Have a Great Halloween

Hope your day is filled with treats rather than tricks. Have a good one!

Pretty intricate carving job on this pumpkin don't you think? I can't claim any credit, but the designer did a lot of work.

The answer to the senior's memory test quiz #19 is Smile: You're on Candid Camera.

And the last question is:

20. What do M&M's do?

    A. Make your tummy happy
    B. Melt in your mouth, not in your pocket
    C. Make you fat
    D. Melt your heart
    E. Make you popular
    F. Melt in your mouth, not in your hand
    G. Come in colors

It Was a Really Big Cheeseburger!

Here are a couple of other photos from the IEAFCS KY/W.VA. trip. This cheeseburger was on the menu at the Marshall University Hall of Fame.

And some members of the group gave it a try. I'm sure it was delicious!

Thanks to Martha Speir for the photos.

To get back to our memory test for seniors--the answer to question 18 was: I'm strong to the finish because--I eats me spinach.

Here's the next one:

19. When it's least expected, you're elected, you're the star today...

    A. Smile, you're on Candid Camera
    B.. Smile, you're on Star Search
    C. Smile, you won the lottery
    D. Smile, we're watching you
    E. Smile, the world sees you
    F. Smile, you're a hit
    G. Smile, you're on TV

It Was a Good Time!

Here is the group of IEAFCS Life Members and friends who were on the recent Kentucky/West Virginia trip. Looks like everyone was having a good time.

Thanks again to Carol Schlitt for all her efforts in planning and leading this latest expedition. There will be more. Watch this blog for details on a possible spring outing.

Southern Illinois Extension Retirees Event

 University of Illinois Extension retirees met at Giant City Lodge near Makanda this past week. A delicious friend chicken lunch and much good fellowship were enjoyed by all.

Extension retirees pictured are Bob Walker, Rusti Grogan, Curt Eisenmeier, Joy Richey, Larry Casey, Les Rogers, Charlie Willman, Harold Hunzicker, and Glenn Sons. Ed Billingsley also attended.

Spouses and friends who were present included Stella Pryor, Sharon Eisenmeier, Jane Casey, and Donna Sons.

Thanks to Bob Walker for all his efforts in organizing this event.

Some Photos from KY/West VA Trip

 They tell me there was every type of hot dog imaginable, and that they were delicious!

Fall colors were just beginning to peak.

Quite a bridge and wonderful scenery!

We are still waiting on a group photo.

There Will Be a COLA for 2012!

Here's some good news from NARFE.

Federal Retirement Annuities to Increase through Cost of Living Adjustment

Federal retirees will receive a cost of living adjustment (COLA) to their civil service annuities beginning in January 2012.  Retirees in the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) will receive a 3.6 percent increase to their annuities, while retirees in the Federal Employee Retirement System (FERS) will receive a 2.6 percent increase to their annuities.

To trigger a COLA for 2012, the average CPI-W for the months of July, August, and September of 2011 needed to rise above the 2008 average for those same months, the last measurement to trigger a COLA (for 2009).  It did, by 3.6 percent.  While CSRS retirees receive the full amount of the CPI-W increase as a COLA, current law reduces the FERS COLA by 1 percentage point for increases above 3 percent.

Because the CPI-W showed declining prices from 2008 to 2009, and while it showed prices increasing between 2009 and 2010, it did not show prices increasing back to 2008 levels, there has not been a COLA for the last two years.  But finally, we have some good news for 2012!

Under current law, COLAs for federal retirement annuities, as well as for military retiree annuities and social security payments, are determined in reference to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), which is calculated by economists and statisticians with the Bureau of Labor Statistics.  The CPI-W is the current index used for measuring increases in the prices of consumer goods throughout the economy.  It includes prices on all consumer goods, including food and beverages, housing, clothing, transportation, medical care, recreation, education and communication, and more.  

      

The new CPI-W figure for September 2011 was 223.688.  The average CPI-W for the third-quarter of 2011 was 223.233.  This is the new reference figure for determining the 2013 COLA.

NARFE continues to support strong COLAs based on fair assessments of increases in consumer prices to protect the value of federal annuities from inflation.

Best regards,

NARFE Legislative Staff

Condolences to the family of Margaret Esposito

NORMAL — Margaret L. Esposito, 88, of Normal died at 7:30 p.m. Friday (Oct. 14, 2011) at her residence in Normal.

Her funeral Mass will be at 11:30 a.m. Thursday at Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Bloomington. Monsignor Doug Hennessy and Father Carl Lopresti will officiate. Burial will be in Park Hill Cemetery, Bloomington. 

Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at the Beck Memorial Home, Bloomington, with a prayer service at 8 p.m. and one hour prior to the service at the church on Thursday.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorials may be made to Poulton-Mitchell Scholarship Fund at Heartland Community College, Normal; The Salvation Army, Bloomington; the Community Cancer Center, Normal; and the Humane Society of Central Illinois.

Margaret was born July 5, 1923, in Bloomington, the daughter of Charles A. and Gladys L. Mitchell Poulton. She married Santine Esposito on Oct. 17, 1942, in Fort Worth, Texas. He died in May 1960.

