Patricio Paredes retired from UPS in July after amassing 43 years of service as a Teamster Member. Patricio started at UPS as a part-time employee and worked in preload for five years. When his seniority allowed, he moved to package car, where he remained until retirement. While navigating the big brown truck around town, Patricio earned induction into the UPS Circle of Honor for 25 years of safe driving. Not content with just 25 years of safe driving, he logged a total of 33 years of safe driving before retiring.

Patricio and his wife Margaret have been married for 29 years and have two children. So far, they have no grandkids to spoil, but you never know! Margaret is still working, but her schedule is flexible enough for them to travel.

Retirement gives Patricio time to devote to his main hobby, gardening, mainly raising vegetables to help them eat healthy. He is also trying to pick up golf. A friend is helping him learn. Maybe we'll see him at the Local 776 Golf Tournament next year!

When asked about what retirement means, Patricio reflected: "I'm happy to be retired. UPS is a hard place to work. I'm grateful to God for the opportunities he provided me over the years, which I was able to take advantage of. I'd also like to thank my Business Agent, Jason Kraft. I appreciate all the hard work he puts in representing the UPS Members.

On behalf of everyone at Local 776, congratulations on your retirement, Patricio. 43 years with the same employer is a true testament to a strong Union Contract. May you enjoy retirement for as long as you worked to earn it!

Local 776 Secretary-Treasurer Mark Cicak (R) Congratulates Patricio on his retirement and presents him with a retirement watch.

Organizing is a tough job. Many workers want to be unionized but don't know what it means to work in a union environment or how to get organized. Education is the key, and that's one of the aspects of organizing a workplace that the organizing dept. starts a campaign with. Workers learn what being union means and the process to follow.

To that end, our organizers, Ashley Cerzullo and Joshua Todd, are taking union education on the road by attending numerous high school career night seminars. Recognizing that not everyone will go to college after graduation but will enter the workforce, the organizing department, in partnership with Local 776's Future's Committee, aims to educate and inform soon-to-be graduates about their options and opportunities as they enter the workforce.

On Wednesday night, September 30^th, Teamsters Local 776 Organizers Ashley and Joshua attended Cedar Cliff High School's College Fair to spread the word about union organizing and Local 776 in particular to the high school seniors. After recently attending East Pennsboro's Back to School Night earlier this month and continuing to schedule events throughout the school year, Local 776 is working to grow the Union in every way possible.

Local 776 organizer Joshua Todd has the materials and knowledge to answer any questions about the Teamsters directed to him! (That's Ashley behind the camera!)

Organizer Ashley Cerzullo spoke about the youth initiative: "Our Local's future not only depends on our current rank-and-file membership, but also on continuing outreach with potential Teamsters to ensure a secure and stable career in their future."

If any members have contacts or affiliations with other local education institutions, please contact the Organizing Department at (717) 233-8766 to share that information.

The Local 776 Retirees Club was traveling again. On Saturday, October 3, 2026, the Group rode on the Reading & Northern Railway train excursion from Reading, PA, to Jim Thorpe, PA, and back. They had 60 members and their guests attending.

The Retirees Group gathering in front of the Reading & Northern Train Depot.

Club President Dave Wolf reported: "We left the Camp Hill Union Hall by bus early in the morning and returned home by bus at the end of the day. The Train Excursion was a beautiful 120-mile round trip. The weather was almost perfect. In Jim Thorpe, our group enjoyed the fall fest within the town for a few hours before returning to the train for the trip back to the Reading, PA, Train Depot. Everyone had a great time, and many remarked, "When is the next bus trip?"

The group had their own rail passenger car for the trip up and back from Jim Thorpe.

"Mothers with their babes asleep, rocking to the gentle beat

And the rhythm of the rails is all you hear"

Willie Nelson

Please see below for the latest update from the IBT on the Yellow Corp. Bankruptcy Proceedings: