) in 1986 11 years before I retired. I served as Local Unit 109 Legislative Representative from 1986 to 2007 and president from 2005 to 2007. I also served as National Legislative Director from 2000 to 2008 for NARVRE. In 2008, I was elected National President of NARVRE in Spokane, WA and hold that position to this day. See www.narvre.info for further reference