President’s
Message
Now that we have entered into a new year, we need to
start focusing on those areas that can and will affect us in the future. With the arrival of the new 109th
Congress, all of our efforts in the past are gone and we need to contact our
Congressmen (all over again) to tell them what we NARFE members want them to do
for us in this new session. We need to have new legislation introduced on
Premium Conversion, GPO and WEP. We
need to “watch” very closely President Bush’s introduction of Social Security
legislation. It would appear that this
new SS legislation is about as popular to retirees as MSA’s and/or HSA’s. All of these can have an adverse affect on
our retirement benefits. I am sure that
Judy Park and her staff are already in contact with “key” legislators and we
will be hearing from NARFE headquarters via the NARFE magazine and/or
GEMS. When we do hear from them, please
be ready to act quickly in order to “protect our earned retirement
benefits”.
The State legislators are in session this month
(January) and next month. Although we
have not heard of any proposed legislation that would affect seniors and or
retirees, we also need to stay tuned to what they are doing and be ready to
contact them if we see that they are proposing legislation that would have an
adverse effect on seniors/retirees.
Since the National Convention in Reno approved a new
name change for NARFE, I would urge all of the chapters and/or members who will
be ordering new badges and/or stationary to order your materials with the new
name change. The new logo, instead of
stating National Association of Retired Federal Employees, will only state
“NARFE” and will include the words “Est. 1921” (see NARFE magazine for an
example). We have until August of 2006
to implement these changes; however, if you are ordering new badges and/or
materials, you might want to use the new name which
(hopefully)
will aid you when you are trying to recruit a “current employee”. If the NARFE mart does not have the new logo
and you want to order your badges with the new logo and name, please contact me
and I will give you the name and address of a company in Richmond (Fraternal
Supplies) that can provide you with this service.
Our VFC convention is rapidly approaching
and Ann Collins (VFC 1st
V.P. and convention coordinator) and
the convention committee have been working diligently on making this one
of our most memorable and successful conventions . We need your assistance on getting chapter, personal and commercial
ads in ASAP (since this is how we pay for a large portion of our convention
cost). We ask you to make your
reservations at the hotel ASAP in order to get the NARFE rate. We request that you submit your registration
soon in order for us to assign you the committee that you requested. We need the names of the deceased members
submitted to our Chaplain, Deaver Carr, so that he can properly recognize these
“missed members”. If you want to sit
with your friends and/or chapter members, we need you to submit the banquet
request (see registration form for more details). We have cut the convention dates down from 3-days to 2-days in
order to accommodate Passover and to reduce your cost (one less room night). We look forward to seeing as many of you as
possible at this convention.
Since this will be my last President’s message to you,
I want to “thank” all of you that I have had the opportunity to work for and
with during these past two years. You
have all been “great” to work with and I truly will miss a lot of the
interaction that I have had with most of you.
I am sure that you will continue the support that you provided me during
the past 2-years to our new VFC President that will be elected at the
convention. I am also especially
thankful for your generous support of Alzheimer’s. Virginia has led the nation in Alzheimer’s contributions (we were
given an award at the National Convention) and with Wilton Ward’s leadership, I
hope that you continue your generous contributions in the future. Together we can “beat” this disease.
God Bless all of you. Joe Beaudoin
1st Vice
President’s Report
As
we start looking at NARFE opportunities and challenges for 2005, we should
include some NARFE resolutions as well.
Two important considerations are (1) to resolve to renew your NARFE
membership (consider dues withholding, too) and (2) to resolve to recruit new
members. Each member is the voice of
NARFE on Capitol Hill and the General Assembly. The greater our membership numbers, the more influential power
NARFE will have on legislative issues.
Contact your Area Vice President (AVP) to provide your chapter with more
information and guidance on membership recruitment and retention. Working together, we can increase our
membership numbers and the voices of NARFE!
Recently, I was privileged to be invited to install
officers at four chapters (Dulles 1241; Alexandria 232; Lake of the Woods 1885;
and Annandale 1159) and to be the program speaker at Woodbridge 1270. One chapter touted, “happiness is a full
slate of officers.” Indeed, it is!
In
November, I attended the 5th Annual NVAN Legislative Breakfast honoring members
of the General Assembly. On behalf of
the VFC as one of the cosponsors, I gave a memorial tribute to Tom Vitez, VFC
Area IX State Legislation Coordinator, who passed away in July 2004. A NARFE member for over 24 years, Tom was
one of the most dedicated members while often-facing serious health challenges
in his 14-year battle with leukemia and the treatment side affects impacting
his quality of life. Tom’s
determination and resilience made a difference for NARFE VFC and he will be
remembered for it.
The VFC AVPs will provide reports elsewhere in this
newsletter. More oversight activities:
VFC Electronics Communication Committee (ECC): This Committee has oversight for the VFC Net
(VANARFE email), VFC Website, and VFC Notes (newsletter). The Board approved earmarking non-dues
revenue of about $1,100 from the recent VFC sponsored travel to Branson to
enhance and/or upgrade VFC communication systems.
