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Jubilación

FALL WORKSHOP CANCELED

by Chéle Logan

The UARA forum, "Caring for Us," scheduled on October 14, was canceled when difficulties arose that precluded the workshop information from reaching the membership in a timely manner. Consequently, registration was low and overall membership interest in this forum could not be assessed. Both speakers (Judith Clinco, Direct Caregiver Association and Darlene Randolph, Energy Intergration) have expressed their desire and willingness to be rescheduled to present to our group. Accordingly, if there is sufficient membership interest in these topics, we could reschedule this forum for a future workshop. Please send an email to Chéle and Bill Logan (chelebill@dakotacom.net) if you would be interested in attending the "Caring for Us" forum at a future time.

CATWALKS SPRING 2005

by Heather Lukach

The University of Arizona Visitor Center invites you to participate in a CatWalks walking tour this spring. This time, there are four dates to choose from!

Tuesday, January 25; Thursday, February 17, Wednesday, April 20, Wednesday, May 4

Not every tour is the same, but all provide guests interaction opportunities with students, faculty participants, and staff. They will share their experiences as you visit classrooms, new facilities, research settings, museums, and other interesting stops. Parking is reserved for CatWalks participants and guests can expect to be on campus for approximately three and one-half hours for a fun and stimulating UA experience. Wear walking shoes and bring a bottle of water.

Arrangements can be made for special accommodations,

if you request them when you RSVP. Sign up by calling 520-884-7516 a minimum of one week before the scheduled tours. You will be asked to provide contact information so that materials can be mailed to you in advance.

CATWALKS - THE EXPERIENCE

by Chéle Logan

Did you know that there are greenhouses on the roof of the Sixth Street garage? Well, there are. They used to be over by the Shantz Building but had to relocate due to the Chemistry Department expansion, and the plants are tickled pink. Why? Because natural light and sunshine are more bountiful from that vantage point, which also makes it nice for their scientist-caretakers' work.

On Tuesday, November 9, the tour group met by the cashier's booth at the Sixth Street garage, and our greenhouse guide from the Agricultural Experimental Station took us up to the roof. We had the privilege of being able to visit these facilities that are accessible only to authorized personnel. Our guide explained biotechnology and genetic engineering, how it has been used in agriculture, its goals and potential benefits in food production, and its effects on the environment.

From there, we went to the Math Building and enjoyed fresh coffee and water while a faculty member explained MAPPS through lecture and visual aids. Math and Parent Partnerships (MAPPS) is a program that engages parents in the mathematics of the schools. Its goals are to change community attitudes about mathematics and reverse low expectations for mathematics achievement, and create partnerships between parents and schools in the mathematical learning of children. Activities include math awareness workshops, math for parents mini-courses, and leadership development. (Had this been around when I was a kid, I believe I would have liked math.)

Then we headed for Highland Commons, new home to Campus Health Services and Disability Resources Center. Our route

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took us along the desert landscaped grounds that front the new Resident Life buildings, to the serene courtyard of Highland Commons. Among the services offered by Campus Health are general medicine, acute care, pharmacy, lab, x-rays, immunization, acupuncture, women's health, and a host of others. A nurse practitioner or a doctor is available 24/7. Services are available to anyone who is registered for one or more credit hours on campus.

Next on the tour was the Integrated Learning Center located underground on the main campus mall. We traveled to it via the route near the Chemistry expansion site, evoking "memories" of where the greenhouses used to be. The Integrated Learning Center is home to University School (whose mission is to help provide new students a one-step source for major exploration and academic advising information and referral), classrooms with state-of-the-art technologies, Information Commons that provides information and accessibility to a host of technologies, and meeting places where faculty and students can meet and interact before and after classes. Many services and learning opportunities are available here. Computers are available and open to all on a first-come-first-serve basis.

This brought us to the end of our three-hour CatWalks tour and lunch in the new Student Union. We enjoyed a yummy buffet of roast beef, ham, turkey, cheese, salads, fruit, cookies, coffee and tea. Lastly, we received a souvenir packet containing information about the places we visited on this tour, along with other fun facts about our University. All in all it was an enjoyable adventure of seeing and learning what's happening at our old stomping grounds. I don't know what the next CatWalks will have in store, but chances are I'll be going. I encourage you to come, too. C'mon! It'll be fun!

