Retirees - Dave

DAVE JACOBSEN

FLORIDA

For Tallahassee resident Dave Jacobsen, being an AFSCME retiree means staying politically engaged and getting the word out about worker-friendly candidates. Politics has been part of Jacobsen’s life for decades. In 1988, when Michael Dukakis was running for president, Jacobsen recalled, “I was about to move to Washington to work in his administration.” Instead, when the opportunity arose to move to Florida from Ohio to work for the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, Jacobsen and his family took a chance. That decision proved to be “one of the most fulfilling efforts of my career.”

To win, you've got to canvass.

Dave Jacobsen (right) phone banking Photo Credit: AFSCME Florida

As a public information officer, Jacobsen’s job was to share information and educate the public about the dangers of drunk driving, about the importance of buckling up and wearing a bike helmet. The work he did saved lives. When he retired in 2011, Jacobsen, who’d remained active in his local Democratic Party and as president of the Democratic Club of North Florida, was recruited to establish an AFSCME Retiree subchapter in Northwest Florida. Though he hadn’t been an AFSCME member during his working years, Jacobsen said the chance to work with AFSCME Retirees represented “everything I believe in.”

Now, the 75-year-old is president of the Florida AFSCME Retiree Chapter 79 as well as president of Northwest Florida Subchapter 43. Jacobsen remains driven to get the word out about candidates who are allies of workers; about protecting Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and pensions; and about issues that matter to working families. “My No. 1 political priority is to get out and canvass,” said Jacobsen. “To win, you’ve got to canvass. Even though some of our members can’t go out and knock on doors anymore, we can still make phone calls and write postcards. I know we’re getting our job done when one of our retirees, during a recent phone bank, shouted that it was so loud she couldn’t hear the person on the other line.”

Dave’s story is part of a longer series about how AFSCME Retirees fought for the rights and freedoms we enjoy today. They share their lessons for younger generations.

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“My No. 1 political priority is to get out and canvass. Even though some of our members can’t go out and knock on doors anymore, we can still make phone calls and write postcards.”

Dave Jacobsen (second from right) lobbies on Capitol Hill Photo Credit: AFSCME Retirees

To win, you've

SEE ALL THE STORIES »

Dave’s story is part of a longer series about how AFSCME Retirees fought for the rights and freedoms we enjoy today. They share their lessons for younger generations.

Visit www.afscme.org/retirees »

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