VFC Sponsored Travel:
The December 2004 trip to Branson had 17 travelers from 4 chapters. It was fast-paced, fun while attending 9
holiday shows. The next VFC sponsored
trip will be August 26 – September 3, 2005 to the scenic Canadian Rockies (includes
2 days by rail). Encourage chapter
members to join their fellow NARFERs on another fun trip. See a separate article on page 9 in this
newsletter for details.
VFC 2005 Convention (April 25-27, 2005): Send in registrations now to attend! The
Convention Committee’s goal is at least 400 delegates. The location is the Holiday Inn, Koger
Conference Center, Richmond, VA. The theme is “A Salute to Our Chapters – the
Grass Roots!” Bulletin No. 1, mailed to chapters in September, provided deadlines and printed forms for
registration, ads, supporters, and blank tickets for advance ticket sales for
the NARFE-FEEA quilt drawing. Also,
these forms may be viewed and printed from the VFC website at www.narfe.com/va. Most deadlines are March 1. And, Chapters that provide $500 or more in
commercial ads will receive 10% back.
There will be numerous exhibitors with products and services of interest
to NARFE members as well as seniors in general. In addition, there will be tables
with information about VFC programs (Membership, Service, etc.) as well as highlights of activities within our 10 areas
and 56 chapters. A silent auction and 50/50 drawing to benefit Alzheimer’s will
be offered. A separate hospitality room
will be available for delegates to socialize. On Monday, April 25, registration
will begin at 9 a.m. Opening ceremonies
will start at 1 p.m. with a welcome message (Richmond Mayor Wilder invited) and
during the afternoon general session there will be a keynote speaker (Attorney
General Kilgore invited). In the late afternoon, there will be an opportunity
for Chapter Net Coordinators and other interested delegates to learn more about
VANARFE email and the VFC website. On Monday evening, Representative Tom Davis
(VA-11) will again host a reception for NARFE members. The Area Caucus meetings and the breakout
sessions (National and State Legislation, Membership/PR, Service, and
Alzheimer’s) will be held on Tuesday morning.
The general session will continue Tuesday afternoon. The banquet will be
Tuesday evening with musical entertainment by the Bruce Woodson Group (Governor Warner’s acceptance as banquet
speaker was preempted recently by an official overseas trip). Another prominent speaker will be invited
soon. The general session will
continue on Wednesday morning and the Convention is expected to end around
noon. Look for more information in
Convention Bulletin No. 2, which will be published soon via VANARFE email. Also, Bulletin No. 2 will be available from
your respective area vice president.
See you at the Convention in April!
Ann M. Collins, VFC 1st VP
2nd
Vice President’s Report
As we enter 2005, I see many opportunities and
challenges for our chapters and members.
During our January VFC Board Meeting, we discussed a number of these
that I want to pass along for your consideration and action.
In the area of membership, Virginia’s statistics have
been about even in balancing recruitment and loss of members. We ended 2004 with 20,076 chapter members
compared to 19,820 in 2003. Nationally,
NARFE has lost total members during this period. When you consider Virginia is about third or fourth in the nation
in numbers of current federal employees and retirees, we should be making a
strong showing in growth. Chapters
should be making better use of the monthly M-112 information provided by
Headquarters that provides a listing of new members, members who are late in
renewals and potential members. Contacts
with these people are critical to our recruitment and retention efforts. Some chapters (20 of 56) took advantage of
the VFC “switch to dues withholding program” between July and December 2004
with 168 switching and earning chapters $4 for each one. I think we could have done better to assist
with member retention.
The highlight of our January board meeting was a visit
by Governor Mark Warner who spent about an hour giving us an overview of a
number of state programs and answering our questions. He discussed some of the challenges facing the state in funding
senior programs (including escalading Medicaid and drug costs), education,
transportation, etc. We discussed with
him our concerns about the age deduction changes in 2004 and bills currently in
the General Assembly.
Governor
Warner addressing the VFC Board on 1-16-05 NARFE members Joseph D. Lee, Sr.,
President of Chapter 1293 and his wife, Norma T. Lee.
Chapters have done an outstanding job in support of
Alzheimer’s research contributions in 2004.
Our goal of $45,000 was exceeded by $3,000+. Thank you for all the hard work to make this program a success.
We have serious concerns in protecting our current
benefits, particularly health insurance and COLAs, when listening to the
federal budget statements to reduce the federal deficit. We need to keep a close watch on
Congressional budget discussions to guard against loss of benefits to offset
the deficit and we must be ready to contact our congress members with our
concerns.
Training for officers and program coordinators was
last conducted in early 2004; therefore, the next extensive training will
probably be in late 2005 or early 2006.
