Masonry Magazine January 1975 Page.16
In Memoriam
Peter Fosco, General President of the Laborers' International Union of North America died Sunday, October 26th, in Chicago, Illinois. Born of Italian parents in Poland, Mr. Fosco's 60 year career in organized labor was mixed with political positions and started soon after his arrival in this country in 1913. Just a little over a year after his immigration, he became a business agent in the Hodcarriers' Union, a position he held until 1936 when he headed the International Union's regional office in Chicago. In 1951, he was elected Secretary-Treasurer of the International Union, and following the death in 1967 of Joseph Moreschi, he became President of LIUNA. Mr. Fosco was a member of the Executive Council of the AFL-CIO and its Building and Construction Trades Department. He served on the Construction Industry Collective Bargaining Committee, the Construction Industry Stabilization Committee and most recently was appointed by President Gerald Ford as a member of the Collective Bargaining Committee in Construction.
The entire Construction Industry, and especially MCAA and its members, has lost one of its hardest working and most devoted labor leaders. His keen knowledge and dynamic leadership will be greatly missed by the Industry and his countless friends and associates.
August C. Frommeyer, President, A. C. Frommeyer & Co., Inc., Philadelphia, died October 13th at his home in Bryn Mawr. He was 71. Mr. Frommeyer had been in the mason contracting industry for over 47 years and the firm has constructed many fine structures in the east and is widely known for its excellent craftsmanship. He was a graduate of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and a member of the Witemarsh Valley Country Club. Mr. Frommeyer was active in the Delaware Valley Mason Contractors Association and in the Mason Contractors Association of America.
James Arthur Stewart, Vice President of the Birmingham Masonry Contractors Association, died in Baton Rouge, Lá. after suffering a heart attack at the Alabama-LSU game. A bricklayer, he was a member of Local #1 Alabama and was President of the James Arthur Stewart Co., Inc. Mr. Stewart was a deacon at the Huffman Baptist Church and taught a Sunday School class.
Maxwell Bert Gibbs, 70, died following a long illness. Mr. Gibbs had been active in the formation of the Oklahoma City Mason Contractors Association being a charter member of that organization and an honorary member of the Mason Contractors Association of America. Mr. Gibbs was also a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Oklahoma City.
Harold Torland, member of the Mason Contractors Association of Portland, Oregon, died during the later part of October at the age of 67. Mr. Torland was born in Bowden, N.D., and began masonry work while in his teens. He came to Portland in 1936 and did both commercial and residential work. He was also affiliated with the Elks and the American Legion.
Film On Severe Storms
Improved resistance to the devastation of "killer" storms is an attainable goal. This is the theme of a dramatic 16-minute movie just released by the Commerce Department's National Bureau of Standards (NBS). Extreme Wind Study, a 16-millimetre color film, depicts an Agency for International Development (AID)-sponsored research program of the NBS Center for Building Technology (CBT). The project's purpose is to contribute to improved storm-resistant building design and construction principles.
Most vulnerable to extreme winds are large populations inhabiting sub-standard housing around the world. The movie was filmed principally in the Philippines, whose high frequency of intense tropical storms provides a "natural laboratory" for the AID/NBS research.
The study's findings will be applicable in areas affected by hurricanes, typhoons or cyclones. Among the most notably windprone countries are the Philippines, the United States, Japan, Australia, Bangladesh, Nicaragua, Honduras, Jamaica and others. The goal is cost-effective, wind-resistant design criteria for low-rise buildings such as homes, schools, hospitals and community centers.
Extreme Wind Study is available on free loan from Association Sterling, 600 Grand Avenue, Ridgefield, New Jersey, 07657. Prints of the film can be purchased for $73.25 from the National Audiovisual Center (General Services Administration), Washington, D.C. 20409, Attn: Order Department.