Local News

President Joe Biden to honor Nemacolin native Richard Trumka with the Presidential Medal of Freedom

July 2, 2022 / 7:36 AM EDT / CBS Pittsburgh

CBS News Pittsburgh

WASHINGTON (KDKA) - The Nemacolin native who led the labor movement for decades will be posthumously honored with the nation's highest civilian award - the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Richard Trumka died last August at the age of 72 and President Joe Biden will honor Trumka's life and work along with that of 16 other awardees including Simone Biles, Megan Rapinoe, and the late John McCain.

The White House will hold a ceremony next week.

Trumka was the president of the United Mine Workers from 1982 to 1995 and then served with the AFL-CIO until he was elected president in 2009.

He led the union's 12.5 million members until his death.

Presidential Medal of Freedom

Patrick Damp

Patrick Damp is a web producer for CBS Pittsburgh. A Pittsburgh native who grew up watching KDKA-TV, Patrick studied journalism at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. After half a decade in sports communication, Patrick decided to pursue his dream of working in journalism in his hometown and joined the CBS Pittsburgh team in 2019.