Alfred K Whitehead

Alfred was born in the Lennox/Hawthorne area in California on October 12, 1929. He resided most of his life in Los Angeles County until he moved to Huntington Beach in 1966 and remained there until his death. In 1952 he married Mary Inez Gamble and was married for well over 69 years.

Alfred grew up as part of “The Greatest Generation” and served in the U.S. Army in 1945 and the Merchant Marine in 1946. He worked several jobs which included an apprentice carpenter, railroad brakeman, and apprentice lineman for Southern California Edison. In 1954 he joined the Los Angeles County Fire Department. He then pursued his passion within The Fire Department with The Fire Fighters Local 1014 Union and was elected to the executive board in 1960. In 1965 he was promoted to Fire Captain and also was elected to First Vice President for Local 1014. In 1970 he was elected to President of Local 1014. During that time, he also served on the executive board for the Federation for Labor as Vice President.

Alfred had his sights on a higher position in Washington DC with The International Association of Firefighters (IAFF) for the position of General Secretary. In1981 he was elected to that position. He retired from Los Angeles County Fire Department in 1981 to fully concentrate on his new position with the IAFF. In 1988 he was elected General President of the IAFF. At the time, he was the only person from the west coast to ever be elected to that position. He retired from the IAFF in 2000. He was affiliated with the IAFF for more than 60 years.

After retiring, Local 1014’s union hall was named the “Alfred K. Whitehead Labor Center”. Also, after retiring from the IAFF, the annual legislative conference was named the” Alfred K Whitehead Legislative Conference”. He finally retired to his residence in 2000 and was asked many times for his expertise on union matters.

He came out of retirement in 2001 and was appointed as a Board Member to the Public Employment Relations Board by then-Governor Gray Davis. In 2005 he finally retired to his residence with his wife. He spent a lot of time with his grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

He is survived by his wife Inez, daughter Nanette, and son Kenneth (Valerie). Also, grandchildren Daniel (Lisa), Eric, Erin, Brian (Virginia), and great-grandchildren Alexandra, Eva. He was loved by his family and highly regarded and respected by friends and colleagues throughout the nation.

Services for Alfred K. Whitehead will be held on Friday - September 17, 2021 at 10:00 am at Cottonwood Church, 4505 Katella Ave, Los Alamitos, CA 90720.

In place of flowers, please consider donating to Alzheimer’s Association in the name of Alfred K. Whitehead.