Saturday, March 12, 2011

Grandpa was a union man

That's my maternal grandfather. His name was William Wells. I just found out he worked to bring the union to Ford Motor Company plants in Detroit in the 1930's. I had no idea he did that. I could not be prouder to his blood flowing in my body, to share his genes.

Growing up I was scared of him. He was a cranky old man by the time I hit the scene. He tolerated me and I secretly loved being around him even though he frightened me a little. If he was around today I'd thank him profusely for helping unionize autoworkers. But he'd probably tell me to sit down and be quiet while he was trying to enjoy his TV time. He wasn't big on expressing emotion but I'd give him a hug anyway.

5 comments:

Mnmom said...

Thank you Grandpa Wells.

Barbara Bruederlin said...

Grandpa Wells was certainly an ancestor to be proud of. Unlike mine who were all horse thieves.

Claire said...

Excellent! My dad was a UAW shop steward (we lived in Philadelphia and he worked at a parts manufacturer...they used to be all over the city). He was elected to that job in 1981 because he was the only guy who was smart enough to put up signs and distribute flyers in Spanish. He asked me to ask my Spanish teacher to translate his flyers for him. She was a little reserved when I approached her to ask her to translate something for my dad but when she saw what it was, she was completely enthusiastic. You'd have liked him. He was NOT a Reagan Democrat.

Jim said...

Damn straight!
Thanks for sharing.

Margaret Benbow said...

Those early Union guys had to be cranky--it was a tough life, yet they stood up and refused to be serfs and slaves. Well done Grandpa Wells!