UFCW Local 655

We never dread Mondays at Local 655 because it means we get to serve our partners! President Kelley loves going out and seeing our union family, like Schnucks Festus, every day of the week!

Happy Juneteenth!!

Today, we joined UFCW Local 88, Unite Here Local 74, Gas Workers 11-6, SBWorkersUnited, Jimmy Lappe for Saint Louis, Mitten for Missouri, Brian Williams for St. Louis County Executive, and the dedicated cemetery groundskeepers, Shelley and Raphael Morris, at Greenwood Cemetery, St. Louis, MO, to honor the 50,000 African-Americans buried there.

Greenwood Cemetery, established in 1874 in Hillsdale, Missouri, is a nationally registered historic site preserving the stories of thousands. Shelley and Raphael, who chose to care for this land in retirement, shared the cemetery’s history with us, and we recorded their story for all to hear.

Standing at Greenwood, surrounded by names like Harriet Robinson Scott, Lucy Ann Delaney, and Walter Davis, whose music you can hear in the videos of this post, you feel the power of these grounds and the significance of its history.

But what truly makes Greenwood special is honoring all 6,000 marked and 44,000 unmarked graves by remembering that every life here had meaning and purpose.

We look forward to returning to Greenwood Cemetery and invite more Local 655 partners to join us in honoring this historic site.

Today Local 655 along with UFCW Local 88 and Unite Here Local 74 showed up to support the Teamsters Local 600 and Teamsters Local 688 strike line at BreakThru beverages.

“We’re out here to ensure that our strike language stays in our contract. This is my is 6th contract and there’s no reason to take away this right from us, because in the 21 years I’ve been here we’ve never had a strike” - Beth Schreiner: warehouse receiving

When we stand together we show companies the power unions have, and that workers will always out number those at the top. TOGETHER WE RISE!

President Kelley loved visiting our Local 655 partners at Kehrs Mill Schnucks! We are so thankful to have such a dedicated and involved union family!

Please join us on Friday, June 19th, as we celebrate Juneteenth. Local 655, along with UFCW Local 88, Unite Here Local 74, and Gas Workers Local 11-6, will be honoring those buried at the historic Greenwood Cemetery. We will be cleaning headstones, clearing brush, and learning about the lives of the men, women, and children buried there.


“Our goal is to bring the Cemetery to its former glory. The cemetery has proved to be a valuable teaching tool for students in the St. Louis County public schools as well as college and university students from University of Missouri-St. Louis and William Woods University, which have used the site to teach anthropology, history, mathematics, and other disciplines. Greenwood offers enormous promise as an educational and tourist resource. The compelling oral record regarding Greenwood leaves no doubt of its historic, cultural and social importance to St. Louis, and particularly St. Louis African Americans as a source of great pride.” - Greenwood Cemetery Preservation Association

Being a part of Local 655 also means being a part of the International UFCW. There are so many incredible opportunities and resources for our partners to take advantage of and this is one of them!

If you have ever wanted to learn a new language, we highly encourage you to sign up for these FREE classes provided by the UFCW. Registration is this Thursday, June 18th! Don’t miss out!

🚨 REMINDER 🚨

UFCW’s Free Language Program Summer quarter applications will open Thursday, June 18th at 1pm ET. Be sure to make your calendar, as enrollment is on a first come, first served basis!

https://bit.ly/3FBvRSn

President Kelley loved visiting all of our Local 655 partners at Des Peres Schnucks, she even ran into our Executive Board Member, Tia Bishop!

Not only does Local 655 represent the employees at Dierbergs’ grocery stores, we also represent their production facility, Central Kitchen. This week Secretary-Treasurer Spence joined President Kelley on a visit to see our wonderful partners at Central Kitchen!

Once a month our Local 655 retirees gather for a great lunch and to swap stories from the good old days! This month was their annual picnic!

President Kelley makes a point to pop into their meetings to say hello and keep them updated on what’s happening at the hall. This month S-T Robert Spence and Communications Director Lucy Acevedo also joined!

If you are a retiree or about to retire, please consider joining the group! You can reach out to the President of the club, Shelle Veres at (314) 650-2914.

How fun seeing our Local 655 family at Maplewood Schnucks sporting our new logo swag! If you haven’t received a new button just reach out to your rep so they can make sure you get one!