CANDOER Retirement Group

CANDOER is an acronym for Communicators AND Others Enjoying Retirement. The name was derived from the CANDO attitude of the OC days of Department of State Telecomm.

Historical Background of the CANDOER Retirement Group

Shortly after retiring on May 2, 1994, I received a call from Lionel "Babe" Martin requesting we meet for lunch. On July 28, 1994, Babe and I met for lunch at Chi Chi's Mexican Restaurant in Springfield, Virginia. During lunch we discussed the fact that during our 35+ years of government service we worked with a lot of people who, once they retired, seemed to disappear from the face of the earth until we received a call or read somewhere they were seriously ill or had died. We both agreed we did not want to lose track of the many people we had worked with. Babe suggested the next time we meet for lunch we invite other retirees. The first meeting of the CANDOER Retirement Group occurred as a result of Babe's suggestion.

The first luncheon using the name of the CANDOER Retirement Group, was held on February 21, 1995. Seven people attended this luncheon. At the luncheon we discussed how often we would meet, time of day, where, etc. We all agreed the luncheons would be held on the second Tuesday of each month, at 11:30 a.m. We asked those that attended to invite other retirees that they had kept in contact with.

At the October 1995 luncheon, a member suggested that a newsletter be started that would keep members, not able to attend luncheons, informed of what was going on. From this suggestion, the CANDOER News was born. The first copy was distributed at the December 1995 luncheon. The first Directory of Members of the CANDOER Retirement Group was issued on November 22, 1996.

In February 1999, the CANDOER Web site was completed and ready for members to view on a free site, GeoCities.com. On March 19, 2007 the domain candoer.org was registered and the web site was moved to a paid provider, GoDaddy.

The CANDOER News monthly publication was suspended with issue 70 on August 27, 2001. At the time of the suspension 147 hard copies were being mailed to members and 120 other members were viewing it on the web site.

On April 15, 2007, the CANDOER News re started publication as a quarterly newsletter that is published on the web site only. No Hard Copy distribution was made. Due to health reasons, I discontinued publication of the Newsletter with the 115th issue, April 2018.

We celebrate our 29th Anniversary on February 21, 2024.

At this time we have approximately 750 members ((400 retirees and their spouses)) of which 398 have e-mail capabilities.

Purpose and Objective

The purpose of the CANDOER Retirement Group is to promote a continuing interest among members in the enjoyment of each other and to hold monthly luncheons for members and guests.

Membership Requirements

Membership in the Retirement Group shall be open to anyone who has previously worked for, or with, or now works for, or with, the Department of State, Office of Diplomatic Communications (DC), Office of Communications (OC), Office of Information Management (IM), and/or Bureau of Information Resource Management (IRM). All member's spouses are automatically members and are encouraged to attend luncheons. Retirees of other agencies or countries, who meet the above requirements, are welcome to join and attend luncheons.

Dues

There are no annual dues, to attend luncheons or join the group.

The CANDOER Retirement Group shall be a nonprofit, informal organization. All donated funds shall be used for Web Site domain registration and for a paid provider.

On occasion, I may ask members to send me a small donation. Your donation will be used strictly for Web site support. Your contribution will be voluntary and will not in any way effect your status as a member if you do not contribute.