In the interim, I suggest program coordinators make a special effort to
attend the 2005 VFC Convention and take part in the breakout sessions for
Alzheimer’s, Membership/PR, National Legislation, State Legislation and
Service. A special Presidents training
class is planned in March for those new to the position.
R. David Smith, VFC 2nd VP
Treasurer’s
Report
At the July 2004 Board Meeting, it was approved to
allow the VFC Chapters to pay their dues three times a year with payments due
on October 1st, February 1st, and May 1st. The first two payments would be based on the
previous year’s dues with the final payment adjusted to reflect the chapter’s
membership report as of December 31, 2004.
Two chapters took advantage of this payment option. The chapters were also given the options of
paying twice a year with equal payments due on February 1st and May
1st, with the dues based on the December 31, 2004 report or once a
year as in the past with the payment due on May 1st. All of the VFC Chapters that did not take
advantage of the three times a year payment schedule can take advantage of the
twice a year payment schedule by sending a check by February 1st to
the VFC Treasurer with half the dues indicated on the December 31, 2004
membership report. The remaining half will be due on May 1st. The
VFC Secretary will be sending out the dues required for 2005 in January 2005.
It should be noted that the chapters that take advantage of the dues payment
schedules, those chapter treasurer’s are responsible for sending the chapter’s
dues to the VFC Treasurer on the required due dates.
One significant change in travel expenses made at the
October 2004 Board meeting was an increase in the mileage allowance from 30.0
cents per mile to 37.5 cents per mile.
This rate increase was effective October 17, 2004.
Robert C. Basford, VFC Treasurer
Secretary’s Report
February 9 is the
deadline to submit resolutions to the Secretary to be included in the Call to
Convention. The Secretary will compile
the Call to Convention, which will be sent by the VFC President to the Board of
Directors, Chapter Presidents and Chapter Secretaries by March 10.
The Secretary will
compile the voting strength for each Chapter for the Annual Convention and
notify AVPs and Chapters. Each Chapter
is entitled to one delegate for each 25 members or fraction thereof.
The Secretary will
distribute resolutions to appropriate Committee chairs 30 days prior to the
Convention.
Robert Miller, Secretary
Alzheimer’s
Report
The VFC goal for Alzheimer's research donations in
calendar year 2004 was $45,000. My
report to the VFC Board on January shows $48,845.26, 8.5% more than the goal. YOU DID IT!!! Congratulations and a heart felt thanks to every member that
contributed. These figures represent many, hours of effort by many, many
members. Dinner dances, a golf tournament, raffles, 50-50’s, bus trips, silent
auctions, food sales, business donations, other projects and hundreds of other
individual donations resulted in this successful effort. The top five chapters in total donations
are, Midlothian Chapter 2265-$6871.63, Winchester 180-$5848.01, Woodbridge 1270-$$5642.45,
Northern Neck 1823-$3397.91, and Springfield-893 $2400.00.
The Alzheimer’s committee at its meeting will
establish our goal for 2005 during the VFC convention in April. In the
meantime, let us get off to a good start in the early months of 2005. Our
potential for raising funds is huge, considering that only a relatively small
percentage of the total Virginia NARFE membership made donations in 2004. We
know we can count on our regulars. What would be great is a substantial
increase in the number of members participating, in whatever amount is
comfortable for the individual. Donations from a large number of additional
members can make a great difference. Therefore, whether or not folks attend
chapter meetings make a check payable to “Alzheimer's –NARFE” and get it to the
chapter Alzheimer's representative or treasure who will assemble the checks and
send them to me. I make a monthly report to the Alzheimer's Association in
Chicago. Your donation is tax deductible and each donation is acknowledged. In
honor of and memory of donations are welcome. {Note Chapter presidents: please include this
information in your newsletter, if possible.}
During the convention in April we will have our usual
50-50 and silent auction opportunities. Your appropriate donations for the
auction will be appreciated.
In the fall quarter, I made an observer’s appearance
at the Midlothian golf tournament, made a presentation of a certification of
appreciation at the Woodbridge chapter meeting and was a program speaker at the
Winchester chapter meeting. I will speak at the February meeting of the Dulles
chapter and at the April meeting of the Fauquier chapter.
When thinking of Alzheimer's, remember that this
disease is slowly disabling an estimated 4.5 millions Americans and that
hundred hundreds more are diagnosed every day. Also, remember that your
donation could be part of the research grant that enables a scientist to make
the breakthrough, leading to prevention, successful treatment or a cure for the
disease.
Again
thank you for your generosity
Wilton Ward,
Alzheimer’s Chair
Membership, Recruiting and Retention
DID WE DO MORE IN 2004? Come to the Convention and
find out. Was a member of your
Chapter among the 19 members of our Federation who recruited 5 or more new
members in 2004? Come to the
Convention and see. Was your
Chapter among the top 5 Recruiting Chapters in the Federation? Calculated based on size of Chapter and
number of new members recruited (percentage). Was your Chapter among the top 5
performers in our retention efforts (Dues Withholding)? Come to the Convention and you will know.
