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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.
Contact Web Master We now have a page just to address the pension problems
Click Here to go to that page To sign up for our e-mail blasts scroll to the bottom of this page and fill out the form. Hit the subscribe button only once!
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Supplemental Dental and Vision plans will be with "United Healthcare"
Contact Customer Service New 3-14-18 Rose Hawkins, Benefits Advisor 410-337-7577 RHawkins@sfandc.com For more info Click Here |
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May 29 11:00
S. MD Lunch |
May 29 10:00
John Williams Day See Below |
May 30 10:30
Cherry Rd. Anniv See Below |
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May 22, 2019
Update, obit, and funeral arrangements below The RFA regrets to announce the death of RFA Life Member William I. "Bill" Dawson. Brother Dawson passed away today May 13, 2019 at 11:00. Brother Dawson just turned 94 years old. Brother Dawson was appointed to the DCFD on 1-13-1949 E-7 and retired on 05-01-1971 from E-8. Brother Dawson was the last remaining member of the first Navy Frogman Class (now know as SEAL's) Obit and Funeral Arrangements below: William L. Dawson, U.S. Navy veteran WWII and retired Firefighter of Washington D.C. Fire Department passed away peacefully at his home in Waldorf, Maryland on May 13, 2019. He was 94 years old. William L. Dawson was born April 18, 1925 in Washington, D.C. Bill attended Chamberlin H.S. in S.E. and worked at the Washington Navy Yard as a young teenager. It was at the Washington Navy Yard, December 7, 1941 at the young age of 17, where Bill made the decision to join the war effort of WWII. Bill completed his basic training in 1943 in Bainbridge, Maryland. After an unsuccessful attempt to enlist in submarine duty, Bill snuck into a line of applicants who were volunteering for a yet unnamed outfit that involved, “explosives and distant, hazardous duty”. Bill was among 42 Navy men chosen and assigned to Ft. Pierce, Florida that made up a small amphibious unit called The Naval Combat Demolition Unit, later referred to as Frogmen. These men formed the first class of NCDU and underwent intense training at Ft. Pierce, Florida. The training came to a pinnacle during a week the men described as “A week of Hell”. This term stuck and still today Hell Week remains the final component to BUD’s training for U.S. Navy SEAL’s. Bill Dawson and his fellow Frogmen were tasked with clearing the beaches for General MacArthur’s island-hopping campaign northward through the western Pacific towards his return to the Philippines. From 1943 to 1945 Bill and his small team of Frogmen, NCDU #2 & #3 led by LT. (jg) Kain, made 12 invasions in the Pacific theater, from New Guinea, through the Philippines to Borneo. These early amphibious warriors have evolved into and paved the way for nine Navy SEAL teams. Up until his death, Bill was the last surviving member of Class #001 NCDU Frogmen. After his discharge from the Navy, Bill longed for a job that resembled the excitement and brotherhood of his Navy days. He found this career with the D.C. Fire Department. Bill served with the D.C.F.D. Engine 8, from 1949 until his retirement in 1971. Bill married his wife Eva Hoffman in 1964 and became an instant father to five stepchildren. They resided in Mt. Carmel, Maryland where they remained a couple for nearly 50 years. In 2015, with the help of Commander Tom Hawkins, USN. Ret., and good friend Lisa Merriam, Bill authored a book entitled, “Before They Were SEALs, They Were Frogs”. Through the course of several decades, Bill faithfully attended annual SEAL musters and reunions at Ft. Pierce, FL and Virginia Beach, VA, along with monthly D.C.F.D. retirement luncheons. His wife Eva who passed away in 2013 and 1 stepdaughter Barbara who passed in 2010 preceded Bill in death. Also preceded in death are his father William A. Dawson, mother Elizabeth Howard Dawson, and sister Ruth. Four remaining stepchildren, grandchildren and great grandchildren survive Bill along with several nieces and nephews. Bill led a life of service in both wartime and peacetime. His small team of “Naked Warriors” paved the way for future Frogmen and they left a wake of history and legacy at the stern. Bill enjoyed God’s beauty in everything, and he enjoyed all that life had to offer. He struggled with life issues but at the end of the day, he found his peace with God. It is only fitting to close his obituary with the final words penned from his book. “I am blessed to have had the opportunity to stand next to the greatest of men and to call them friends and brothers. Though my time with the Navy was short, it cast a long, bright glow over my whole life. The Navy SEAL Ethos talks about being “forged by adversity”. I know we had plenty of that. Yet, adversity is not what endures in my heart. For me, what endures is the legacy of my teammates, the character and honor of good men whom I came to know well and to trust to the ends of the earth. They have steadied me in the worst moments, and our life long bond will sustain me to my final day”. William “Bill” Dawson. …Rest in peace Frogman… A visitation will be held on Wednesday, May 29, 2019 from 10AM until time of service at 11AM at Raymond Funeral Service, P.A., 5635 Washington Avenue, La Plata, Maryland 20646. Interment at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date. Notice from Local 36:
Due to the holiday on Monday, May 27th, the General Membership meeting will be held on Tuesday, May 28th at 0900hrs at our new hall, 3002 12th St NE. We will look forward to seeing you there and at the events on Wednesday and Thursday to honor our fallen members. May 21, 2019
