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Updated 5-13-08

Message from the President:

I have formed a committee to plan a reunion to be held on the last Saturday of September 2008.  Further information will be posted as soon as it becomes available.  It is the intention of the RFA to insure that a reunion occurs on that date somewhere in the greater Washington Metropolitan area.  Please check this site for updates.  Once a site has been chosen and costs have been determined, a letter will be mailed to all retirees containing information about the reunion. Please read this carefully, as there will be substantive changes, especially concerning prepayment.  It is very likely that attendees will have to pay in advance (NO TICKETS AT THE DOOR) since we will probably have to pay a per-person cost up front.

Stay tuned. 

WEB ADDITION
 
This page is designed to keep the retired members up to date on issues, from a "Sick List"  to Pending Legislation and anything else we can think of.  Hopefully anyone reading this will pass the word around to all other retired members.

 This is here for your use.

Please send anything you would like to add to rfanews@comcast.net

Click here to order Bullion badges

 

Please keep the following members in your prayers:

SICK

RECENTLY DECEASED

Wendy Baden Thomas A. Herlihy 1-2-08
Ed Beller James H. Tidwell 1-6-08
James Bojalad Welborn S. Smith 1-11-08
John T. (Tim) Connors Kenneth T. Buckley 1-29-08
Daniel J. Collins Paul P. Hanley 2-3-08
Ralph W. Creel Robert J. Cavanaugh 2-27-08
Frederick B. Davis Warren Jackson 3-16-08
Charles J. Drumming Truman A. "Tony" Cones 4-2-08
Edward F. Dougherty Charles C. Helwig   4-17-08
William J. Kelly Charles Adkins 4-21-08
Ralph L. Kennedy Raymond C. Roberts, Jr. 5-10-08*
James McIlvaine  
Thomas O'Connell  
George R. Orme  
Irvin Poole  
William Radisch**  
Walter J. "Skip" Ramsey  
Raymond P. Scherl  
Edward R. Sims Jr.  
Walter J. (Steamboat) Smith  
Gerald A. Tassa  
Frank A. Wise Sr. (Nursing home Tenn.)  
   
   
  * Raymond C. Roberts, Jr. Passed away May 10 2008 .  Ray was appointed to E-8 on 10-1-47 and retired 8-31-73.  Viewing will be on Wednesday May 14, from 7pm to 9pm at the Witzkes Family Funeral Home 4112 Old Columbia Pike, Ellicott City, MD 21043.

 

 ** Rudy Radish went in to the WHC to have his old pacemaker removed and a new one installed.  When they removed the old one they tore a hole in his heart.  This went unnoticed until his blood pressure dropped, they had to open him up and fix the hole.  He is in critical condition as of 1030 this evening. Please forward this to all.

 Frank Tremel

5-13-08 Spoke with Betty this am.  Bill (Rudy) was moved from ICCU to the CCU yesterday evening.  This is the first step to going into a private room.  He is still making slow progress.  Flowers and visitors are not allowed but cards would be appreciated.

 

Frank Tremel

 


Retired  Battalion Chief, Virgil Swadley died on April 12.   The Washington Post  had a big article about his  service in WW11 and the Fire  Department.  

 

We have created a site to share and honor Tony's memory with Friends
and Family regardless of limits of distance. We would love to have
you post tributes, condolences, stories ,pictures, or memorial candles
concerning Tony as they will be printed and displayed at the wake and
archived for our family. You can also email me bit's and tidbits and I
will gladly post them on your behalf if you would like at
dcperspective@...

You can visit the site by going to
http://tonycones.memory-of.com

Please feel free to send this off to anyone you feel appropriate.


 

 

To order "RFA Pocket Badge" please click the badge and fill out the application and mail with check to

Joe Healy

7511 Woodville Road

Mt. Airy, MD 21771-9209

 

 

Some pictures from the Emerald Society Fishing Tournament held May 1st. on the Chesapeake Bay

First a toast to Tony Cones

Then the results of the toast

Cashews always put me to sleep

Hey Guys,

Got a good picture of a fish that Bob "Bubba-Man" Drevo claims he caught. How about posting it? We were on Retired boat 3.

Thanks,

Patrick C. Johnson

DCFD, ret.

Does He look like he needs help?