By popular demand, the Town Hall Meeting will be held again this year. We will be combining Membership, Public
Relations and Pre-Retirement Seminars.
You will receive a “Roadmap” to Recruiting and Retention. See you on the highway to the Convention
in April 2005.
Joan F. Marvel VFC Membership Chair
Area 1 Report
I am happy to report that the Area 1 chapters have
elected a full slate of officers for 2005. In Peninsula Chapter 682 - Sharon
Rose is the new President, Marvin Pastel is the new 1st VP, Don
Williams is the new 2nd VP, Faye Keith returns as Secretary, and
Mike Michel is the new Treasurer. In Colonial Williamsburg Chapter 685 - Liz
Snyder is again President, Ken Kievit returns as 1st VP, Frank
Stevenson returns as 2nd VP, Jeanie Anderson returns as Secretary,
and Joan Canfield returns as Treasurer. In Middle Peninsula Chapter 1757 -
Joanne Brummel is again President, Paul Componation returns as 1st
VP, Howard Mowry returns as Secretary, and Hank Furniss returns as Treasurer.
Congratulations to all for accepting officer positions in their chapters!
Una Reeks, a longtime Williamsburg Chapter 685 member,
celebrated her 105th Birthday on 14 December 2004. To recognize this
important event, a certificate was prepared at NARFE HQ, signed by Charlie
Fallis and Joe Beaudoin and a Chapter 685 certificate was prepared and signed
by myself. Joe and Jane Beaudoin, Dave Smith, and I visited Una, at her home,
and presented the certificates to her, along with a NARFE birthday cake. Una
was born in Lynn County, Kentucky in 1899, lived in three different centuries,
retired from Langley Air Force Base, and joined Chapter 685 in the 1960s. Up
until 2002, Una enjoyed attending the Chapter 685 Christmas meetings.
Unfortunately, shortly after our visit, Una passed away, peacefully at her
home, on 4 January 2005.
She had been recognized by the President of the United
States and in addition, the Oakridge Boys sent her a dozen beautiful roses for
her 105th birthday. She had
a large birthday party on 12/20 where she was recognized by numerous other
individuals and organizations. She was
one “beautiful lady.”
In Area 1, we have been concentrating on membership
recruiting and retention this past quarter. As requested by the VFC, Chapter
682 hosted a “jump start” meeting of current federal employees on 29 October
2004. A total of 28 employees attended the meeting and 8 became new members. In
addition, Marie Collins, Chapter 682, has been busy conducting Pre-retirement
seminars and representing NARFE at local Health Fairs and successfully
recruiting new members. Many thanks to Marie and the Chapter 682 members for
your hard work! A total of 47 annual renewal members in Chapter 682 submitted
applications to convert to dues withholding status. Thanks for participating.
In the area of legislation, 3 members from Area 1 plan
to attend the National Legislative Conference in February 2005. Also, a bus
trip was made on 25 January 2005 to visit state legislators and we attended a
session of the General Assembly. During this visit, the VFC state legislation
plan was discussed with our senators and delegates.
Thanks, again, to everyone in the Area 1 chapters for
your continued support and cooperation. If you have any ideas or suggestions
for improving NARFE effectiveness in our Area 1, please contact me. I would
like to hear from you.
Ralph Hoyle, Area 1 VP
To all Retirees and Current Federal
Employees.
The myth is that Uncle
Sam will take care of his employees and retirees. This is just not true. If you
do not believe this statement, I strongly suggest that if you have not already
read President Fallis' message on page 8 of the Retirement Life magazine,
please do so. ASP, February Issue 2005. Also, while you have the Retirement
Life in your hands, please read pages 10 through 14 and you will see why I say
that it is a myth in thinking Uncle Sam will take care of us.
We will be facing a less
friendly congress than we have in the last several years. The time is now that
we all must be vigilant as to what is going on in the 109th Congress. We must
all take an active part to preserve our earned benefits.
This year, February 26
through March 1, 2005, there will be a Legislative Conference held in the Washington,
DC area. Area 2 will be represented by John Ramirez and his wife Betty. March
1, 2005, has been designated as the day to visit our Congressman on the hill.
Those of us at home are encouraged to Fax, email, write letters or make phone
calls to let our Congressman know how we feel about our earned benefits.
I wonder how many
currently working federal employees know that when they sign on the dotted line
to retire, they will join the retirees’ ranks and lose their health insurance
benefits before taxes (Premium Conversion). Let us let it be known.
Please take an active
part and participate in contacting your Congressmen on March 1, 2005. Your
earned benefits to keep or lose are being discussed. Mine are worth fighting
for, are yours?
