Labor of Love: IBEW Local 26 Celebrates 10th Annual Capital Area Dinner

With a massive turnout of over 400 attendees, IBEW Local 26 took the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance’s Capital Area Conservation Dinner to the next level for its 10^th anniversary on October 18.

The dinner, usually held inside IBEW Local 26’s hall, was moved to a 40×120 tent in the parking lot to accommodate the larger crowd.

Inside the tent, union members representing a variety of trades enjoyed a buffet catered by Chesapeake Celebrations while participating in table games, raffle drawings, a photo booth, and live and silent auctions. Items auctioned off included a Wyld Gear cooler, custom-made artwork, firearms, and Club Level Washington Capitals tickets.

“We have the support of our membership and the support of other building trades,” said IBEW Local 26 Recording Secretary Rich Murphy. “This isn’t just a Local 26 event—it’s considered the Capital Area Dinner. All the different trades, our parent groups, the IBEW International, and our NECA chapter had tables. It’s about pulling everyone together for one common goal—to raise money for conservation.”

At the heart of the dinner’s success were 17 IBEW Local 26 officers and business agents, led by committee members Murphy, Business Manager Chris Cash, and President Tom Myers.

“Rich and the rest of the committee have taken ownership of this dinner and have helped build it to what it is today,” said USA Director of Field Operations Kevin Grubbs. “Their whole crew out of their office worked that night helping with registration, running the games, raffles and more. They knock it out of the park every year.”

Murphy called IBEW Local 26’s involvement a “labor of love” and a “team effort.”

“We’re the biggest of the building trades unions in the Washington D.C., Maryland and Virginia Area,” he said. “We’ve always taken the helm on being the leader out of all the building trades. We, as members of Local 26, are very into conservation, shooting sporting clays and giving back.”

 

Funds raised at this dinner have gone to support local conservation projects, including the USA’s 100^th conservation project, where volunteers from the Washington D.C. area spent six weekends restoring a fishing pier at Jones Point Park in Alexandria, Virginia. IBEW Local 26 has also made improvements to shooting stations at Prince George’s Trap and Skeet.

Grubbs is grateful for IBEW Local 26’s longstanding support.

“It gives me a good amount of satisfaction to know IBEW Local 26 gets what we do and why we do it,” Grubbs said. “Even before Rich, Chris and Tom were in their positions, Local 26 has always been one of the most generous locals to the USA. As these guys have come up through the ranks, they’ve seen that example, they understand it, they get behind it, never question it and hopefully they will pass on to the people after them. As long as Local 26 is involved, this dinner is going to be successful.”