Eric Starin, OPEIU Local 2 Executive Board member and Vice-President, longtime Chief Shop Steward at WMATA for Local 2, and "a lifetime fighter for workers' rights," passed away June 4. "In addition to all of these roles, Eric was our friend," said Local 2. "Eric, we will miss you. We'll keep fighting." Metro Washington Council president Jackie Jeter called his passing "a great loss to the labor community; we will truly miss him." A software engineer, Starin wrote the original software for the "predictor," Metro's automated signs telling riders when the next train is coming. At his service last week, Starin's co-workers spoke very highly of him, with one calling him "the #1 guy" among Metro's software engineers. He was also an active COPE volunteer, coordinating labor lit drops and door-knocking in Montgomery County.
photo from Eric Starin's Facebook page
photo from Eric Starin's Facebook page