E. F.
Kerekes Area 2 VP
Area 5 News
In November, there was
an Area meeting in Chatham for Chapter Presidents and Membership Chairmen. The purpose of the meeting was to finalize
the Area 5 Membership Plan and to discuss ways to implement it. Membership is a real key to our organization
continuing to operate, and to the success of our operation. One of the things that Legislators ask us is
the size of our organization.
Obviously, the more members we have the greater the possibility of
getting their support for our programs.
Therefore, it is necessary for us to increase our recruiting effort, but
the Chapter Presidents and Membership Chairs cannot do it alone, every member
needs to be involved. With our
Membership Plan and a little ingenuity on the part of our members, I believe we
will see the Area 5 membership increase.
I do not plan to run
again for Area 5 VP, so a new one must be elected at the Area Caucus during the
Convention. If you would like to be the
next Area 5 VP, please let me know.
Jim Nobles
Area 5 VP
Area 7 Report
Charlottesville Chapter 135 canceled its usual gift exchange at the December meeting in favor of bringing food,
which was donated, to the area food bank. As partial recompense, members were
treated to a Christmas “grab bag” so that each would have something to
unwrap. The Chapter continues to
emphasize member retention and dues withholding. Their efforts were rewarded by VFC with a check for $56.00. Great job and a well deserved award!
Staunton-Augusta-Waynesboro Chapter 164 took an important
step forward in addressing its financial condition by raising dues from $6.00
to $10.00. This will help eliminated
the need for special fund-raising activities in order to keep the Chapter
solvent.
Harrisonburg Chapter 164 celebrated the holiday season
by holding its December meeting at the Country Club. This proved to be popular as reflected by the large number of
members and guests that attended—including the Area VII Vice President. Seasonal music and story telling provided an
enjoyable afternoon. Membership
Chairman Charles Shuler’s report indicated the extraordinary effort being made
to continue moving this Chapter ahead.
Winchester Chapter 180 held an enjoyable Christmas
program in December with 138 members attending. Fifty young ladies from a local high school choral group, dressed
in beautiful blue gowns, provided an entertaining program of seasonal
music. The business meeting was
interrupted by Santa Claus and one of his Elves. They distributed gifts to each person while the Elf insisted on
kissing all the women. We learned that
the person behind the white whiskers was VFC President Joe Beaudoin and the
“kissing” Elf was VFC Chaplain Deaver Carr.
Joe Beaudoin subsequently gave the oath of office to the 2005
officers—whiskers and all!
Page Valley Chapter 1793 held its
December meeting in the eloquent Mimslyn Inn in Luray. The members dined
to background music by a pianist from Luray High School followed by singing traditional
songs of Christmas. The Luray High School Choral group enhanced the singing and
the program. Gene Baker installed Chapter officers who would lead Chapter 1793
in 2005. Members agree to direct their attention in the New Year to state and
national activities and legislation that will impact on members and other
seniors.
Area VII Chapter Presidents are arranging an area-wide
meeting in Harrisonburg on March 4, to address issues
of common interest, Chapter progress in recruiting and retaining members, VFC
program matters, National and State legislative issues and ways to stimulate
and motivate members to become proactive on matters of concern to federal
retirees and seniors. Harrisonburg is selected for the meeting site since it is
central. The March 4 date also follows the National Legislation Conference in
Crystal City. Area 7 National
Legislation Coordinator Steve Bush will provide a report and discussion on key
issues and agenda items presented in the Conference.
Dick Murphy, Chapter 178, President,
participated in the VFC Board meeting at my invitation. Dick expressed appreciation for the
invitation and suggested that other Chapter presidents should have an
opportunity to attend a Board meeting.
Glenn M. Zech, Area 7 VP
Area 8 Report
The holiday
season is past, chapter officers have been elected and installed, and Area 8 is
happy to report that all chapters are starting 2005 in good condition. Four of the eight chapters have new
presidents. They are Richard Geary, Fredericksburg Chapter 90; Dwight Moritz,
Warrenton Chapter 1549; Art Klotz, Louisa Chapter 2065; and Mike Anderson,
Falls Run Chapter 2343. The four
returning presidents are Mary Norton, Colonial Beach Chapter 595; Gayle
Thompson, Northern Neck Chapter 1823; Mary Ryan, Lake of the Woods Chapter
1885; and Ron Curlings, Caroline County Chapter 2112. Area 8 is very proud to have these exceptionally talented
individuals heading the most important unit of NARFE, the local chapter. There is no doubt that these eight
presidents will have a very successful year.
To help the
chapters meet their goals, Area 8 also has very capable members who have agreed
to work as area coordinators. Jon Baer,
Northern Neck Chapter 1823 will continue as coordinator for State Legislation;
Mike Anderson, Falls Run Chapter 2343 has been appointed area coordinator for
National Legislation; Marilyn Root, Louisa Chapter 2065 has been appointed area
coordinator for Alzheimer’s; and Jean King, Louisa Chapter 2065 has been
appointed area coordinator for Membership.