 

Golf Tournament June 12, 2008

 

 2008 KID'S CARE CLASSIC
Golf Tournament and Luncheon To Benefit Children's Hospital
Thursday, June 26, 2008 - 8:00am Shotgun Start
Click for further information

 

 

  Guys down in South Carolina get together on the first Monday of each month on a rotating basics. If anyone is visiting the area, please feel free to call me and join us.  If you have any questions just call me Richard Hunley at 843-399-2357

The "Under Dogs" in Little River

The "Dagwoods" in Surfside in Myrtle Beach

The Florida reunion will be held on November 7, 8, & 9 at the Great Western Waterfront Hotel in Punta Gorda, Fl. (Same as last year). Room prices will be the same and cost will stay the same as last year.

Entertainment, golf, and other activities are as yet undecided. Will keep in touch.

Wally

 
.

 

 

 

PICTURES FROM  THE 14Th ANNUAL SHENANDOAH VALLEY REUNION

SEPTEMBER 29, 2007

.

 

This is a tentative design of the shoulder patch that the Fire Department is contemplating to be used by  Retired Firefighters on DCFD uniforms that you purchase, as mentioned in the President's letter. 

NEWS FROM DON BROWN

Employee Benefits – Open Enrollment – October/November 

  DON BROWN MARCH NEWSLETTER

The 5th annual Open Enrollment for RFA members to participate in the vision and dental program takes place in October through November 15, 2007. This means that all members who have currently not done so may choose to sign up for one or both of these programs. The effective date is December 1, 2007.

The Vision program is sponsored by Avesis, one of the largest national vision care carriers in the country. They have over 20,000 participating providers. Benefits include an annual routine vision exam, no co-pay for eyeglass frames and lenses, 20% off specialty lenses and coatings, contact lenses covered ($110 allowance), and a $75-$100 discount off the cost of the frame. Additional discounts available for Laser Vision correction.

Dental coverage is available through Denex, a large national carrier. Their Value plan offers substantial discounts (20 – 60%, depending on the service) through participating dental providers.

For more information, please contact our group benefit representative, Don Brown, at 301-249-1301, or email: donbrown@dbgroupbenefits.com.

 

 

 

Monument Unveiled to Tom,

Last of Faithful Fire Horses

 

 The age to which Old Tom belonged ended years ago, but the memory o his snowy mane and fling hoofs is still fresh in the minds of many.

            Some of those who can’t forget the courage and faithfulness of the old fire horse paused yesterday to pay tribute to Old Tom  last survivor of the city’s numerous fire horses and member of the once-famous trio of Barney, Gene and Tom.

            While firemen, officials of the Animal Protective Association and school children watched, a monument was unveiled to Old Tom and the Blue Plains Home for the Aged and Infirm, in the field in which the horse spent its last days.

            Old Tom died May 3.  His former running mate, Gene and Barney passed away in 1932.  Tom was retired in 1925 after 10 years of tireless service.

            As the monument, made of limestone was unveiled by Fireman Thomas A. Padgett, 27 tapes, denoting Tom’s age, were sounded on the gong of one of the old engines which replaced the horse-drawn apparatus.

            Miss Virginia Sargent, president of the Animal Protective Association, paid tribute to Tom’s service, and said that in the Fall similar exercises will be held for Gene and Barney, whose bones will be disinterred and laid beside those of Old Tom.  This probably will take place on October 4, during “world animal week,” she said.

            In front of the monument were wreaths of flowers and a picture of Old Tom, and one of the trio as they marched in a Labor Day parade.

            Captain R.E. Oden of No. 25 Fire Engine Company, spoke of the courage and energy of Tom, and told how he died as firemen were answering an alarm near Blue Plains.

            Rev. C.H. Butler, former pastor of the Columbia Heights Lutheran Church said Old Tom’s service “would teach us to be kind, just and humane to all those animals who serve us so faithfully.”    

 

(Newspaper article from either the Washington Post or Evening Star. Unknown writer.)

If anyone has ant further information please contact Jim Embrey at 703-590-8880

 

 

 

 

 

 

Longevity Information and Model Constituent Letter

Background on the Metropolitan Police Department and Fire Service Act of 2007

HR 2414


Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) recently introduced H.R. 2414 which
would reduce the minimum number of years D.C. police and firefighters are
required to serve in order to get their fair share of long term annuity benefits
due from the federal government.  Federal law divides the responsibility for
paying the District's first responders between the federal government and the
city.  H.R. 2414 is necessary to conform the federal formula for calculating
pensions, under which officers and firefighters must serve a minimum of 25
years, to the new 20 year threshold adopted by the District government earlier
this year.

