Hello {First Name}, FOR YOUR INFORMATION
RPOC NEWS â May/June 2022
~HAPPY Belated Mother's Day~
By: John Fraley, President, RPOC
ï»żGreetings
Itâs official! On Saturday, April 23rd, 2022, Dennis Bambach retired as the President of our organization. Dennis served our group in a professional manner as a friend to all as well as being a great leader. In a touching moment Dennis retired from his position and in accordance with our by-laws, I took the position as President. Maggie Bambach removed the Presidential name tag from Dennisâ shirt and turned to me to place the name tag on my shirt. This gesture made it official to the approval of those in attendance. I appointed Jerry Rudoff as Vice President and Tim Hoffman as Sergeant at Arms.
The attendance at this yearâs reunion was far greater than I expected. It was obvious that this was the best event since before the pandemic. We were ready to party, and it showed. The Golf Tournament went very well, the lunch cruise was exceptional thanks to Reba Miller. The hotel lobby is in the process of being renovated but hotel staff were exceptional, and there was little or no inconvenience to our attendees, other than the noise and the fact that the hotel restaurant was closed.
It takes an enormous amount of work to put the reunion together. The RPOC Board, Past President Dennis Bambach, me as the previous Vice president, Treasurer Ed Spisak, Secretary Barry Savage, and Jerry Rudoff Sergeant at Arms worked well together and are looking forward to the reunions in May of 2023, and 2024 and beyond. These people have worked hard over the past decade or so and are to be commended for the effort and dedication.
I am the golf coordinator for the reunion and will remain in that position until we a can get a volunteer to take over. The event was a successful and we had twenty-four golfers, and everyone won some prize money. Chris Bimonte was the first-place winner. Jim Montgomery and Jon Propst won closest to the pin.
Special thanks to the following individuals:
Kathy Rivers for her dedication and talent. Kathy made all our name tags. I know that it took many hours to prepare the material, put them together and distribute them at our check-in table. Many in attendance noted that the name tags were extremely helpful in putting names to faces.
Jon Propst for his assistance in putting the golf event together and helping in setting up the hospitality room and taking it down Saturday evening.
David Alvarez for his photographic talent and skills. Not only did he take pictures at the event and the golf tournament, but he also prepared a video collage of members that have passed on. It was a moving tribute to those who came before us. David also distributed DVDs of past reunions. David put many hours into his work and is to be commended.
Patty Savage worked tirelessly, along with Barry, in setting up our shirt sales and the other items on display. Patty managed our sales inventory, kept great books and facilitated our 50-50 raffle drawings. Barry was also instrumental in locating a new vendor of our shirts. The new shirts are very nice and were a hit with the membership.
Finally, Maggie Bambach and Penny Spisak worked extremely hard while serving as our bartenders. They were professional in the management of the bar and raised over $750 which was added to the Otis Chambers Scholarship and the RPOC Love Fund. These ladies are special, they are dedicated to our cause and were a major part of the success of this reunion.
Ed Spisak, Treasurer: Hi! All I can say is WOW! The reunion was such a great success! It was so good to see all our âoldâ friends and meet new ones. It was all talk and catch up. In speaking to several new members, they either said âI had so much fun talking to everyoneâ or âI wasnât told about the RPOC when I retired,â or comments to that effect. Now that they know about the RPOC, several said ânext year I will be back, bringing more friends.â So, members, its Looking very good for next year.
Now to the financial side of the reunion, our members were so generous in donating money to be divided between the Love Fund Members Assistance and the Otis Chambers Scholarship fund. Most of the golfers gave all their winning ($515.00). When the members were getting drinks from our Bartenders, Maggie Bambach and Penny Spisak, they filled up the tip jar several times to the tune of $750. Highly generous were the winners of the 50/50 raffles, who donated approximately half of the total collected of $1,423 for the benefit of MA and OCSF.
We now must remind members that 156 persons have not yet paid their dues for this year. Those members shall have received second notices by the time this HEAT issue is out and will have until the end of May to pay their dues. If not, regrettably, they will be removed from the roster, ending your receipt of RPOC communications, events, RPOC Facebook page and further issues of the HEAT.
Note from Penny: When the doors of the Hospitality Room opened on Thursday and through to breakfast on Sunday, words cannot express how happy Maggie and I were to see the familiar smiling faces and exchange greetings with friends for the first time since the last reunion. Thanks to everyone who made our jobs easier, and to those who offered help. The Board did a fantastic job of buying all the refreshments and setting up our Hospitality Room. Canât wait for next year to do it again!
Jerry Rudoff, Vice President; Transformational Information Officer:
The RPOC reunion and other events are open to both retired and active
law enforcement and corrections officers.
