Federal employees, retirees have someone who has their backs

Residence: Warner Robins

Occupation: Retired Air Force, federal employee

Q: You’ve been working on a birthday celebration for NARFE. What’s NARFE and how old is it?

A: NARFE is the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association and we’re celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Warner Robins chapter.

Q: How old is NARFE overall?

A: The national association turned 95 last year. It was started in 1921 to protect and improve the earned pay, health care and retirement benefits of active federal employees, retirees and their survivors. You don’t always think about NARFE benefiting survivors, but that’s important, too. NARFE was originally begun just for retirees but we’ve opened membership to active federal employees because they definitely have a stake in these things as they head toward retirement themselves.

Q: If the local chapter is turning 50, it must have begun in 1967. What was going on in organizer’s minds back then?

A: NARFE is a nonprofit membership organization so its strength is in the groups of members here and there all across the country. The national organization gives a voice to me and others concerned about their future. I’m sure they were concerned about their incomes and futures just like we are today. NARFE is our combined voice.

Q: So how are you celebrating the local birthday?

A: We’re celebrating March 15 and will have an abbreviated business meeting at 10 a.m., which is our normal starting time, then by 11 we’ll have a birthday cake, of course. We’ll spend time looking at the past, present and future and we’ll do some fun things.

Q: What are some particular things you plan to do?

A: We’ll address why we’re doing what we do. We will honor and memorialize our original chapter organizers, the last of which died last year.

Q: How many were there in the beginning?

A: There were 14 organizers at our very first meeting in ’67, including officers. By 1968 they had tripled membership. We’re going to read the names of the charter officers and have a display of the 40-plus charter members from those days. We’ll be honoring some others well.

Q: What do you imagine were the concerns of those charter members?

A: Times and circumstances change but I suppose they had the same basic concerns I and other federal workers and retirees have today.

Q: Such as?

A: Concern about their retirement and the decisions being made affecting how they lived and their future. Like us, they were thinking about the benefits they had been promised, had earned and about keeping them safe. They were concerned about retirement. In the very early days when the larger national organization was started, there wasn’t even a coherent national retirement system so NARFE helped institute the Civil Service Retirement System. Over time NARFE has addressed things like equity pay with private industry and personnel practices like consistent hiring and firing practices throughout the federal government. Plus, NARFE has taken on projects through the years like becoming a major advocate and fund raiser for Alzheimer’s research and treatment.

Q: You said you’d do some fun things, what have you come up with?

A: One thing is comparing 1967 to today. We’re going to have a 1967 trivia contest. Looking into things I saw some really remarkable day-to-day facts.

Q: Like?

A: The population in Warner Robins in 1960 was 18,633. In 1970 — close to 1967 — it was 33,491 so it had almost doubled. In 2015 population was about 73,490. I found out nationally that gas was 33 cents a gallon and the cost of a new car averaged $2,750. Movie tickets were $1.25 and — get this — the first Super Bowl was in 1967 and tickets were $12. Now there almost 10 times that. The federal minimum wage was $1.40 an hour.

Q: Looking back is always interesting. Do you know how much bread was?

A: A loaf was 22 cents. Milk was just over $1 a gallon. A first class stamp went for 5 cents and a Snickers bar was a nickel, too. Big movies were “Bonnie and Clyde” and “Valley of the Dolls.” And, by the way, the first Super Bowl was the Green Bay Packers against Kansas City. Green Bay won. Another sports thing I found out, Mickey Mantle hit his 500th home run in 1967. Oh — and a pay phone call was 10 cents, if anybody even remembers pay phones.

Q: Things have changed — and are changing. What are you looking at for the future?

A: Our chapter president, Charles Farmer, is handling that so I don’t know exactly what he’ll say, but my own concerns are fairly representative.

Q: And those are?

A: Foremost is just having NARFE continue as my eyes and ears letting me know what’s go on legislatively and policywise. Through NARFE, I can understand the implications of situations and legislation involving my living circumstances. That’s always NARFE’s overriding value because these subjects get so complex. Some people have mistakenly thought NARFE as a union but it’s not one at all. It’s a nonprofit information and lobbying group.

Q: What would you say particular issues facing you today are?

A: The state of a cost of living increase, the possible federal hiring freeze and the fact we’re looking at a lot of new ground right now. My overall personal concern is that our leaders make these decision in a timely and organized fashion so we can know where we stand. But I feel safe knowing NRAFE is there and has the attention of legislators. Another thing is what I call the generation gap: the federal workforce is older and more people are retiring with fewer young people coming in and moving up. We need to look at incentives to bring in millennials and other young people to the federal workforce and NARFE.

Q: What’s your own background?

A: I’m retired military, a senior master sergeant, and a retired federal employee. I’m from Chicago and came to Warner Robins, Robins Air Force Base, in 1989. As far as NARFE, I joined NARFE in 2007, a couple of years before I retired. I’ve been second vice president and secretary twice. Warner Robins is home now. My relatives are all up north but I’m staying here where it’s warm. I don’t even use snowflakes in my Christmas decorations — and I have lots of Christmas decorations.

Q: And again, when and where does NARFE meet?

A: We’re Chapter 1020 and invite anyone to come get information. We meet every month on the second Wednesday at 10 a.m. at the Wellston Center, 155 Maple Street off Watson Boulevard near the recreation department and city hall.

This story was originally published March 11, 2017 at 3:40 PM with the headline "Federal employees, retirees have someone who has their backs."