GUILD'S ANNUAL PICNIC AUGUST 9

Bring your family and join your fellow Guild members at the union’s annual picnic, Saturday, Aug. 9, at Sunset Beach in Washington County.

Located about 40 minutes from Downtown Pittsburgh, Sunset Beach offers the largest swimming pool in Western Pennsylvania, including a water slide, as well as volleyball, horseshoes, softball and a children’s playground.

The Guild will provide food and beverages, including barbecued chicken, hot dogs, hamburgers and salads.

The picnic begins at 1 p.m., but the pool opens at noon for those who want to cool off early. Dinner will be served at 5 p.m.

It’s important, for planning purposes, that if you plan to attend and bring your children, send an e-mail to the Guild office at pghguild@verizon.net and let us know the number of people in your party and the ages of any children you will bring. For directions, go to sunsetbeachpark.net, click on Sunset Beach, then on directions.

GUILD SIGNS SAME-SEX HEALTH COVERAGE AGREEMENT
After years of urging the company to act, followed by months of negotiations, the Guild has reached an agreement with the company that will make health care and other benefits available to same-sex couples. An agreement was signed in late May that will extend health coverage to Guild members’ same-sex partners and their children. While the terms aren’t ideal, we hope this is just one step toward building a more equitable workplace for everyone. Guild members should be eligible to sign up for the benefits beginning in July.

NEXT MEMBERSHIP MEETING: THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4
The Guild will hold its third-quarter membership meeting in two sessions (at 12:30 and 5:30) on Thursday, Sept. 4, in the second-floor meeting room of the Steelworkers Building, next door to the Post-Gazette. Food and drinks will be provided.

GUILD AWARDS SCHOLARSHIPS TO LOCAL COLLEGE STUDENTS
The Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh has awarded two $1,500 scholarships to local college students who will be seniors this fall. The 2008 winners are Rebecca Mack and Margaret J. Krauss. Rebecca, of Washington, Pa., is a Duquesne University journalism and international relations major who has worked on The Duquesne Duke and belongs to the International Relations Club and Golden Key International Honor Society. Margaret, of Pittsburgh, is an English writing and Spanish major at the University of Pittsburgh. She has worked on The Original Magazine and The Pitt News and belongs to the poetry club, STAND, the Pitt Outdoor Club and the Red Eye Theater Project. Congratulations to Rebecca and Margaret!

PENSION ADMINISTRATORS MEET WITH GUILD MEMBERS
Scott Bush, who administers The Newspaper Guild's International Pension Fund, and Rich Berger, who handles the fund's investments, met with Guild members and answered their questions in two meetings on April 8. The meetings were an effort to get more information to Guild members about the proposed merger of our pension fund with the TNGIPF. An FAQ document is on the way for those who missed the meeting, but if you still have specific questions, feel free to e-mail President R.J. Hufnagel.