News

Center Tribute to TTD President Larry Willis

Posted December 2020

By Jack Clark, Executive Director, Transportation Learning Center

On November 29, Larry Willis, president of the Transportation Trades Department (TTD) of the AFL-CIO and a member of the Board of Directors of the Transportation Learning Center, died at the age of 53.

He loved bicycling, and he died doing what he loved, as his wife, Amy York, told The Washington Post. Entering Great Falls Park in Maryland on his bike, he was hit by an automobile on November 21.

Greg Regan, who served in the elected leadership of TTD with Larry, noted that in a city of big and inflated egos, Larry really operated without ego. It was never about getting credit; it was always about getting the work done. Even when Larry knew he was the most expert voice in the room, he would ask for others’ advice. Another work colleague joked that Larry was so steeped in the legal precedents protecting workers’ rights that he must have slept with a copy of the 1920s Railway Labor Act under his pillow. Larry had experience working as a staffer on Capitol Hill, and he practiced law in the private sector. He decided that being engaged in the labor movement was his life’s work. He was passionate and effective in that work.

As a Board member for the Center, Larry gave generously of his time and expertise. He helped recruit other labor leaders to join the Board, and his presence at meetings added gravitas for both labor and management colleagues. Although I am older than Larry, I benefitted greatly from his wise counsel, and yes, his mentoring.

Since his death, we have learned more about Larry. He was a devoted husband and father. He was married to Amy York for 32 of his 53 years. When she was not quite 6 years old, his daughter, Samantha, now 19, tried out for the swim team at her Dad’s urging. He promised anything she wanted in return. Exhausted from the try-out, Samantha asked to swim with the dolphins. Her parents made it happen. A TTD colleague recalls that Larry not only understood that child care gaps sometimes made it necessary for people to bring their children to work, he delighted in playing with the children once they were there.

In memory of Larry, his family welcomes donations to McGaw YMCA Camp Echo in Fremont, Michigan and the National Employment Law Project .