Since the
area has so many new presidents and other new officers vital to the success of
the chapters, we are planning a training session to help these folks get off to
the right start. While there will be
training available at the convention, we plan to have a mini training event for
the new officers in early February.
While we would like to have training for all our officers, we will have
to limit this session to newly elected officers because of limited funds. I know everyone will support this effort.
Two
Fredericksburg Chapter 90 members, Dave and Alice Upchurch, were recognized in
the January 2005 NARFE Retirement Life (page 48) for their work raising funds
for Alzheimer’s research. If you have
not seen the article, you should. Their
efforts over the past 10 years have helped raise over $20,000 for Alzheimer’s
research. Congratulations Dave and
Alice!
During the
quarter, I was fortunate to have been able to attend six chapters, and was
delighted to have been asked to install officers in five. The sixth was my home chapter, Louisa where
we were very pleased to have David Smith, VFC 2nd Vice President
perform the installation.
Area 8
expects to have a full delegation at the VFC convention in April with delegates
attending from all eight chapters.
Chapters are working hard to have members attending filling all their
allotted delegate slots. We expect this
to be a very successful convention.
Bill Martin,
Area 8 Vice President
The six Chapters in Area 9 celebrated the Christmas Holidays with special luncheons and some with entertainment and some with installation of Officers for 2005. I attended three luncheons and enjoyed all of them. Along with the celebrations there was much work done trying to determine how we could recruit new members and how to get more current members interested enough to come to our regular meetings. Chapters consider their monthly newsletters their “lifeline” to members since it is the only contact they have many of their members.
Area IX along with Area X served as
the NARFE VFC primary representatives of the Legislative Forum Planning
Committee. NARFE VFC was Cosponsors of the 5th Annual Northern
Virginia Aging Network (NVAN) Legislative Forum, where there were 183
attendees. Of the 183 attendees, there were 11 Virginia State Legislators and 8
legislative aides. A NARFE VFC $500 contribution was designated as a memorial
to Thomas G. Vitez in appreciation for his dedication to NARFE and hard work on
our state legislative agenda while serving as the VFC Area IX State Legislative
Coordinator. Ann Collins, NARFE VFC 1st Vice President, gave a
memorial tribute to Tom and recognized Mrs. Vitex’s presence at the Forum. Of
course there were NARFE Magazines along with Membership Applications and other
information about NARFE available at the Forum.
A
special thanks to Thomas E. Gause who stepped down from the position of
President of Chapter 1159 (Annandale) on January 5, 2005. Tom has been the
President the chapter for several years and feels it is time for someone else have
the lead. He was awarded a Certificate of Appreciation for all his good work,
from his Chapter and another one from NARFE National signed by President
Fallis. George Richards was installed as the new President.
A new president, Joan A. McDonald, was
installed at the Springfield Chapter 893 in November, replacing Philip Meikle.
Bill
Masterson Area 9 VP
Area 10 Report
Retention
of Membership Dues W/H, Area X:
During the fall and winter months, VFC conducted a
statewide Dues Withholding campaign for NARFE members to a Switch and Save
plan. No more annual dues payment
notices. Instead, a monthly dues
withholding for a year totaling $24.60 (monthly: divided by 12 = $2.05) plus a
chapter dues if $10.00 (monthly: $10.00 divided by 12 = $.83). Together, your automatic payment of monthly
National and Chapter dues would have been @2.05 + $.83 = $2.88. In this example, converting to dues
withholding would have produced a saving to the member of $4.40 from national
membership and $4.00 for the Chapter for each conversion. Never again will Switch and Save members
make a trip to the mailbox, receive your NARFE annual dues renewal notice, and
inadvertently throw it away. This is
membership automatic retention that keeps national membership figures to a
higher figure and is very important when it comes to Congress.
To date, VFC AREA X claims two Chapters that were
involved in the Switch and Save VFC campaign. They were: Fairfax Chapter 7 who
is credited with two Switch and Save approvals and processing of applications
for dues withholding and Dulles Chapter 1241 who is also credited with having
seven Switch and Save applications approved and processed for the same period.
FIVE NEW
CHAPTER OFFICERS FOR 2005
VFC
Area X closed 2004 with five new and two continuing chapter presidents who are
willing to go forward through 2005. All
five new chapter presidents were installed while one chapter of the two
presidents continuing has elections every other year.
MEMBERSHIP
PLANS
While there were chapters which continue to focus on
establishing and actively implementing membership plans for recruitment and
retention of members, only the few mentioned above wanted to move ahead with
retention of membership activity. An
action plan that establishes who, what, where, when, and the extent to which
chapter resources were being used to raise membership figures at the chapter
level are perhaps still under consideration.
There was something afoot at last week’s VFC Board
meeting that only the format was discussed while the content is being held for
near future dissemination. It looks like a VFC statewide membership drive –
2005 – is coming. The only thing we
know for certain is that it was approved and part of it will be in the form 1st,
2nd, and 3rd Mailings.
