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HP/AGILENT ALUMNI CLUB NEWSLETTER HP/AGILENT ALUMNI CLUB MINUTES – 6/2/2009 The June 2, 2009 meeting of the HP/Agilent Alumni Club was called to order at 1:35 pm by President Joetta Hoewisch. The minutes for the last meeting, as published in the newsletter, were approved as written and filed. Treasurer Laura Mattison report was filed. There were 44 attendees. They are: Mary Lou and Les Bailey, Pat Bestgen, Donna Biddle, George Blinn, Linda Boettcher, Claudia and Roger Christiansen, Bonda Craddock, Stan Farr, Harry Feldman, John Favinger, Lois Green, Don Griffith, Juanita Hartman, Lela Havens, Joetta Hoewisch, Stan Jones, Carol Kibel, Patricia Korenke, Bennie McCardle, Wanda and Gerry McGonigle, Laura Mattison, John Meredith, Cheri and Doug Moloney, Ken Nichols, Barbara Parsons, Billie Lou and Jim Philp, Cecil Ray, Gary Roberson, Pat Romero, Mark Smith, Greg Tarcza, Joe Tighe, Joe Trujillo, John Tulloch, Helen Von Gunden, Randy Walters, Niles Whalen, Gerry White and Laura Winter. Visitors and Visiting Members: Bonda Craddock retired in 1992 after working for HP for 25 years. Member Billie Lou Philp and her husband Jim were visiting from their home in Lake Havasu City, Arizona. Billie worked for HP/Agilent for 35 years before retiring. June Birthdays:
June Anniversaries:
In Memoriam: Jeffrey Meyer, son of HP retiree Steve Meyer, died of sudden, as yet unexplained, cardiac arrest while working at Foolish Craig’s in Boulder on May 30. Our condolences to Steve and his family. James Benjamin, 80, passed away on Tuesday, May 26th. Jim retired from Hewlett Packard after 22 years of service. We send our sympathies to his six children, 20 grandchildren and 32 great-grandchildren.
Announcement Correction:
Program: Darian Andreson, President of
Senior Tax Advisory Group, Inc. Darian addressed ways to minimize taxes and ensure growth without increasing income. He told attendees that his firm charges only $49.95 for tax preparation. This low cost service is available to anyone over the age of 50. Here is a sample of the information Darian provided to attendees: “What makes Senior Tax Advisory Group different? I can answer that by asking you three questions:
If they don’t communicate with each other, the person who gets caught in the middle is you! We combine these two services, the preparation of taxes and financial advice. “The biggest fear for retirees is outliving their money. People have worked 30-40 years to accumulate a retirement nest egg. Like a bad haircut, bad market conditions take a long time to recover. Our goal is to help you hedge inflation to protect your investment. Today, CDs (Certificates of Deposit) are more like ‘Certificates of Depreciation.’” Darian spoke about fixed annuities and their benefits over variable annuities, CDs and mutual funds. He reminded people that social security started on August 14, 1935 by President Franklin Roosevelt who promised we would never pay taxes on it. Now people above the following limits are essentially being double taxed on their social security wages: “The percentage of double taxation for people making more than $25,000 is 50%, and over $34,000 of income that increases to 85%. For married couples the levels are $32,000 and $44,000. “Spencer Gresham, an elder law attorney endorsed by AARP, works in our office and is available to our clients. “Many people don’t realize that they can convert life insurance policies older than 10 years into larger policies. We are happy to help with this process. Also, there are many alternatives to long care insurance that we can help you research.” At the conclusion of his talk, Darian and Kathy asked which employee had the longest years of service. George Blinn won with 39 years and 11 months. Lela Havens came in second with her 39 years and 7 months of service. George won a gift certificate. A drawing was held and four other people also won gift certificates in the amount of $25. They were: Laura Winter, Laura Mattison, Stan Farr, and John Favinger. Darian invited attendees to complete a form circling a topic if they wanted more information. The topics were: Income Taxes, CD’s, Long Term Care, Fixed Annuity, Increase Spendable Income, Equity Index Annuity, Multi-Choice Annuity Index, Life Insurance, Variable Annuity, IRA Annuity, Estate Conservation, and Living Trust or Will Kit. Attendees are welcome to come in for a free tax saving one-hour appointment at 1901 North Union Boulevard, Suite 104. Darian welcomes calls at 719-596-4844. Attendees applauded Darian for his energetic and informative presentation. ANNOUNCEMENTS Joetta announced that the HP/Agilent Alumni Club Board, consisting of President Joetta Hoewisch, Vice-President Mark Smith, Secretary Lois Green, and Treasurer Laura Mattison, are submitting a motion that club funds be used for the cost of printing and mailing monthly newsletters at the approximate cost of $70.00 per month through the end of 2009. A paper ballot will be distributed to current members in attendance. The vote will be counted by the treasurer. Results will be announced before the close of business. If the vote is positive, the issue will be resolved. If it is negative, an alternate motion will be entertained at the July meeting. Mark Smith then passed out ballots to current members to vote on the following motion: We, the board members of the HP/Agilent Alumni Club, move that club funds be used for the cost of printing and mailing monthly newsletters, at the approximate cost of $70.00 per month, to extend through the end of 2009. The final vote was: 26 = Yes, I approve the motion; 11 = No, I oppose the motion; and 3 = I abstain from voting. The motion passed by majority vote. Joetta also announced that we will vote in September to increase the membership dues for 2010, which involves a change to the bylaws and, therefore, requires a two-thirds majority vote of members present. Treasurer Laura Mattison will accept donations from anyone who wishes to contribute to the cost of printing and stamps. Laura will have a jar at each meeting for donations. Aquarium Trip NOTE: Unfortunately, the Aquairum Trip has been canceled due to insufficient participation. Newsletter Delivery Method August 4, 2009 Annual Picnic Site September Appreciation Program for
