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Message: Here's a great article I found at www.northwestnavigator.com: -- In the presence of friends and co-workers, Disbursing Clerk 1st Class (AW) William Keiffer Jr., retired from the Navy after completing 20 years of faithful service Dec. 1. Keiffer joined the Navy in April 1984 because he wanted to do something that would help him personally and professionally. “I joined the Navy because I didn’t want to go to college, but I wanted guidance and structure. The Navy seemed like the best route to go, and that proved to be true early on in my career,” said Keiffer. After graduating from basic training in June 2004 in Orlando Fla., Keiffer attended Disbursing Clerk “A” school as well as several Disbursing Clerk “C” schools. His shore assignments include: Personnel Support Detachment (PSD) North Island, Calif., PSD. Guam, Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ) 134 and 128 and PSA Det. Bangor, Wash. His sea assignments include: USS Saipan (LHA 2) and USS Durham (LKA 114). Even though his days of moving from one command to another are now over, Keiffer will always hold the last 20 years near and dear to him. “It’s going to be something that I will miss because I’ve had a lot of great experiences that I will never forget,” said Keiffer. “Some of the things I will always remember are meeting my wife, the births of my children, making the rank of first class petty officer and earning my enlisted aviation warfare specialist pin.” Amidst all of those accomplishments, Keiffer says that it’s the friends he’s made along the way that will always hold a special place in his heart. “The camaraderie in the Navy has simply been fantastic. Every place I’ve worked I’ve had a good time, and it made the tour enjoyable as well as memorable. The friendships I’ve made will continue on for years to come,” said Keiffer. And for those who have worked with him at one time or another, will definitely miss his spunky personality, hard charging attitude and willingness to help get the answers a Sailor needs about their pay. “DK1 Keiffer is the most helpful customer service representative that I’ve ever met. I have been stationed several locations with him, and I’d rather go to him than anyone else for help,” said Chief Boatswain Mate (SW/AW) Jill Ray. “He’s simply the best because of his uncanny ability to immediately set his customer’s mind at ease about the situation at hand. By doing that, he shows people that no problem is too big for him to handle and that he will go the distance to get the situation taken care of in the shortest amount of time. His kindness, warm smile and words of encouragement make him a pleasure to be around. I will truly miss having the luxury of having him handle my business at PSD,” said Ray. According to Senior Chief Personnelman (SW/AW) William Farley, Transients/Separations department head at PSD Bangor, working with Keiffer has been an awesome experience. “DK1 Keiffer is absolutely one of the most conscientious disbursing clerks I’ve ever known in terms of his desire to help Sailors with their pay. He truly enjoys being able to help shipmates understand how the Navy’s pay system works and also loves attacking problem cases, solving them, and making sure his customers’ pay accounts are fixed. He will definitely be missed,” said Farley. As for retirement, Keiffer hopes to catch up on some much needed personal time with his wife Tamara of 14 years, his children Matthew, 14, Brendon, 12, and working at the Choteau Youth Ranch in Montana where he will be mentoring and counseling troubled teens. http://www.northwestnavigator.com/index.php/navigator/regionalnews/keiffer_retires_from_the_navy/
