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22

AFSA membership, reflected by the fact that nearly 80 percent of

all incoming FS members joined AFSA.

AFSA held three events in our Federal Benefits Speaker Se-

ries in 2014. In May we welcomed back Paula Jakub, chief execu-

tive officer and executive vice president of the American Foreign

Service Protective Association, for the very popular discussion

on “The Coordination of Medicare and FEHB.” We followed up

with two other seminars: “Long-Term Care and Survivor

Annuities” and “Estate Planning, Wills and Trusts.” These

members-only events were well attended and provided

the audiences with ample time for questions and answers.

All seminars were recorded and are available online at

www.afsa.org/video.

As we do each year, AFSA co-hosted the Job Search

Program (JSP) reception with DACOR. These receptions

were held in the elegant Wood Lobby at the National For-

eign Affairs Training Center in March, August and Oc-

tober. Retirees view AFSA as a valuable partner in their

transition, and the majority of the JSP participants joined

AFSA as retiree members.

AFSA also hosted several happy hours throughout the

year, drawing more than 150 members and guests at each

for socializing and networking.

On May 22, AFSA hosted a gala dinner in the State

Department’s Benjamin Franklin State Dining Room to

celebrate the 90th anniversary of the Foreign Service.

Speakers included Secretary of State John Kerry, Rep-

resentative Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), former Senator

Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), former Secretary of State Colin

Powell, and NBC’s Andrea Mitchell as the emcee. Among

the 215 attendees were current and retired members of

the Foreign Service and management officials from all

Foreign Service agencies.

To see the video of the dinner, please visit our You-

Tube channel

(www.youtube.com/AFSAtube

); the pho-

to gallery can be viewed on AFSA’s Flickr page www.

flickr.com/americanforeignservice); and the transcript

of Secretary Kerry’s speech can be found at

www.state.

gov/secretary/remarks/2014/05/226496.htm. The dinner

marked a proud moment in the history of AFSA and

the Foreign Service.

Post Representatives

Post representatives are active-duty Foreign Service

employees who volunteer their time to assist fellow

employees with management-related problems and

professional concerns. They represent both the col-

lective and individual interests of members at post in

dealing with post management and serve as a liaison

with AFSA headquarters, passing on the views of its

members in all the Foreign Affairs agencies. In 2014

AFSA certified 86 new post representatives, bringing the total to

154 post reps around the world (148 from State, four from US-

AID and two from FCS). In April, AFSA President Bob Silver-

man and State VP Matthew Asada held a webinar for current post

reps, reviewing their role in labor management relations, as well

as AFSA priority issues, recent concerns at post and future en-

hancements to the post rep program.

Membership Services Staff:

(from left) Office Manager and Administrative

Assistant Ana Lopez, Retiree Counselor and Legislative Assistant Matt

Sumrak, Member Services Director Janet Hedrick, Retiree Counselor Todd

Thurwachter, Membership Services Part-Time Employee Isabelle Hazel.

(

Not pictured:

Deputy Director of Member Services, Benefits and Events

Kristy Pomes, Membership Services Assistant Margaux Henderson.)

Former Secretary of State Gen. Colin Powell addresses attendees of AFSA’s

90th Anniversary Gala Dinner held in the Benjamin Franklin State Dining

Room in May 2014.