Senior Center Great American Bake Sale – July 7, 2009 Members who wish to bring items for the bake sale are welcome and encouraged to do so. Lois will hold a “Getting Ready for the Bake Sale” party at her house on Monday, July 6th from 9 am until 2 pm for anyone who wishes to attend. Please contact Lois at 481-3921 or LoisGreen3921@aol.com for directions to her home in Monument. For more information on this project, you can go to the GreatAmericanBakeSale.org website. To donate to the HP/Agilent Alumni Bake Sale, or to chart our progress, use our identification number 45154. Regular Monthly Meeting Events
Door Prizes: Winning five Lotto tickets each were Wanda McGonigle and Laura Winter. Wanda reported later that one of the lotto tickets was a $2 winner. Thank You! The greeter for July is Joe Trujillo. Lois Green will provide the refreshments. The meeting was adjourned at 2:48 pm. Our next meeting will be held July 7th. JOHN SUTHERS TO SPEAK IN JULY Colorado Attorney General John Suthers will speak at our next meeting about his book: Reflections of a Criminal Prosecutor " No Higher Calling, No Greater Responsibility: A Prosecutor Makes His Case " As Attorney General, he represents and defends the interests of the People of the State of Colorado and is chief legal counsel and advisor to state government and its many state agencies, boards and commissions. WELCOME TO OUR NEWEST MEMBERS Please welcome new member Don Conley, and his wife, Megan. He says he is in the category of Alumni rather than Retiree. He started with HP in 1996 and departed Agilent through WFM in April of 2009, not so very long ago. He was a Systems Administrator for Technical Computing. They worked directly for the Scopes and Logic teams. In 2005 they moved under IT. Many of the engineers in Scopes and Logic knew him as the voice of IT for them. Don and Megan have two young children, a boy and a girl, and are kept quite busy caring for them. Don also enjoys hiking. Another new member is Paul Goble, who is married to Rogene. Paul enjoys photography, walking in the mountains, church activities, playing the violin and recorder, as well as visiting libraries. It sounds like he keeps quite busy. We are delighted to have Don and Paul as our newest members. We now have 196 paid up members in the HP/Agilent Alumni Club. DONATIONS TOWARD NEWSLETTER EXPENSES A great big "THANK YOU" goes to all of the members who donated money to the club to offset the cost of mailing out newsletters to those members who do not have a computer and/or email. We were given a total of $69.00 in the jar or by mail. Folks, that will pay for one month of mailing out the newsletter! GREETER & REFRESHMENT LIST
GREETER
REFRESHMENTS
THANK YOU FROM STAMP CAMP Dear HP/Agilent Alumni Club, This letter is to thank you for your recent contribution of 14 1/2 ounces assorted stamps for our Stamp Camp USA Program. As a tax-deductible 501c3 non-profit organization that teaches children using world-wide postage stamps, we rely upon the generosity of friends such as you to help make our program possible, as well as affordable for the children we serve. Sincerely, NEWS FROM ADDISION AVENUE
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AQUARIUM TRIP
CANCELED
JUST FOR LAUGHS
The Young
Bagpiper As I was not familiar with the backwoods area, I became lost; and being a typical male did not stop for directions. I finally arrived an hour late. I saw the backhoe and the crew, who were eating lunch, but the hearse was nowhere in sight. I apologized to the workers for my tardiness, and stepped to the side of the open grave, where I saw the vault lid already in place. I assured the workers that I would not hold them up for long, but this was the proper thing to do. The workers gathered around, still eating their lunch. I played out my heart and soul. As I played the workers began to weep. I played, and I played, like I'd never played before: From 'My Home' and 'The Lord is my Shepherd' to 'Flowers of the Forest'. I closed the lengthy session with 'Amazing Grace' and walked to my car. As I was opening the door and taking off my coat, I overheard one of the workers saying to another, "Jeezuz, Mary'n Joseph, I never seen nothin' like that before - and I've been putting in septic tanks for twenty years." Kids in Church 3-year-old Reese: "Our Father, Who does art in heaven, Harold is His name. Amen." A little boy was overheard praying: "Lord, if you can't make me a better boy, don't worry about it. I'm having a real good time like I am." After the christening of his baby brother in church, Jason sobbed all the way home in the back seat of the car. His father asked him three times what was wrong. Finally, the boy replied, "That preacher said he wanted us brought up in a Christian home, and I wanted to stay with you guys." A Sunday school teacher asked