<body><div>Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 562 volunteers in the St. Louis and Fulton area gathered for a day of action Oct. 5, fanning out to check the furnaces and smoke detectors of retirees as part of the union’s annual Heat’s On effort. The retirees were thrilled to see them and regaled many with stories about their days in the field.Local 562 started the Heat’s On program in the 1980s. In the beginning, the program focused on going into homes of retirees and needy residents to check their furnaces and make needed repairs. The program has changed some over the years, and also grown.What started as a local program with Local 562 has spread to other locals and been picked up by their international union, the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry of the United States and Canada, commonly known as the United Association, Local 562 Business Manager John O’Mara told volunteers at the union’s Earth City training center ahead of the St. Louis area effort.“We’re here again to do what we do best, outside of the day-to-day work we do out in the field, and that is get into the community, and make sure the community is safe and the community has the things they need to be successful and to live a nice, normal life,” O’Mara said. “Today we’re going to go into a bunch of our retirees homes and make darn sure that their furnace is going to be good for the rest of this year and maybe a few years down the road. It’s a neat thing for them.”SPONSORSSponsors for this year’s Heat’s On event included:<ul><li>The Mechanical Contractors Association, with contractors providing supply trucks and equipment.</li><li>United Refrigeration, which provided furnace filters.</li><li>National Sales, which provided batteries for smoke detectors.</li><li>Anders CPAs, who provided donuts for volunteers.</li><li>Crane Agency, Commerce Bank, Hartnett Reyes-Jones, LLC, Marquette Associates, Inc. and VSP Vision Care, which provided attendance prizes for volunteers.</li></ul>George Bewen, 85, was happy to see volunteers Greg Larsen, Jonathan Williams and Joe Swartzbaugh, of Murphy Co. when they pulled up at his south St. Louis County home.Bewen, a 66-year member of Local 562, said this was the third year volunteers had helped make sure his home was ready for winter.“I just let them do what they need to do,” he said before leading them on a tour of fishing trophies in his basement. “It’s a good thing they do.”<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=05jlbU_0wFsXxEy00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=05jlbU_0wFsXxEy00" width="1501" height="585" ></figure></div></body>

Mountain View, CA

NewsBreak

Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 562 make sure Heat’s On for retirees

Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 562 volunteers in the St. Louis and Fulton area gathered for a day of action Oct. 5, fanning out to check the furnaces and smoke detectors of retirees as part of the union’s annual Heat’s On effort. The retirees were thrilled to see them and regaled many with stories about their days in the field.