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Bob Guy named Grand Marshal of Galesburg Labor Day Parade
By Sharon Wren,
1 days ago
Bob Guy, SMART Transportation Division Illinois State Director, has been named the Grand Marshal of the 2026 Galesburg Labor Day Parade. The parade starts on Monday, September 7 at 10 a.m. along Main Street in downtown Galesburg. The parade is hosted by the Galesburg Trades & Labor Assembly and is recognized as the nation’s oldest continuous Labor Day parade, bringing union members, families, marching bands and community organizations together.
“Being recognized as Grand Marshal of the Galesburg Labor Day parade is truly humbling,” Guy said. “It’s always a highlight of mine to join them as they and other unions and organizations show off their pride in the work they do for their families and community alike.”
Guy was raised in Lincoln, Ill. and hired out as a brakeman for Southern Pacific in 1994, working the former St. Louis segment of the historic Chicago & Alton Railroad main line connecting Chicago, Joliet, Bloomington-Normal, Springfield and St. Louis. He was elected UTU Local 234 Legislative Representative in 1996 and later Alternate State Director. By 2004, he was assisting then-State Director Joe Szabo and Assistant Director John Burner in Springfield, representing railroad workers and their families. He became Assistant Legislative Director and State Legislative Director in 2009 after Szabo was confirmed as administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration.
Guy has helped lead successful efforts to expand state-supported Amtrak service and enact major workplace protections over the years, including the Railroad Employees Medical Treatment Act and Safe Walkways Act. He has served as an Illinois AFL-CIO vice president since 2009 and was involved in organized labor’s successful effort to enact the Illinois Workers’ Rights Amendment.
He served as a gubernatorial appointee to the Northern Illinois Public Transit Task Force and as Illinois’ private-sector appointee to the Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail Commission, where he was reelected chair in 2019. He continues advocating for rail safety and workers’ rights in Springfield and Washington. He is leading SMART-TD Illinois’ efforts to raise concerns about CSX Transportation cutbacks at Barr Yard in Chicago and the potential implications for experienced railroad employees, freight service and the broader Chicago rail network.
“Being a union member and leader means being part of a larger effort that fights every day for the betterment and protection of its hard-working essential members,” Guy said, “and being part of an organization that is dedicated to supporting its members from their first day of work to the very last.”
Guy has lived in Springfield since 1999 with his wife, Cindy. They have two children, Taylor and Bobby, and Guy is a proud grandfather to Bralynn and Blaine.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WHBF - OurQuadCities.com.
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