A Long Tradition of Union Advocacy

President Marv Russow comes from a family of union leaders. Russow's grandfather was a Teamster leader and vice president of the Retail Clerks Union, which later became UFCW Local 876; his father was once president of UFCW Local 27 in Maryland, and the organizing and collective bargaining director for the Retail Clerks Union, which later became UFCW International Union.

Russow has held officer positions at four other UFCW locals since 1976, including 11 years as president of UFCW 227 located in Louisville, Kentucky. Following that service, he became an executive assistant to the UFCW International president for the Food Processing and Manufacturing division.

Prior to Russow's election to the UFCW 951 executive board, he served as the deputy trustee of UFCW Local 700 in Indianapolis. In the course of his extensive union experience, Russow has worked with many employers including Meijer and Kroger.

Russow's approach to reinventing unions for today's economic reality is based on his life-long learning of union dynamics.

"We can't be our grandfather's union," said Russow. "We must now engage our membership and encourage them to take an active role in their union. Our staff must reach out - into the communities and into the workplace."