Parade, Picnic And Statue To Honor Streator Labor Leader

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn is honoring a long time labor leader from Streator.

Quinn has declared Sunday “Reuben G. Soderstrom Day.” It will be devoted to the man who was president of the Illinois AFL-CIO for 40 years.

A parade is planned in Streator at noon. A statue will be unveiled and dedicated in Streator City Park after the parade. It will stand in a plaza which will display 14 bronze tablets featuring quotes from Soderstrom’s speeches. The statue is based on a 1920’s photo with Soderstrom and President Franklin Roosevelt.

Soderstrom was born in 1888. He led the Illinois AFL-CIO from 1930 until his death in 1970. He also served in the House of Representatives in the 1920s.