Roy Orlando was hired at 21 and served the Tacoma Fire Department for 39 years in various positions within the Operations and Training Divisions. He retired as a lieutenant in 2012 and considers himself fortunate to have been actively involved in monitoring pension legislation and union benefits both before and after his retirement. His vision is to see that all LEOFF members are fairly represented and that their pensions and benefits are protected or improved.
Since retiring, Roy has focused even more time on LEOFF pension issues and has discovered a noticeable communication breakdown between the several organizations claiming to represent retired fire fighters and law enforcement officers in Washington State. Roy explained that these groups can sometimes come across as fragmented and splintered when attempting to represent LEOFF members. In addition, some of the organizations can be ill-informed or even at odds with one another, creating confusion among state legislators, committees, boards, and agency administrators.
This situation makes representing our members, protecting earned benefits, and gaining benefit improvements difficult. Roy believes it is vital to that we all continue to be focused and alert to any actions related to our pension system. It is thus imperative for retired firefighters in Washington to unite, which is why the WSCFF created the Retirees Association.
Roy’s favorite memories from his career as a fire fighter are the outstanding people he worked with and getting to see the best of humankind in the ordinary citizens of Tacoma. The fire service was a wonderful career, and Roy is very thankful he had the opportunity to serve the community of Tacoma.
Since his retirement in 2012, Roy and his wife have travelled extensively, including three trips to Europe, visiting Italy, Germany, Spain, Hungary, Norway, and the Netherlands.
Roy is convinced that the WSCFF Retirees Association will be a unifying group for all retired LEOFF System fire fighters and surviving spouses, and he asks that all WSCFF current and future retirees strongly consider joining. He is excited about this much-needed Association and says that he is honored to represent all LEOFF fire fighter retirees.