You do not have to be an RPOC member to attend the reunion if you are an ACTIVE law enforcement or corrections officer!
So, with the reunion over [by the way it was fantastic and look for pictures to be posted on our private Facebook page and on our website] and with our new president in place [congratulations John Fraley] where do we go from here? For those of you who have taken advantage and participate in our social media such as our private members only Facebook group and our very user-friendly website where you can always obtain up to date information or have your questions answered know weâre just a click away. And speaking of the reunion, our new president John was engaging everyone regarding their thoughts and the point was made over and over that one does not have to be retired to attend RPOC events and the reunion. It is an opportunity to see old friends and reunite with them as well as make new friends. But the looming question has been, for a while now, how active are you in assisting your RPOCâs ability to grow and sustain itself for future generations of retirees to follow? As we are all aware, we have not had a monthly luncheon or Christmas party now for a couple of years and with our new Sgt. at Arms on board, we know that will change soon [congratulations to Tim Hoffman who has assumed that position]. Who has some new and fun ideas on a venue and is willing to give an hour or so a week to assist?
Do you have pictures of when you were in the academy or working on the streets of Miami Dade County whether we were called the Grove Patrol, PSD, Metro-Dade, or Miami-Dade? Would you like to see these pictures along with your colleagues and a write-up indicating who, what, where and when on our social media? If so send us what you have and be featured for all to see. Are you a former bookkeeper or accountant and would like to keep your skills sharp and at the same time volunteer a couple of hours a week via your computer or conference call, then let our treasurer Ed Spisak know as your involvement would be welcome. And what about you techies out there, would you be interested in assisting to moderate our social media or work with our webmaster to ensure we maintain the latest technology and that our information and data are always current and up to date? What weâre saying here is that if there is a job or task, youâd be interested in doing, let us know and weâll ensure your interests are made a reality.
Reba Miller, Chaplain: " Laughter is like music...Friends are one of the exquisite joys of life... Coming together to celebrate the life well lived is a privilege...Honoring the passing of that life is a true gift of giving" Anonymous
We would like to honor and recognize our beloved warriors, for their service, love and commitment to their profession and their brothers and sisters in law enforcement. We send our love and condolences to their police families and friends:
* Sgt. Robert " Bob" W. Hoelscher.. April 2022
* Sgt. Joseph " Joe" Ruffo.. April 2022
* Sgt. Robert " Bob" York .. March 2022
* DO Tech Marjorie " Marge" Evelyn Tulp ..April 2022
Special wishes for healing and complete restoration of health to our following members - Ed Brown, Cookie Coleman, Stan Cochran, Andy Dixon , Linda Sims- Meyer, Jim McClain, Tim Pieper, Penny Spisak and Bill Van Riper.
Wishing each and every one of our members special "Thank You's" for coming together and celebrating the 31st Annual Reunion of the Retired Police Officers Council. Your support, enthusiasm and excitement truly made this an amazing event. I am honored to work with such a wonderful and dedicated group of individuals and your Board and their spouses who worked so hard to bring this event together. Thanks also to Kathy Rivers and John Propst for their time, skills and dedication year after year.
Outstanding "Thank You's" to all the golfers who participated in Friday's Golf matches, won cash prizes , and promptly donated them back to the Love Fund and the Scholarship Fund.
Complements to all the wonderful sailors aboard the " Barbara Lee" Paddle Wheeler out of the Sanford Harbor. We wish a Special recognition for Patricia Hernandez Bimonte for her fine job of assisting the Captain in piloting our ship along the St. John's River.
And lastly, a heartfelt thanks to our official photographer and retired Off. David Alvarez and his lovely wife Donna for compiling the Special Tribute CD of our friends and family who passed away during the chaos and pain and isolation of the past two-year period.
Dennis Bambach, Past President: I would like to express my utmost appreciation for the opportunity to represent the RPOC membership as President for the past 10 years. It has been a very memorable part of my life having the opportunity to meet so many new friends and stay in touch with old friends. Thanks to all of you for the support and kindness you have shown me. I will continue to be part of the RPOC in my new role. Looking forward to seeing all of you next year at the reunion if not before.
New Members: Roslyn Buckner, MDPD; Ariel Rodriguez, MDPD; James Murray, MDPD; Eduardo Garcia, MDPD; Donna Colon, MDPD; Randall Houk, MDPD; Lawrence Stevens, MDPD: Mildred Hasmo, MDPD; Calvin (Pete)Andreu, MDPD
Reinstated Members: Vandall Anderson, MD Corr, Fred Fabian, MDPD
******
âDo what is right, not what is easy nor what is popular.â
Roy T. Bennett
âBe the Reason Someone Smiles Todayâ
STAY HEALTHY ---- STAY CALM -- STAY INCHARGE
|