Latest DCFD Personnel Actions below 
May 21, 2019
District of Columbia Firefighters Association A Day at the Ballpark with “Bowie” After 34 years, Lieutenant “Bowie” Kuhn is hanging it up. Join Bowie at the Tune Inn on June 5th at 930 AM. Following the Tune Inn, the group is heading to Nationals Park for a 1:05 game. The Nationals have given us a number of tickets (for DCFD members only) For information and to get tickets to the game, contact: Dennis Carmody 540.287.1649 or Richard Schwarzman 240.286.6215 May 10, 2019
Sec. Jimmy Partridge spoke with the DCRB regarding annuities affecting recently retired members whom fell under the new contract. I was informed that DCRB just had meeting with representatives of Payroll. Currently DCRB is awaiting the new figures calculated by Payroll along with dates. Members should receive a supplemental back pay check from regular Payroll for hours worked while active. After the dates and pay rates are received, along with corresponding paperwork on each individual member, new calculations for retirement benefits will be made. It’s a multi-step process. Recalculation of initial exit pay then addition of each COLA the member received since the member’s retirement date. Back pay for retirement benefits will issued by DCRB. There is another meeting scheduled between the 2 parties scheduled before the end of the month. Hopefully, at that time a realistic timeline will be established for reimbursement and distribution of benefits to each member. A letter will be sent to affected members as well stating the process. A plea for patience was made. It will take some time as calculation is done on a case by case basis. There is now a Washington DC Fire Fighters Memorial Foundation this is a 501c non profit. They are collecting money to put up a permanent memorial to the Fallen DC Firefighters. They are looking for sites, getting permits, hiring an artist to design the memorial. It is all in the early stages, but money is needed to get things moving.
https://www.dcfallenfirefightersfoundation.org 
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FIREFIGHTERS MEMORIAL DAY
(Big John Williams Call Box Dedication) May 29 this Firefighters Memorial Day in the District of Columbia. This year we will also be dedicating Call Box 144 in memory of Firefighter John Williams. The call box is located at the corner of 14thand H Streets NW. Firefighter Williams died in the line of duty at this location while operating on a multiple alarm fire on December 19, 1984. The dedication will begin at 10am, please begin to line up at 9:30 in the 1400 blk. Of H Street NW. After the dedication please join us at the Hilton Garden Inn (located at the same location) for the remembrance ceremony of all members that have died in the line of duty. The ceremony will be followed by a luncheon for all attendees. Cherry Road Fire (Box 6178) Remembrance Ceremony (20-year anniversary) May 30th marks the 20-year anniversary of the Cherry Road Fire where Firefighters Anthony Phillips and Louis Matthews were killed and Firefighter Joe Morgan was critically injured. The ceremony will be held at the location of the Call Box (corner of Cherry Road and Banneker Drive NE) and begins at 10:30 Immediately following the remembrance ceremony all are invited to the Union Hall to enjoy lunch which will be provided by the Primrose Restaurant which is located on the first floor of our building. May 13, 2019
Sick List Addition: William Strohm retired 1978 5 BFC aide in hospital got a pacemaker, everything ok April 27, 2019
UPDATE FROM THE ANNUITY COMMITTEE At the April 2019 a motion was passed to seek legal advice (interoperation) in regards to a recent case of a Metropolitan Police Officer who had his annuity reduced in March 2015. There were one hundred thirty-six firefighters (136) who had their annuities affected at the same time. Although this case was not exactly the same as Retired Firefighters Association (RFA) members it is our intention to seek information to determine if there is a possibility it could have an effect on RFA members. A U.S. Magistrate hearing the Police Officers case recommended approval of Summary Judgement to restore his pension to the original amount, retroactively to the date it was reduced. The Magistrate’s recommendation is now before a Federal Judge for her final decision. The Office of DC Pensions (ODCP) has appealed the Magistrate’s decision to the judge, who will make her decision in the months ahead. The RFA, along with the Association of Retired Police Officers (AORP), has retained as Attorney to review the cases of our members. The Attorney will review each case and decide if he believes each members individual circumstances are enough to warrant legal action seeking restoration of their pensions. Upon completing his review of the cases, the Attorney will provide a legal opinion to the RFA with the findings and recommendations on how to proceed. The options include pursuing litigation as a class action, or actions, for groups of members with similar legal issues, or filing on an individual basis if cases are not sufficiently similar. If the Attorneys determination is that some members cases are sufficiently similar to be litigated as a group, but others are not similar, not all members may be recommended for legal action. This determination by the RFA can not be made until all cases have been reviewed. Your notice, from U.S. Treasury, regarding their intent to reduce your annuity, must be on file with the RFA to be considered in this process. If you have not submitted the notice or are not sure of it being on file contact a member of the committee. It is requested that the information be provided no later than close of business May 20, 2019. Committee Members:
