About RAFINO
The Retired U.S. Army FINance Organization (RAFINO) is recognized by the IRS as a non-profit organization under Section 501(c) (19) of the IRS Code. RAFINO’s purposes are set forth in detail in its by laws. However, simply stated, its major purposes are: (1) to maintain and distribute a roster of members, (2) to issue a periodic newsletter, (3) to maintain a current web site on the Internet, and (4) conduct periodic reunions (currently biennial):
The officers (elected and appointed) of The RAFINO as follows (you must be logged in to see their email addresses):
- President: COL (RET) Michael D. Kelly
- Vice-President: COL (RET) Michael D. Kelly
- Secretary/Treasurer: COL (RET) Michael D. Kelly
- Assistant Treasurer: LTC (RET) Imre Volgyi
- Vice-President for Membership: COL (RET) Michael D. Kelly
- Vice-President for Reunion: 1SG (RET) John D. Veal, Jr.
- Webmaster/DataMaster: LTC (RET) Richard R Robson, Sr
- Vice-President for Surviving Spouses: COL (RET) Michael D. Kelly
The Mission of The Retired U.S. Army Finance Organization (RAFINO)
- Maintain and periodically distribute a roster to facilitate the continuation of good fellowship among retired members;
- Issue a periodic hard copy newsletter to the members;
- Maintain a current web page on the Internet to provide current information to the members and facilitate the exchange of information between members, with appropriate links for the convenience of members, prospective members, or legitimate researchers, having access to the internet; and
- Conduct periodic reunions.
RAFINO is a fraternal/social Veterans' organization put together and run entirely for the enjoyment of soldiers who spent at least a large part of their Army life as Financial Management soldiers. Every Finance soldier eligible for retirement is eligible for membership in RAFINO. The organization offers a fun way to stay in contact with your friends and renew friendships with those whom you may have lost contact with over the years.
The original By-Laws were unanimously approved by the officers of RAFINO on the 31st of August 1987. The vote was based on mail replies of charter members the great majority of whom approved such formation of this Society and the necessary steps to make it a non-profit veterans organization.
The purposes above may be summarized in one word: fellowship. The two societies come together every two years for a festive reunion. Cities where the reunions have been held in the past include Washington, D.C., Indianapolis, Las Vegas, Ft. Jackson, Orlando, Williamsburg, Branson, Tacoma, San Antonio, Baton Rouge, and in 2018, Albuquerque and . These venues offer a great opportunity to not only visit great spots in the US but, as mentioned above, visit with old friends … and meet some new ones. In addition to the land-based reunions, RAFINO has also sponsored a cruise to different ports of call in the non-reunion years. In addition, there was a Caribbean cruise for 2014 immediately following the 2014 Reunion. One of the proposals for the 2024 reunion is a 7 day New England/Canada cruise.
The 2020 Reunion will be in Charleston, SC. The 2022 Reunion is looking like Indianapolis/Ft Ben Harrison State Park
On 15 October 2016, the previous sister organization, RAFINCO, merged its membership and assets into RAFINO, making the RAFINO the single place for all ranks of retired army finance soldiers.
The organization hosts this web site for its members. The site is maintained by volunteer members and carries news of members and announcements of upcoming events. If you have any non-commercial/political information appropriate to sharing with our members, please feel free to send in your information via this email link .
Click here for Hank Neill's reminiscences on how RAFINO got its start .
Membership Categories: Membership, as defined in our by-laws, is in three categories:
- Active: Such membership requires that the member be in (or nearing) official military service retired status in commissioned, non-commissioned, or warrant officer grade. Active members are authorized to attend meetings and/or vote on all matters.
- Associate: Such membership is available to surviving spouses of deceased Active members. Associate members may vote on Reunion proposals.
- Honorary: Such membership may be granted, upon unanimous vote of the officers of the Society, to a select few persons who have rendered highly singular services to the Organization, and who are deemed by the Organization to be deserving of such recognition.
How to Apply: Application for membership in RAFINO is simple; simply use the online application by clicking on the "Membership" tab in the menu at the top of the page and selecting the "Submit Application" option. Hardcopy membership applications are also available for downloading.
Life Membership: Effective 1 JAN 2017, RAFINO has implemented a new Lifetime dues structure, providing a one-and-done capability for members to take care of their dues responsibilities. This age-based structure uses the following rate table to determine the amount to pay:
| Age | Life Rate |
|---|---|
| less than or equal to 50 | $200.00 |
| 51 to 60 | $150.00 |
| 61 to 70 | $125.00 |
| 71 to 80 | $100.00 |
| 81 to 90 | $75.00 |
| 91 and above | $0.00 |
Annual Dues Rate: $12.00 annual dues are payable January 1st for
all existing members, or immediately upon acceptance of a new member application.
If a new member joins on July 1, or later, they will not be charged for the current calendar year.
Their first $12.00 payment will be applied to the next calendar year beginning January 1.
Dues are requested as close to January 1 as possible, with current year dues being delinquent on March 31.
Dues are payable to the RAFINO Treasurer. at the following address:
You can pay your dues via check to the RAFINO Treasurer, COL (RET) Michael D. Kelly , at RAFINO, 3112 WATERFRONT DR, Chattanooga, TN 37419-1535.
If making dues payments every year is not your cup of tea, consider paying two or more years advance dues, or, even better, consider
Lifetime Option: applying for a Lifetime membership, with an age-based sliding dues scale:
| Age | Life Rate |
|---|---|
| less than or equal to 50 | $200.00 |
| 51 to 60 | $150.00 |
| 61 to 70 | $125.00 |
| 71 to 80 | $100.00 |
| 81 to 90 | $75.00 |
| 91 and above | $0.00 |
The Lifetime and $12.00 annual dues are used to defray the administrative costs associated with the organizational requirements to maintain and periodically distribute a roster and periodic hard copy newsletter, maintain a current webpage on the internet, and purchase office supplies like paper, envelopes, stamps, and the like. The Reunions we conduct every other year are planned to be self-funded, so none of the $12.00 goes towards any of those expenses. All excess earnings are distributed to other IRS approved tax exempt veterans organizations or organizations that support veterans.
If you wish to become a member of RAFINO, please submit an online membership application and , pay dues one or more years.
If you prefer not to use the online membership application, the hard-copy application can be downloaded from this location .
Your webmaster is:
- Robby Robson email: rrrobsonFALSETEETH@gmail.com (take out FALSETEETH to get email address)
CAVEAT
The RAFINO membership addresses, fax and telephone numbers, and Email addresses are solely for the private use of our members. Any other use is prohibited without written permission granted by the RAFINO Officers.