her children as they were on the way to church service, "And why is it necessary to be quiet in church?" One bright little girl replied, "Because people are sleeping." A father was at the beach with his children when the four-year-old son ran up to him, grabbed his hand, and led him to the shore where a seagull lay dead in the sand. "Daddy, what happened to him?" the son asked. "He died and went to Heaven," the Dad replied. The boy thought a moment and then said, "Did God throw him back down?" A wife invited some people to dinner. At the table, she turned to their six-year-old daughter and said, "Would you like to say the blessing?" "I wouldn't know what to say," the girl replied. "Just say what you hear Mommy say," the wife answered. The daughter bowed her head and said, "Lord, why on earth did I invite all these people to dinner?" The Rewards of a Healthy Lifestyle The couple was 85 years old, and had been married for sixty years. Though they were far from rich, they managed to get by because they watched their pennies. Though not young, they were both in very good health, largely due to the wife's insistence on healthy foods and exercise for the last decade. One day, their good health didn't help when they went on a rare vacation and their plane crashed, sending them off to Heaven. They reached the pearly gates, and St. Peter escorted them inside. He took them to a beautiful mansion, furnished in gold and fine silks, with a fully stocked kitchen and a waterfall in the master bath. A maid could be seen hanging their favorite clothes in the closet. They gasped in astonishment when he said, "Welcome to Heaven. This will be your home now." The old man asked Peter how much all this was going to cost. "Why nothing," Peter replied, "remember, this is your reward in Heaven." The old man looked out the window and right there he saw a championship golf course, finer and more beautiful than any ever built on Earth. "What are the greens fees?" grumbled the old man. "This is heaven," St. Peter replied. "You can play for free, every day." Next they went to the clubhouse and saw the lavish buffet lunch, with every imaginable cuisine laid out before them, from seafood to steaks to exotic deserts, free flowing beverages. "Don't even ask," said St. Peter to the man. "This is Heaven, it is all free for you to enjoy." The old man looked around and glanced nervously at his wife. "Well, where are the low fat and low cholesterol foods, and the decaffeinated tea?" he asked. "That's the best part," St. Peter replied. "You can eat and drink as much as you like of whatever you like, and you will never get fat or sick. This IS Heaven?" The old man pushed, "No gym to work out at?" "Not unless you want to," was the answer. "No testing my sugar or blood pressure or..." "Never again. All you do here is enjoy yourself." The old man glared at his wife and said, "You and your bran muffins. We could have been here ten years ago!" What Love Means A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds, 'What does love mean?' The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined. See what you think. 'When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.' Billy - age 4 'Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.' Karl - age 5 'Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.' Chrissy - age 6 'Love is what makes you smile when you're tired.' Terri - age 4 'Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.' Danny - age 7 'Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss.' Emily - age 8 'Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.' Bobby - age 7 (Wow!) 'If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate.' Nikka - age 6 (we need a few million more Nikka's on this planet) 'Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt; then he wears it everyday.' Noelle - age 7 'Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.' Tommy - age 6 'During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore.' Cindy - age 8 'My mommy loves me more than anybody. You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.' Clare - age 6 'Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.' Elaine-age 5 'Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Brad Pitt.' Chris - age 7 'Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.' Mary Ann - age 4 'I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.' Lauren - age 4 'When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love.' Rebecca- age 8 'When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.' (what an image) Karen - age 7 'Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross.' Mark - age 6 'You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.' Jessica - age 8 And the final one: The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, 'Nothing, I just helped him cry.' Senior Romance A couple was married for umpteen years and normally each went to sleep early, but this evening the wife was in a romantic mood and wanted to talk and............ The husband wanted to sleep, but she said "you used to hold my hand when we were courting." Wearily he reached across, held her hand for a second and then tried to get back to sleep. A few moments later she said, "Then you used to kiss me." Mildly irritated, he reached across, gave her a peck on the cheek and settled down to sleep. Thirty seconds later she said: "Then you used to bite my neck" Angrily, he threw back the bed clothes and got out of bed. "Where are you going?" she asked? "To get my teeth!" SEE YOU AT OUR NEXT MEETING TUESDAY, JULY 7TH |