YOU MUST HAVE BEEN A MEMBER OF THE RFA AT THE TIME OF YOUR NOTICE OF A PENSION REDUCTION TO QUALIFY FOR CONSIDERATION IN THIS ACTION. Emerald Society is having their annual Fishing Tournament June 6, 2019
Nov. 2, 2018
Donald "Rip" Gardiner has booked the St. Micheal's Church for next year's cookout. Mark your calendars for Sept. 21, 2019 Rip also reports that he received a very nice thank you note from Father Flum of St. Michael's for the donation from the RFA |
May 21, 2019
Update on Tony DelGrosso from Tony himself!! I just wanted to thank the RFA's Staff and members who I received many calls, cards, prayers and e-mails wishing me well. They worked! I just had my four week post surgery check-up. The doctor said I looked great and my progress is excellent. He told me I can get back to driving now, and in a few more weeks you're on your own, I can do whatever I feel comfortable with, no need to see him again, but follow up with my own cardiologist. Thank you all again for all the love and prayers! The best healing power there is! All the love sent to me, I send back to you! Tony Sick List Addition Update on Tony DelGrosso Tony is home and resting comfortably!! Tony had his surgery April 24th. He is in intensive care for the next couple of days, but is resting comfortably. From Don Scalise Just heard on on 4-22-19, that retired Chief Tony DelGrosso is having heart surgery this week at WHC. Best wishes to my old buddy and dear friend and Godfather to two of my kids. If anyone has any updates, please let me know. tks. April 5, 2019
Below is the motion that was requested at the April meeting by Bill Mould and the committee working on our pension issues. The motion was made and passed unanimously. “Allow the Annuity Committee up to $10000.00 to seek legal assistance in reviewing the most recent decision involving the US Treasury Department and a retired Police Officer. This decision was rendered on February 26, 2019 by a United States Magistrate Judge and is now under appeal by The Treasury Department. It is possible, not automatic, that this ruling, if upheld, could have an affect on Retired Firefighters who had their annuities reduced on March 1, 2015.” Dec. 28, 2017
The RFA now has a Twitter account and Facebook page to better get the message out. A huge thanks to newly elected Sec. Jimmy Partridge for putting these pages together. We hope that the more ways to communicate the better. People use different platforms to keep in touch, so we hope to get any new or information out to everybody in as many different ways as possible. For those of you how use these types of social media, please add them to your accounts. On Twitter @ret_dcfire https://twitter.com/ret_dcfire https://www.facebook.com/retiredDCFD/ May 9, 2019
Write up from the Florida Reunion If you did not go to this years Florida Reunion you missed out again. It was a great time by all. A lot of stories, new faces and new old faces. Even some of the stories were new? Well, maybe not but they were told by someone different. We had 130 people attend the reunion this year. Every year it gets a little bit bigger. Again, a lot of new retired faces and the best part was the Brothers who came down who were still on the job. It's always great to see them and watch them act like we did back in the day. LOL. One of the things that hit me this year was when The General, (Jim Lockow) read the list of departed Brothers. 30 names were on that list. This is one of the reasons I go to as many reunions as I can and all of us should try to attend these events. You may not see the same faces at the next reunion. On a lighter note, I still haven't figured out how the taste of beer changes each year. One year it's Bud Light, next year Miller Lite and so on, Again, we had the silent auction and took donations for Heroes, I have sent the money and checks to big Al Jeffery's. All who attended this year found out that this was may last year to organize the reunion. I am passing it on to Joe Rainwater. I took over from Wally Atkinson 10 years ago. It has been a pleasure and honor to organize and run the Florida Reunion. I have met a lot of Brothers I only heard about before I came on the job and a lot of the Brothers who were on the job and never got to work with them. Not every one could work at 1342 Florida Ave NE. I want to thank you all who have help me and Carol doing this. There are to many names to say but you know who you are. Please support Joe Rainwater as you have me. The next Reunion is already set up for April 24-26th 2020 at the Four Points in Punta Gorda Florida. GOOD TIMES, GREATS STORIES TRUE BROTHERS AND GREAT FRIENDS FOR LIFE. And for the Brothers still on the job, come down and meet the Brothers who help make DCFD one of the Greatest Jobs and Fire Departments in the World. Fraternally, A J Winterwerp 
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Honor Guard
In an effort to provide our retired brothers (at the time of their demise) with a dignified, and respectable presence, the Retired Association has decided to organize a "Honor Guard". This will not be a precision - spit and polish - drill team type concept, but simply a list of retired brother firefighters who may have known and worked with the departed, or at least served during the same time frame. Participation by this Honor Guard will be ONLY By request of the family, and only to the extent that the family desires.
