Dear Flight Attendants,

Congratulations to all for reaching another milestone in our continued growth! Earlier yesterday during the Executive Board of Directors (XBOD) meeting in Orlando, Master Executive Council (MEC) President Jeffrey Peterson petitioned the XBOD to have the San Diego domicile represented by its own council. This resolution was brought forward on behalf of the Alaska MEC and pursuant to Article III.A of the AFA-CWA Constitution and Bylaws (C&B). The XBOD unanimously approved the creation of Council 15 San Diego, which will be effective on June 1, 2014.

The appointed Local Council officers are:

President Stephen Couckuyt (spacak@gmail.com)

Stephen Couckuyt has been with Alaska Airlines one month shy of 19 years. He started as a Customer Service Agent (CSA) in Anchorage before joining Inflight one year later.  Stephen was Anchorage based  from 1996 to 2011, during which he helped establish the Anchorage local council (AFA-CWA Council 30).  First serving as Interim Vice President, followed by two terms as elected Vice President and one term as President. Stephen also served on the AFA-CWA International Political/Legislative Committee. In 2011, Stephen decided that after 46 years of living in Alaska that it was time for a change. He moved to Chicago, first transferring to PDX and then SEA. In September of 2013, Stephen transferred to and now resides in San Diego.

“I am thrilled for the opportunity of working with all of you in establishing a new AFA-CWA Local Council in San Diego . I am honored to be working with Melanie Buker,  Brice McGee and MEC Leadership on your behalf with the priority that your voices be heard and your concerns are addressed.“

Vice President Melanie Buker (melanie.buker@gmail.com)

Melanie started her flying career with Horizon Air in 1986, based in Boise, ID.  While at Horizon, she joined the Critical Incident Response Program (CIRP), which led her to join the AFA Employee Assistance Program (EAP) at Alaska when hiring on in 2002. She was elected as the Council 30 Anchorage president in January of 2011.

“Union and volunteer work has always been important to me; I believe that you have to be the change that you want to see. I also know that there is a time and a place for everything and I hope that if the time is right, you also take on a roll within our local council…we need you!

I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the Flight Attendants here in San Diego that I have had the pleasure of working with, we seem to be a very diverse group and I look forward to meeting you all soon. I am honored to be working with Stephen and Brice; I have a lot of respect for both of them.”

Secretary Brice McGee (brice_mcgee@hotmail.com)

Brice is originally from Helena, MT. He started his flight attendant career 8 years ago in Los Angeles, transferring to Seattle and finally San Diego. He has been a commuter from Cancun Mexico for 7 years and is currently looking for a new home in the San Diego area or possibly Dallas, TX.  He has been active in various focus groups regarding scheduling, sick leave and flexibility.

“I am honored and excited to represent our San Diego base. I look forward to working with my friends Stephen and Melanie and I think we will make a great team and support system for the San Diego base.”

Council 15 will be in Election Category III per Article VIII.C.3 of the C&B, with appointed officers’ terms ending June 30, 2016. Elections will be held in spring 2016 for the next term beginning July 1, 2016, and ending June 30, 2019.

The MEC thanks the Council 18 Los Angeles leadership for setting a solid foundation of representation for the San Diego Flight Attendants. It is upon this foundation that the new Council 15 officers will build. Welcome Council 15 President Stephen Couckuyt, Vice President Melanie Buker and Secretary Brice McGee.

In solidarity,

Your MEC–Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Gesch, Becky Strachan, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow and in-coming Council 15 President Stephen Couckuyt

Resources

• AFA Executive Board Resolution