(RANSOMVILLE, NEW YORK) – The Niagara-Orleans AFL-CIO Central Labor Council’s 2025 Labor’s Night at the Races fundraiser that’s held to support the United Way of Greater Niagara at Ransomville Speedway raised $22,000 - bringing the fundraising total of the 16-year event to $247,000.

Labor Representatives said 945 tickets were sold for the event and the dollars raised will help the United Way of Greater Niagara’s mission to continue offering an array of youth development programs throughout Niagara County and the City of Tonawanda.

Labor Council President Jim Briggs told WNYLaborToday.com: “(Labor) ‘does it from our guts and hearts and we really don’t track’ (the money raised). ‘Without our Union Affiliates there wouldn’t be’ a Labor’s Night at the Races. Labor ‘is always there to help people who need help and we’ll continue to build off that effort (in the future with the United Way) and with’ the Special Olympics, which had a raffle table set up at the event in Ransomville.”

Beth Pyskaty, the Labor’s Council’s Liaison to the United Way, told WNYLaborToday.com: “Labor is the ‘backbone of our community and when we do well, everyone does well.’ It’s ‘amazing how our Labor Affiliates pull together and how generous they are.’ People were coming up to me to volunteer asking ‘what they could do.’ We were ‘truly blessed having around thirty volunteers helping out.’ ‘That speaks volumes that they are willing to give up their time.’ That’s the ‘value of Unionism and it is truly wonderful to see how it has grown over the years.’”

United Way of Greater Niagara President & CEO Andrea Gray expressed deep appreciation for the Niagara-Orleans Labor Council’s leadership and commitment to community advocacy: “‘We are deeply grateful for the steadfast leadership’ of the Niagara-Orleans Labor Council. The Labor Council ‘continues to set the bar for impactful community collaboration and we look forward to growing this shared mission in the future.’”

Briggs, meanwhile, also took time to pat Pyskaty on the back for the yeowoman’s effort she captained in being responsible for her first-ever Labor’s Night at the Races event: “This was her ‘first’ since (former United Way Labor Liaison Bill) Jakobi and I came up with the concept way back when and ‘I’d like to commend Beth for a job well done.’”

Prior to the evening’s line-up of dirt car racing, the Niagara-Orleans Labor Council served up 700 barbequed chicken dinners, which both Briggs and Pyskaty both acknowledged “went so well’ - especially in light of the great amount of Labor Volunteers who helped out, including a number of Apprentices from Iron Workers Local 9 in Niagara Falls.

“We had volunteers from the Public and Private Union Sectors, as well as from the Building Trades,” Briggs said. “And ‘they all did an amazing job, giving back to their communities where they work and live.’”

Said Pyskaty: “I was ‘praying there wouldn’t be any rain’ (which would have forced a rescheduling of the event). ‘I am amazed how everyone pulled together’ (to make the event such a success). ‘It was all so wonderful to see.’”

Labor Council Representatives also took the time to thank a number of sponsors and Labor Affiliates who took part in this year’s Labor Night at the Races event, including: Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield; the Law Firms of Lewis & Lewis, P.C. and Maxwell Murphy LLC; USW District 4; M&T Bank; and the many individual Affiliates of the Niagara-Orleans Labor Council.

“Obviously, the event ‘would not have happened without our sponsors, but I also want to tip my hat to our Union Affiliates, many of which bought tickets and took out advertising in our program.’ ‘Without our Affiliates, there would be no’ Labor’s Night at the Races,” Briggs said.

Added Pyskaty: “We received support from the United Steelworkers Local (135) at Sumitomo in Tonawanda - ‘even after the company announced last year it was closing its doors.’ They bought (100) tickets and took a full-page ad. And we also received advertising support from Communications Workers of America Local (1122 and 1133), which are both headquartered in Buffalo. ‘That was amazing to get such support from our Buffalo Brothers and Sisters.’”

WNYLaborToday.com Editor’s Note: Collage Photos Courtesy Of The United Way Of Greater Niagara Via The Niagara-Orleans AFL-CIO Central Labor Council’s Facebook Page. For More Photos Of Labor’s Night At The Races, Go To: (1) Facebook