An article written by WPRI reporter Ted Nesi on January 20, 2014 for your reading please.
CPDRA MEETING – JANUARY 22, 2014
01/15/2014 by
There will be a CPDRA meeting on Wednesday, January 22, 2014 at 7:00pm at the Vasa Hall located at 43 Bald Hill Road, Cranston, RI.
Agenda will include election of new officers, status update on finances, and possible future plans for the CPDRA.
All members and widows are encouraged to attend.
For those retirees that have not paid their dues, please bring a $25.00 check or money order made out to CPDRA.
I hope to see everyone there.
Pete Sepe, CPDRA President
Updated Pension News (November 15, 2013)
11/19/2013 by
Attached is the most current information regarding the status of the “Proposed Settlement” with the city regarding our COLA:
CPD Photo Info
08/13/2013 by
Please bear with us as we attempt to upload and align numerous photos we recently received from Jim Ignasher and Joe Cicione on our website. We would also like to thank Jim for all the other CPD information he recently provided us. It will be used on our website and in the new 10-4 Newsletter which is scheduled to come out at the end of August.
Due to the number of photographs we have received to date, we will periodically update our “Photo Tab” on the website with different pictures of officers and other CPD memorabilia.
2013-2014 CPDRA Dues
08/02/2013 by
The Cranston Police Department Retirees Association (CPDRA) is now collecting dues for the 2013-2014 fiscal year. Please send your $25.00 check or money order to:
Mark Sepe, C/O
CPDRA
33 Highwood Terrace
Cranston, RI 02920
Members who are not current with their membership dues as of November 30, 2013 will be placed on the inactive list and will no longer receive communication from the CPDRA. Since we value our members and want you to remain with the Association, please be sure you’re up-to-date with your dues. If you have special circumstances and are unable to pay your dues at this time, please let us know and we will accommodate you.
Updated Info on Next CPDRA Meeting
07/13/2013 by
Tentatively our next CPDRA meeting is scheduled for the month of October, 2013 at the Vasa Hall located in Cranston, RI. As soon as we confirm the date, we will be posting the information on our new website and sending a reminder to all retirees and widows.
Your attendance and input to all CPDRA meetings will be certainly appreciated.
Sincerely,
Peter Sepe
President, CPDRA
Johnston Mayor Seeks Police, Fire Pension Changes Through Council-Approved Ordinance – June 14, 2013
07/13/2013 by
In the face of emotional opposition from the town’s police and firefighters, Mayor Joseph Polisena is asking the Town Council to back his plan to rescue the troubled pension system by curtailing certain pension benefits long established in union contracts.
According to the proposed ordinance by the mayor, it would freeze cost-of-living escalators (COLAs) over a period of 20 years for all retirees. At that point, any retirees receiving pensions greater than 150 percent of the Rhode Island mean income, which is about $29,277 in 2011, would remain ineligible for any cost-of-living increases.
To read the entire Providence Journal article, go to http://www.providencejournal.com/breaking-news/content/20130614-johnston-mayor-seeks-police-fire-pension-changes-through-council-approved-ordinance.ece
Welcome to the CPDRA Website
07/12/2013 by
CPDRA Founding President – Det. Rico Maccarone
Welcome to the CPDRA website which is dedicated to all Cranston Police Retirees, past and present, who devoted their lives to safeguarding the citizens of Cranston, Rhode Island while exemplifying the true meaning of “pride and professionalism.” In every facet of this career, your performance epitomized the highest standards of a well-rounded professional that will never be forgotten or taken for granted. Thank you for your many years of dedicated service.
CPDRA Officers and Board Members
Visit this site often to learn about legislative updates that affect your retirement benefits, to read the latest 10-4 newsletter, or to just exchange thoughts or information with your fellow retirees.
This website belongs to all CPDRA members, so feel free to send us news about yourself and what you’ve been up to (hobbies, another job, business ventures), photos, articles, or information that could be useful or of interest to your fellow members.
Enjoy your visit. We look forward to hearing from you.
Pension Update – June 19, 2013
07/12/2013 by
Dear Pension Recipient,
I would like to begin this letter by thanking all of you who sent funds to support our legal defense. While this was not an easy decision by the new officers and board members to make, it was necessary due to limited funds within the Cranston Police Retiree Association (CPDRA) for hiring a lawyer with extensive civil law experience to represent all retirees and widows during this legal process regarding our pension. Since our goal was to have this be a one-time request of funds, those that have not contributed are respectfully requested to reconsider our request. In the event you cannot afford the one hundred dollars for retirees and fifty dollars for widows, any amount of money you send will be greatly appreciated. Those that simply cannot afford it due to their financial situation will still be represented by the CPDRA lawyer during this process. In the event there is money left in our legal fund once this process has concluded, a special CPDRA meeting will be held for all of those who donated for determining its fate. For those that contributed and live out of state, an email will be sent to you for your feedback. As a reminder, checks can be made out to CPDRA and mailed to Mark Sepe, C/O CPDRA, 33 Highwood Terrace, Cranston, Rhode Island 02920.
As an update, our lawyer recently went to Superior Court on a motion to certify us as a class and for him to be appointed as class counsel, which the judge granted. He now will be working on the settlement motion that will be presented to the court, which the court will schedule for a hearing sometime in August. Assuming that the judge approves the settlement after hearing arguments both for and against this settlement, the court will set a deadline for persons to opt out if they choose to do so. It is my understanding that probably the city will be responsible for sending all of us a notice to either accept or opt out of this settlement. To date, CPDRA has paid out a total of $2,278.75 for legal fees. This does not include the approximately $207.03 it costs the association each time it sends out a correspondence to all retirees and widows to keep them informed of this situation.
Although not addressed in any other CPDRA correspondence, please allow me a few extra minutes of your time to address another issue that bothers me deeply. Despite everything we have been through and sacrificed as police officers, it took an issue like this to divide us. Believe me when I say that NO ONE LIKES what is happening with our pension. However, I can only hope that once this issue is resolved, one way or another, we can place our differences aside and build on the sacrifices and hard work of our previous CPDRA officers and board members. As J. K. Rowley eloquently stated “We are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided.”
While we do not expect to conduct another meeting until sometime after the proposed hearing in August, I certainly hope that everyone (retirees and widows) will be able to attend our next scheduled meeting. Remember, this association is as only as good as its members who provide it with feedback and ideas for continual growth and prosperity.
In closing, I hope this letter finds you and your family safe and well. In the event you have any questions or concerns regarding anything, please email them to cpdrari@yahoo.com and someone will get back to you as soon as possible. Since the CPDRA will have its web site up and running in the very near future, please ensure we have your email so we can notify you when it is operational.
Sincerely,
Peter J. Sepe, President
Cranston Police Department Retiree Association