Honoring A 105-Year-Old Retired Phoenix Firefighter

At St. Joseph the Worker, we are accustomed to inspirational stories of resilience, perseverance and community leadership. We appreciate these stories and their value, especially when they are employment related, even when they originate outside our organization’s walls. 

I sit on the Board of the Arizona Public Safety Personnel Retirement System (PSPRS), the second largest public pension plan in Arizona serving 60,000 active and retired police officers, firefighters, corrections officers, judges and elected officials.

During our recent board meeting, we honored Benny Ashley who is celebrating his 105th birthday. He is the oldest retiree in the entire system and the oldest living retired firefighter in Arizona. Benny started with the Phoenix Fire Department in 1942 and served Navy tours in World War II and the Korean War. His legacy includes his involvement in lobbying the state legislature in 1968 to create PSPRS, a single state agency providing pension benefits to our first responders.

We honored Benny. However, it was an honor for me to participate. It’s an honor for me to share his story. To learn more about Benny, please click here.

In addition to his role as COO/Acting CEO at St. Joseph the Worker, Dean Scheinert is a member of the Phoenix Business and Workforce Development Board, and chairs the Governance Committee and sits on the Investment Committee for the Arizona Public Safety Personnel Retirement System – the second largest public pension plan in Arizona. He holds an MBA from The Wharton School.

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