Meet the Officers

Joe Thrash - Secretary-Treasurer

I worked for the State of Texas for 42 years, the last 21 of which were with the Office of the Attorney General. I graduated from the University of Texas Law School in 1976 and had been a law clerk for the Attorney General during school. Shortly after graduating, I went to work for Bob Bullock in the Comptroller’s Office and was there for ten years. After that, I worked for the Governor’s Office, Lieutenant Governor’s Office and a couple of legislatively-created study committees before finally returning to the Attorney General’s Office. When I graduated from law school, I never imagined that I would spend my entire career with the State, but it has been a rewarding career, working on many important projects and working with numerous dedicated and talented men and women.

Sandra D Smith - Recording-Secretary

Sandy Smith is a new board member who was born in Houston and grew up traveling around the world with her Air Force parents.  Her first job with the State of Texas was at the Department of Health as a part-time dental assistant. During her 24 years of state service, she also worked at the Comptroller’s Office, the Texas Education Agency, and the Chiropractic Board.

Sandy believes that a strong union provides us with a voice to advocate for our state retirement benefits. She has a special interest in helping us improve our online presence.

Dick Lavine - Executive Board Member

Dick Lavine was a Senior Researcher at the House Research Organization of the Texas House of Representatives from 1984 to 1994. He is currently the Senior Fiscal Analyst at the Center for Public Policy Priorities, a nonprofit advocating for better state policies for low- and moderate-income Texans. He is a Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Travis Central Appraisal District and a Chartered Financial Analyst. The Equity Center named him the 2011 Champion for Equity for his work to reform our tax system to ensure it can adequately support public education and other public services. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics, magna cum laude, from Harvard College in 1969, and a Doctor of Jurisprudence, cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania in 1975.

Josefina Soto - Executive Board Member

Josefina (Josie) Soto lives in Brownsville. She worked for Brownsville ISD for thirteen years before going to work for State Representative Rene Oliviera. After a four-year stint with Representative Oliviera’s office, she went to work at the Texas State Lottery Commission. After ten years, she retired from that agency. She has been retired for ten years and is a founding board member of this chapter. She and her husband Paulo have traveled to Austin from Brownsville for each of the board meetings over the past year

Joe Seely - Trustee

Joe Seely has lived in Austin since 1976. He retired from the City of Austin, where for most of his career he served as an environmental programs manager for the Austin/Travis County Health and Human Services Department. Joe was a member of AFSCME for the last 17 years of his time with the City of Austin. Joe is the spouse of Peggy Seely and for the past year has been a Trustee for this Chapter.

Veronica Adams - Lead Statewide Organizer

Veronica Adams, is originally from Texas and has been in Union organizing and leadership since 2000. She started with Communication Workers of America (CWA) as a shop steward, Unit Director, and Area Vice President. Also has worked for the Texas State Teachers Association (TSTA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). Her latest experience was with the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE). Her experience working with the public and private sector employees and thoroughly enjoyed each chapter. Veronica shared, “unionism is in her blood and runs deep within her family. Her late father was an IBEW member out of Dallas and patinate to say her father has instilled the same principles and values that we use today to continue our fight for our working-class families.” On behalf of AFSCME Texas Retirees, we welcome Veronica with open arms to the Chapter 12 family, and we’re excited to have her a part of our winning team!