40th Annual CLC Labor Day Picnic Held at Anderson River Park, Attracts Record Attendance and Goodwill
It was in early 1986 that Redding resident Dwight Evans, who’s an International Brotherhood of Workers (IBEW) retiree, thought it would be nice to have a family-type picnic with games for the kids, live music, and, of course, great food and brotherhood, in Anderson River Park on Labor Day every year, open to the public and hosted by Union members and their families who reside in the five counties of Shasta, Siskiyou, Trinity, Lassen, and Modoc.
But Evans knew he’d need help for such a herculean task. So the call went out to recruit additional leadership, and two Union brothers responded: Addley Tole, a carpenter, and Tom Johnson, a pipefitter. And it wasn’t long before the enterprising trio recruited many dozens of volunteers and birthed the 1st Annual CLC Labor Day Picnic.
Sure hope you were front and center, with family and friends in tow, on Monday, September 7, 2026, when the Five Counties Central Labor Council (CLC), with about a hundred volunteers, staged the 40th Annual Labor Day Picnic at Anderson River Park, offering a picnic meal for just five dollars, including a watermelon-eating contest, fishing derby, prizes, cornhole tossing, and just plain FUN!
For the older set, Twyla Carpenter led an auction, plus more prizes and a really talented group of five musicians (three guitars, drummer & keyboardist) who call themselves the Fire Mountain Rock Band. This photographer, after taking a picture of them, just had to do a little dance (by himself!) when they broke out with a favorite ‘8Os hit: “Everybody’s Working For The Week End.”
Herewith, in their own words, is a take and observations from a CLC official and picnic attendee:
RUTH RHODES-“This year our Labor Day Picnic was planned by our committee, which is comprised of myself, Twyla Carpenter, and John Roden. We three recruited about 100 volunteers that helped make the 40th-Annual CLC Labor Day Picnic a sweet success.”
“It is our pleasure to invite the entire North State community, especially those who reside in the counties of Shasta, Siskiyou, Trinity, Modoc, and Lassen, to celebrate with us, honoring Labor Day and the work we do... every day. America’s labor built America and keeps our great country humming.”
Rhodes continues: “The 40th-Annual CLC Labor Day Picnic is funded by our affiliated trades, the private sector, and public sector locals in the five counties that make up the Five Counties Central Labor Council (CLC).
Rhodes concludes: “The attendance at the 40th Annual CLC Labor Day Picnic was—in a word…….AWESOME (3k+?). And the weather cooperated immensely, as it was FANTASTIC.
So we hope that we have even more people, with their families and friends, attend next year’s 41st Annual CLC Labor Day Picnic."
