Doris Caldwell Uses Military Background to Strengthen and Grow Local 9504 in Alabama

This article is part of Women of Steel’s “Sister Stories” series.

Doris Caldwell first learned what it meant to be part of a family beyond her own blood relatives when she served in the U.S. Air Force for 20 years.

After retirement, she got her second chance to experience this bond when she accepted a job as an IT planner at the Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Ala.

Doris and her co-workers are members of USW Local 9504. Her favorite part about being in the union is the familiar and innate sense of solidarity.

“You’re able to share experiences and skills with other people, especially other women,” Doris said. “We end up finding so much in common.”

Doris serves as chair of her local’s Women of Steel committee, and she has used the confidence and strength she fostered in the military to recruit others to do good. She, along with her husband, who is also a member of Local 9504, have organized dozens of community service events and initiatives.

Together they have inspired retirees and nonunion workers on the base to get involved in collecting purses with toiletry items to donate to women in need and delivering gifts to Brantwood Children’s Home.

All of this shows the power of a single union member.

“I want people to feel they are a part of something bigger, something better, something life-changing,” said Doris. “The bottom line is you have to be the change you want to see.”

Doris also wants women in similar male-dominated fields to know that they are not alone.

“You are here to make a difference,” she said. “We have to bring ideas to the table because no one else thinks like we do. You matter.”

She says the same applies to the next generation of activists who may feel overwhelmed with the many challenges they’re coming up against in the labor and social justice space. In order for them to find their place, Doris says, more experienced activists must guide them.

“Those of us who have been doing this a while have a responsibility to be mentors,” she said. “That will prepare them and help them feel more confident. They need our wisdom and knowledge.”

This camaraderie is what Doris believes makes unions irreplaceable, and she encourages every member to take advantage of any training or educational opportunity.

“It helps the union as a whole when individual members realize their power and work together.”