The rest of us will have to wait until later when we are to learn more.
COUNCIL OF
CHAPTER PRESIDENTS AREA MEETING – JANUARY 5, 2005
As a newly elected AVP and living in a suburban/urban
area of people with hours and days of congested traffic where schedules are
hectic and distance, although short in terms of mileage and time, and traffic
zones are factors that get in the way of scheduling, making and keeping
appointments, I do believe I share the feeling that using a constant and
calling it “Council of Area Chapter Presidents Quarterly Meeting” is a way of getting
around to frequently visiting VFC NARFE chapters during the year. Therefore, AREA X chapters agreed to have
their first Council meeting on January 5, 2005.
These chapters were:
Edwin
Robinson, President, Chapter 7, Arlington, VA
Stuart
Vogt, President, Chapter 489, McLean, VA
Ralph
Thompson, President, Chapter 737, Fairfax, VA
Carolyn
K. Buttolph, President, Chapter 1116, Vienna, VA
Tom
Poerstel, President, Chapter 1133, Loudoun, VA
Joe
Smucker, President, Chapter, 1241, Dulles, VA
Benny
Parker, President, Chapter 1665, Metro Northern, VA
With five new and two continuing 2005 chapter
presidents we had a very informative two and one/half hour session. We not only learned from using an agenda,
with documentation, but from a dialogue with each other. The agenda, however, included topics on:
(1) 2005 VFC State legislation agenda presented by
Allen Wright, VFC State Legislation Director;
(2) Northern Virginia Aging Network (NVAN) - A first
attempt to become involved with other Northern VA
Agencies concerned with serving senior citizen program
that are parallel state programs with VFC State
Legislation, 2005. A chance to expand and share
NARFE’s interests.
(3) National Legislation 2005 using input from Charles
Deleplane, VFC National Legislation Chair paper.
(4) VFC Dues withholding report
(5) Form 7 document due 12/31/04.
(6) NARFE name change.
(7)
VFC Convention, April
25-27, 2005, by March 1, 2005, Delegate participation, registration forms and
Banquet, patron ads, convention supporters, Quilt NARFE-FEEA drawings (advance
sales only 3/. 15/05,
VFC
AREA exhibits, etc.
In this instance where there were five new chapter
presidents, the council meeting format was very productive. Occasional chapter
visits were also made in this quarter including five separate visits with NVAN
planning and implementing the Northern Virginia Aging Network (NVAN) Fifth
Annual Legislative Breakfast Forum on Aging Honoring General Assembly Members,
which was held at Green Spring Conference Center on November 16, 2004.
TRIAD
On October 7, 2004, VFC AREAS IX AND X Vice Presidents
were commissioned to attend a TRIAD meeting to set up and maintain NARFE booths
to distribute NARFE materials, answer questions, and direct seniors to the
conference room where TRIAD speakers spoke on such topics as: Home Security,
Medicare Fraud and Abuse, ID Theft, Personal safety, Financial Crimes, and
Telemarketing, and Frauds and scams.
SR Simons, VFC AREA X Vice President,
Treasurer’s
Request
For those chapters that elected to pay their dues
three times a year, the second payment is due February 1, 2005. Chapters that wish to pay their dues twice a
year; their first payment is due February 1, 2005 with the second payment due
May 1, 2005. The remaining chapters’
dues are due between February 1 and May 1, 2005, but not later than that. The VFC secretary should be sending out the
chapter’s dues assessment in January 2005.
Robert C. Basford, VFC Treasurer
Canadian Rockies
by Rail - August 26 - September 3, 2005 (9 days)
NARFE Virginia Federation has again made
arrangements with Collette Vacations for another great travel experience with
your fellow NARFERS. Come with us for a fun-filled trip to the heart of the
Canadian Rockies, where spectacular scenery combines with luxury resort
settings as you tour the beautiful provinces of Alberta and British Columbia. You
will spend the first day in Vancouver then the next two days viewing coastal
forests, roaring river canyons and lofty mountain peaks from aboard the
legendary "Rocky Mountaineer" (Goldleaf Optional Upgrade offered).
Your train journey ends in Jasper to visit the incredible Maligne Canyon. There
will be spectacular photo opportunities enroute to Lake Louise where you will
enjoy an unforgettable luxurious stay in the famed Fairmont Chateau Lake
Louise. An incredible tram ride to Sulphur Mountain offers magnificent views of
Banff and the nearby Rockies. Your final stops are Banff for a stay at the
magnificent Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel, known as the "Castle in the
Mountains" and the cosmopolitan city of Calgary. Trip includes round trip
air (with cancellation waiver and insurance) from Dulles (Richmond and Norfolk
gateways same price) and 15 meals (8 breakfasts, 2 lunches, 5 dinners). Rates
per person: Double $3,099; Single $3,999; and triple $3,069. Deposit of $200
per person with reservation due March 26; final payment due June 27. For more
information or to obtain a brochure, contact, Jann Masterson, VFC Travel
Coordinator at 703-548-0396 or email: b-jmasterson@ comcast.net. Do it now!