She is survived by one daughter, Linda K. Lambrecht, Normal; one son, Stephen A. (Judith) Esposito, Normal; several grandchildren and great-grandchildren; and Kate Barr, a special family friend and helper.

She was preceded in death by parents and her two brothers, Winston and Raymond Poulton.

Margaret received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Illinois State University, Normal. She was the Extension Adviser Home Economics for the McLean County Extension Service from 1962 until her retirement in 1992. She authored the book “Places of Pride,” which was a pictorial history of the founding of Extension in McLean County.

Margaret was a founding board of trustees member from 1991-2003 at Heartland Community College, Normal. She was a longtime Salvation Army board member. In 1990, she received the Women of Distinction Award in McLean County. She hosted the McLean County Home Extension Program on WJBC Radio for many years.

Margaret was an avid supporter and contributor to the history of McLean County through her association with such organizations as McLean County Historical Society and the David Davis Mansion. She was a member and officeholder of multiple professional associations and honorary societies. Margaret was a member of Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Bloomington.

Bus Trip Begins Tomorrow

Eighteen IEAFCS Life Members and Friends will be enjoying lots of fall scenery and special places to visit in the next four days. The group will tour a glass factory, candy company, heritage farm, take a scenic train trip, and eat at several special restaurants in Kentucky and West Virginia. It will be a fun trip, and there will be photos to share later.

Here is another quiz question for our memory test.

I'm strong to the finish...

    A. Cause I eats my broccoli
    B. Cause I eats me spinach
    C. Cause I lift weights
    D. Cause I'm the hero
    E. And don't you forget it
    F. Cause Olive Oyl loves me
    G. To outlast Bruto

Extension Retirees to Gather at Giant City

U of I Extension Retirees, spouses, and friends are invited to meet for a fried chicken lunch on Friday, October 21st at 11:00 a.m. Giant City State Park Lodge near Makanda is known for its fried chicken.

The meal will be served family style and will cost $15.90. This includes drink, tax, and gratuity. If you want dessert, it will be extra.

Please let Bob Walker know by October 15th if you plan to attend. His e-mail is rwalker@wabash.net. Telephone number is 618-854-2442. Bob has asked that you be prepared to make a short report on an item or activity that you believe will be of interest to the group. He will also accept a short report to be read to the group if you are unable to be present. His address is Route #2, Box 128B, Cisne, IL 62823.

Don't miss an enjoyable day and the beautiful fall colors at Giant City!

Possible Good News from NARFE!

Here is some preliminary information on a possible cost of living increase for Federal Retirees this year. I believe the final figures will be available in a couple of weeks.
 
Federal retirees could receive COLA boost for first time since 2008

By Kellie Lunney klunney@govexec.com September 30, 2011

 

Federal retirees likely will receive a cost-of-living adjustment in December for the first time since 2008 -- a fact largely lost in the current debate over proposals targeting federal pay and benefits.

The COLA for federal retirees and Social Security and Supplemental Security Income recipients could be nearly 4 percent as of Dec. 1, based on the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Consumer Price Index, a measure of the average change over time in the prices urban consumers pay for goods and services, rose 3.8 percent between August 2010 and August 2011, largely due to an increase in gasoline and food prices. COLAs are determined based on the CPI-W, a formula that takes into account increases in the CPI for urban wage earners and clerical workers.

The government publishes the annual cost-of-living adjustments typically in late October, based on the percentage increase (if any) in the average CPI-W for the third quarter of the current year over the average for the third quarter of the last year in which a COLA became effective. There hasn't been a COLA increase since 2008, when it rose 5.8 percent. This year's increase, if there is one, will take effect on Dec. 1, and will be reflected in retirees' first annuity payments in January 2012.

The increase will take effect automatically, unless Congress opts to block it through legislation. Observers don't think that will happen. "It's unlikely that Congress will block the COLA in December for federal and postal retirees and others who are eligible," said Bruce Moyer, chairman of the Federal-Postal Coalition, a group of federal employee and retiree organizations. "Despite the budget climate, election year politics will likely prevent that from happening."

Some lawmakers favor switching to what's known as the "chained CPI" formula to determine COLAs for federal retirees and Social Security beneficiaries. It is viewed as a more accurate measure of how people substitute one item for another in the face of a price increase. The result would be lower COLAs over time. Many federal employee groups, including the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association, are concerned the joint congressional committee on deficit reduction will include such a recommendation in its legislative package.

"While we are pleased that Social Security beneficiaries and federal civilian and military retirees will finally receive needed inflation protection after a two-year absence, we know that the outlays required to offer COLAs paints a target on the backs of older Americans living on fixed incomes," said Daniel Adcock, NARFE's legislative director. "We fear that some lawmakers will use the payment of a reasonable COLA next year as an excuse to cut our future inflation protection."

President Obama in late September released a deficit reduction plan that proposes raising federal employees' pension contribution level beginning in 2013. Civilian employees already are working under a two-year pay freeze, and Office of Management and Budget Director Jack Lew has not ruled out the possibility that the government workforce will be called upon to sacrifice further in the name of fiscal belt-tightening.

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I wonder, wonder, who?    

It's been several days since we answered question #17 on our senior citizens memory test. 
The answer is "Who wrote the book of love." 


Three more questions to go. We'll get back to those soon.