In 1999 the D.C. City Council considered legislation that would entitle police
and fire fighters to have their longevity premiums treated as pay for the
purposes of calculating their annuities.  It set the minimum to 20 years of
service, but was later increased to 25 years at the request of then Metropolitan Police Chief Charles Ramsey. 
He was concerned that hundreds of longtime police officers who were eligible to retire at 20 years
might leave in droves, draining the department of too many experienced officers. 
Now that the timeframe for these retirees has passed and the District has reset
the eligibility to 20 years, Norton's bill would bring the federal government in
line, at the request of the first responders organizations.

H.R. 2414, which has the full support of the DC police and fire fighters, is
consistent with what occurred in 2000.  At that time, the District first changed
the retirement plan for Metropolitan Police Department to permit service
longevity payments to be considered part of the basic compensation used to
calculate the annuities.  Congress then followed suit in 2001 by making the
adjustment in the federal government's share of the payments, covering service
prior to July 1997.  Congress possesses the precedent to enact adjustments in
pensions for officers and firefighters who are our nation's first responders.  As noted by
Congresswoman Norton, "The challenges first responders face and their added
burdens since 9/11 only add to the obligation to give these dedicated men and
women all that they have earned for their important routine and special duties
for serving and protecting the federal enclave, D.C. residents and visitors to
the nation's capital."

The police and fire fighters understood the public safety concerns raised by
Chief Ramsey in 1999 that delayed the equitable distribution of this benefit to
those with less than 25 years of service.  Serving public safety is their finest
tradition.  Now that the safety of the public has been addressed, it is time to
address the denial of this benefit to men and women who served with honor and
retired with 20 years of public service.

 

 

Model Constituent Letter

(To be sent to your congressional representative as soon a possible) 

To save you from, typing the below letter, we have set it up so you can edit it in MS Word.  For those members that are not familiar with MS Word the following should help. If you are reading this document, you already have it in MS Word.  Print the document out as is. Then save it on your hard drive.  The date will automatically change to the date you open the letter.  In the salutation, there are words in italics that need to be replaced with actual information.  Place your cursor in front of the first letter and then tap the delete key (Del) until it is erased.  Next, hold the control key (Ctl) down and press the “I” key (once).  That will remove the italics.  Now type in the information needed. Repeat this for all the salutation italics.  Once you have finished, you need to get rid of this paragraph and fit this letter onto one page.  To do this, take your cursor and move it to the top of the page in front of the letter M in the word Model. Hold the shift key down, release the mouse button and move the cursor to the end of this paragraph and after the last letter in red CUT.  Left click you mouse.  This paragraph will become highlighted in black.  Tap the delete (Del) key and this paragraph will disappear moving the letter up and on one page.  CUT

  

 June 13, 2007
The Honorable NAME, Congressman
STATE NAME State District Number Congressional District
Address

City, State, Zip Code
Telephone

Fax

RE: Support for HR 2414

Dear Congressman Last Name,

I write to urge you, as my representative, to support HR 2414 as introduced by D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton on May 21, 2007.  This bill will address a harm done to certain retired D.C. Police Officer and Fire Fighters in the interest of a public safety concern that has now passed. 

The District passed a bill in 1999 that provided that retired police officers and fire fighters would have their Longevity Premiums earned during the active service included in their pensions if they had 25 years of credible service.  The D.C. bill originally provided that the retirees would have to serve just 20 years to qualify for this benefit.  That would have given them the same treatment afforded current and future fire fighters who were getting this benefit after serving 20 years with the D.C. Fire Department.  This year the District passed a law lowering the minimum years of service for retirees to 20 years, as originally provided in the 1999 bill.

Then Chief of Police Charles Ramsey asked that the bill be amended to raise the years of service to 25 because he was concerned that some three hundred or so active members of the MPD might retire en masse if they were to enjoy this improvement in their retirement.  The City Council agreed and revised the minimum years of service to 25.  Chief Ramsey withdrew his objections later.  The pool of affected active duty officers shrunk as they reached 25 years of service over the years following the 1999 bill.  Today, the public safety concerns expressed by Chief Ramsey no longer exist.

HR 2414 will lower the Federal Government’s minimum years of service to 20.  This will allow the Treasury to pay the federal portion of their annuities using the same formula applied by the District government.  The Congress took this same action in 2000 when the District passed the 1999 legislation.

Please become a co-sponsor to this important legislation that is designed to provide equitable treatment for retired First Responders who have waited for this unfairness to be addressed out of our continuing respect for public safety.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

Zimmerman K. Roberts

Picture of me visiting the grave of a friend who I ate breakfast with every morning.  He was a POW in Japan during WWII for 3 1/2 years. He is buried in the POW cemetery in Andersonville, Georgia which is also the site of the American POW Museum and the Confederate prison.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Any comments or idea's please e-mail me at rfanews@comcast.net