Meeting with
Congresswoman Drake
Some of the VFC Officers/members met with our newly
elected VA 2nd District Congresswoman, in Norfolk, VA on Dec 12, 2004. During
this meeting, we were able to discuss various NARFE issues with Ms. Drake and
her Chief of Staff, Tom Gordy. This meeting was (in my opinion) a very
successful and productive meeting and, hopefully, will result in a good
relationship between Ms. Drake and NARFE.
The
persons attending the meeting (from left to right) are: Tom Gordy (Chief of
Staff), Vince Agnelli (NARFE member), and Charles Delaplane (VFC Nat'l Leg.
Chair), Ms Drake, Joe Beaudoin (VFC President), Jane Beaudoin (VFC PR Chair),
Ernest Kerekes (VFC Area 2 V.P.) and Dave Smith (VFC 2nd V.P.)
National Legislation
As most know, all
pending legislation not enacted at the end of the 108th Congress died last
December when that Congress adjourned. We now start the hard slog over again
with the 109th Congress, and Rep. Howard "Buck" McKeon’s (R-CA) bill
to repeal the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination
Provision (WEP) has been reintroduced. This time around it is H.R. 147, and
Congressman McKeon dropped it into the hopper carrying 122 bi-partisan
co-sponsors. Among those, six are from Virginia - Jo Ann Davis, Tom Davis, Bob
Goodlatte, Virgil Goode, Rick Boucher,
and Bobby Scott. NARFE members living in the other five Congressional Districts
of Virginia might want to contact their representatives and ask them to sign on
as co-sponsors. Those in the 7th District are particularly important, because
Congressman Eric Cantor is Virginia’s only member of the House Ways and Means
Committee, where positive action would be crucial to that bill.
BUT - and this is the
bad news - expectations at present are that NARFE will have its hands full
fending off Administration efforts to reduce the budget deficit by cutting
benefits for retirees and employees. I write this piece a full two weeks before
the FY '06 budget is scheduled to be released, and as far as I know no details
are public, but there are all sorts of adverse actions which could be contained
therein. At our National Convention in Reno we adopted a legislative program
that made protecting the benefits we have the top priority, ahead of seeking
enhancements to benefits such as Premium Conversion or elimination of the GPO
and WEP.
Examples of possible
cuts include: (1) Delaying, reducing, or outright eliminating COLA’s (cuts
which would not likely be extended to Social Security beneficiaries); (2)
Reducing the Government’s share of health insurance premiums, thereby requiring
active employees and insured retirees to make up the difference (the USG
currently pays about 72 percent of the cost); (3) Requiring government agencies
to pre-fund (i.e., set aside appropriations for) their retirees future health
insurance costs, effectively reducing agencies’ budgets; (4) Reducing health
insurance costs by supporting increased co-payments, both for medical services
and for prescription drugs; (5) Lowering the means testing limits recently
added to the Medicare program, so that more people become affected by means
testing; (6) Expanding the contracting-out of federal jobs (this one would
yield few savings but is politically popular); and (7) reducing that part of
the budget supporting the Older Americans Act.
These are some the
budget-cutting ways that occur to me, and I’m not particularly known for my
creativity. Other ways certainly must be possible. After the budget is
delivered on February 7 we’ll know what we face. So stay alert, and be ready
and willing to write or phone your Congressional representatives. A number of
NARFE’s best friends in Congress are Virginians, and we won’t be fighting
alone.
- Charles Delaplane
VA Nurses Pension Issue
Help spread the word to retired RN's who
worked part time for the VA before 1986. This is a NARFE agenda issue and
members are asked to notify retired nurses who worked for the VA about
important pending legislation regarding their pensions. The reason NARFE
members are asked to notify these retired RN's is that the Office of Personnel
Management has indicated releasing their names would violate the Privacy Law.
These nurses may be in our chapters, families, friends or neighborhoods. You
may be the only person to notify these nurses.
In
2002, P.L. 107-135 restored the pensions to the nurses who were still working,
but not to those who had retired. ONE (Organization for Nurses' Equality) is
working to restore the pension for the nurses who had retired. The legislation
impacts Registered Nurses who worked any part-time schedules in VA hospitals
prior to 1986 and who retired before January 23, 2002. These nurses should access
the ONE website: www.geocities.com/varnpension or call 978-263-4443
or 608-238-078. Thanks for helping these retired nurses regain their rightful
pensions.
Immediate
Past NC State President Lillian Creger
Don’t
forget your convention in Richmond, get reservations early. Whip up support
from your chapter about this essential part of NARFE. All are welcome, come see
what goes on. Take part in retaining our rights.