To include but not limited to pallbearers, (active or honorary) - liaison between the family and visiting fire fighters, or simply lending a fire service presence.
The "uniform of the day" for this honor guard shall from this day forward be known as the "Lockrow Suit" which will consist of a navy blue blazer, white shirt, gray slacks, and black shoes (properly polished) and official Honor Guard tie issued by the Association.
For those who wish to participate, and do not own a "Lockrow Suit" we have made arrangements with "Men's Warehouse" for a very good discount on the blazer and slacks.
The more members who participate in this honor guard will provide for a large cadre to draw from meaning less travel and less frequent events.
Please give this Honor Guard serious consideration, and join us in providing our departed members with class, dignity, and proper respect.
To volunteer please contact :
Tom Scherer Joe O'Neil
301-609-7923 410-507-2450
chieftom77@verizon.net joeoneil9@hotmail.com
To include but not limited to pallbearers, (active or honorary) - liaison between the family and visiting fire fighters, or simply lending a fire service presence.
The "uniform of the day" for this honor guard shall from this day forward be known as the "Lockrow Suit" which will consist of a navy blue blazer, white shirt, gray slacks, and black shoes (properly polished) and official Honor Guard tie issued by the Association.
For those who wish to participate, and do not own a "Lockrow Suit" we have made arrangements with "Men's Warehouse" for a very good discount on the blazer and slacks.
The more members who participate in this honor guard will provide for a large cadre to draw from meaning less travel and less frequent events.
Please give this Honor Guard serious consideration, and join us in providing our departed members with class, dignity, and proper respect.
To volunteer please contact :
Tom Scherer Joe O'Neil
301-609-7923 410-507-2450
chieftom77@verizon.net joeoneil9@hotmail.com
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RFA Pocket Badge Order Form
EXAMPLE JOSEPH C. HEALY RETIRED FIREFIGHTER’S ASSOCIATION WASHINGTON DC FIRE DEPARTMENT T-9 Please send a check for $45 with your name and address and the way you want your badge to read to: Joe Healy 7511 Woodville Road Mt. Airy, MD 21771 (A fourth line can be added for an extra $2) 
We have RFA Coffee Mugs for sale. Contact Joe Healy to order one
Joe Healy 7511 Woodville Rd. Mt. Airy, MD 21771 301-802-2171 |
Members of the Retired Association can now order an official Fire Dept. badge on-line. Just click on the site below and find the badge you want and follow the instructions. (The difference between the active badge and our badge is that it has the word "RETIRED" is on the top.)
Thanks to Jimmy Martin, the link has been fixed. They advised that if you are still having problems, to turn off your pop-up blocker. Click Here to order 
Friendship Fire Assn. Celebrates 75 Years of Dedicated Service to the DCFD. Challenge Coin is available for a $10 Donation.Thanks to All For Your Support and the Privilege to be a part of our Great Department , The DCFD. To Obtain Coins Contact Elliot 301-807-8192 , Vito or any FFA Member.
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Meetings are held the first Monday of each month 11:00 hrs. except July, August and September.
Local 36 Kenny Cox Building
3002 12th St. N.E Washington, D.C. 20017
Snow Policy:
IF SNOW CLOSES OR DELAYS THE PRINCE GEORGE'S SCHOOL SYSTEM , THERE WILL BE NO RFA MEETING THAT DAY.
Local 36 Kenny Cox Building
3002 12th St. N.E Washington, D.C. 20017
Snow Policy:
IF SNOW CLOSES OR DELAYS THE PRINCE GEORGE'S SCHOOL SYSTEM , THERE WILL BE NO RFA MEETING THAT DAY.
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