Calumet City Fire Department Pension Board
purpose
Pursuant to Article 4 of the Illinois Pension Code, the City of Calumet City is required to establish and administer a firefighters' pension fund for the benefit of the city's firefighters and of the firefighters' surviving spouses, children and certain other dependents. The Firefighters' Pension Board is a five member board that is created by Section 4-121 of the Pension Code and is charged by law with controlling and managing the Firefighters' Pension Fund. The Firefighters' Pension Fund derives its funds primarily from property taxes and firefighter contributions.
Meetings
Meetings of the Calumet City Firefighters' Pension Board are held quarterly in the conference room at Fire Station 11, 684 Wentworth Ave, Calumet City IL 60409. Disability and Special meetings are only held as necessary. The regularly scheduled meeting dates for 2020 are: January 10, 2020. April 17, 2020. July 10, 2020 and October 9, 2020 all at 9:30am unless noted.
AGENDAs & MINUTES
Agendas are available prior to the meetings. All agendas are posted at City Hall and at both Fire Stations in accordance with the Open Meeting Act. Minutes are available following member approval. We will try to keep the Agenda & Minutes page up to date and current.
board members
Terms of office are staggered, and appointments shall be for three years.
The fire pension fund of Calumet City shall be administered by a board of trustees consisting of five members: two members of the board shall be appointed by the Mayor; two members shall be active participants of the pension fund who are elected from the active participants; one member of the board shall be a person who is retired from the fire department and shall be elected from the current retirees. All retirees are eligible for nomination. All Article 4 Pension Trustees elected or appointed AFTER August 13, 2009 are required to attend a 32-hour trustee certification course within 18 months of election or appointment to the board.
Glenn Van sipma –
president
Glenn Van Sipma is currently an engineer with Calumet City Fire. He has been with the department since 1997 after serving for more than 10 years with South Holland Fire. He has been on the Pension Board since 2003, holding positions of trustee, Secretary, and now President. Glenn is also a Certified Trustee with IPPFA.
Glenn attended Benedictine University with a First Responder grant and has owned and operated Climb On Rock Gym for more than 20 years.
Dave Neibert –
secretary
Dave Neibert entered the fire service in 1996. Currently holding the rank of Lieutenant, he has been a member of the Calumet City Fire Department since 2004. He has served as an elected “active” member of the board of trustees for the Firefighters’ pension fund since 2013 as the Board Secretary.
Dave graduated from Eastern Kentucky University with a B.S. in Fire & Safety Engineering Technology. He proudly lives in the south suburbs with his wife and three sons.
Dave firmly believes in the protection of what was promised to all past and present pension fund members, spouses and their dependents.
Dennis Dybowski –
retiree
Dennis Dybowski served on the department from 1978 until 2000, retiring as a chief. He is currently the Retired Member on the Pension Board since 2015. He has also served as an active member on the Board during his years on the department. Dennis enjoys traveling, photography and golfing. He currently lives with his wife Kathy in Crown Point, Indiana.
nyota Figgs –
Mayoral Appointee
A City Clerk is a public official whose principal duties include keeping records or accounts for the municipality and other duties prescribed by the law. The position is central to government transparency because the clerk is responsible for keeping and making official records and legislation accessible to city residents.
The City Clerk is one of the only three-city-wide elected positions along with Mayor and Treasurer. The Office of the City Clerk is the most visited office in Calumet City.
Gerry Tarka –
Mayoral ApPointee
Gerry Tarka has served our community in many ways. He is currently the Treasurer of Calumet City and has been elected to that position two (3) times. He was the 5th Ward Alderman and was voted into that post three (3) times. Gerry has served as Chairman of the Zoning Board of Appeals, Precinct Captain and Area Leader in the Thornton Township Democratic Organization and a member of the St. Andrew the Apostle School Board. Gerry was also Chairman of the St. Andrew the Apostle Doughnut Dance for thirteen (13) years. During his tenure as Chairman the event raised over $100,000 for the church.
Gerry Tarka is a graduate of DePaul University