GUILFOYLE RECEIVES BOOK SCHOLARSHIP

by Corinne Wilson

Jeffrey Guilfoyle is the first recipient of the UARA/Irving Yall Scholarship Endowment, a book award of $500. Jeffrey was UARA's guest at the October luncheon at Skyline Country Club where he thanked UARA members. He is a sophomore at the U of A working towards his BFA in Musical Theatre. A triplet with two sisters, who were raised by their mother, he works full time in order to attend the University. Jeffrey stated that "he doesn't (usually) have the opportunity to have such a delicious meal," being a student. He greatly appreciates the scholarship.

A collection was taken at Skyline for the Endowment. The UARA Scholarship Committee - Chele and Bill Logan, Betty Snider and Corinne Wilson - thank those attending for their generous contribution of $375.08. Anyone wanting to contrns in Tucson. Th01 (after February 15). Please note that the continuation of this event is contingent upon a good turnout.

NEWS FROM ASRS

by Keith Meredith

The schedule for ASRS Board meetings has been set for 2005 and is viewable on the ASRS website, www.asrs.state.az.us. Click on "Calendar" at the top of the home page. Two changes have been made in this calendar. Typically, one Board meeting is held in Tucson and another in Flagstaff with the remainder held in Phoenix. All Board meetings for this coming year will be held in Phoenix. To compensate for the centrality, we are initiating a new program for the year called the "Director's Outreach Forum." Paul Matson, Director of ASRS, will travel to different locations throughout the state and present update information of interest to members and be available for questions and concerns about ASRS activities. Paul will be accompanied by a minimum of one Board trustee in these outreach efforts. The forums have been tentatively scheduled in Yuma, Flagstaff, Springerville, and Tucson. The Tucson forum will be held November 9, 2005. The second change to the calendar is the elimination of Board meetings in January and June.

Contribution rates for 2005-07 were formally established at the Board meeting held on November 19. The contribution rates for the Retirement and Retiree Health Insurance Plans were set at 7.75%. The contribution rate for the Long-Term Disability Plan remained at .50%. Therefore, the total contribution rate for 2005-07 for employee and employer is 8.25% each for a combined

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rate of 16.5%. Actives and retirees who bragged and complained about paying 7% in the past (you know who you are) have now lost their claim to fame. Furthermore, there will be continued upward pressure on the contribution rates in coming years as the losses of 2000-02 are recouped. The primary contributors to the rising rates are the benefit enhancements approved in the nineties, the changing demographics, e.g., longer life spans, and investment losses. Don't look for further benefit enhancements that bring additional costs to the pension funds for several years. Nationally, ASRS should move into the lower tier of contribution rates and remain in the upper tier in terms of benefit levels. That is, ASRS has a good benefit structure and is paying relatively less than most other plans in the country.

The same factors fueling the contribution rates directly and indirectly affect the Permanent Benefit Increase (PBI). The PBI is somewhat like a COLA but is not indexed to cost of living. Instead, it is dependent upon surplus earnings. Retirees have received a PBI at some level since 1994. The PBI for 2005 is projected to be $25.90 per year of service. That's the good news. However, that distribution will deplete the reserves to zero. No further PBI distributions are projected into the next decade. That's the not-so-good news. ASRS is exploring other mechanisms for cost-of-living distributions that may be less volatile.

As we enter into the holiday season, a season that evokes joy, optimism, and hope, let me present a similar message concerning your ASRS. The market has begun to rebound again. The returns for the calendar year are now approaching 8%. Be comfortable in the fact that ASRS members are part of one of the best-managed retirement programs in the country. Happy Holidays!

AH, THE LIFE OF A MASTER GARDENER

by Murray DeArmond

I have always thought that the greatest salutary benefit of

retirement is the gift of available time. I retired after 30 years at the University of Arizona in 1999 and relished the opportunity to engage in a fresh area of interest. I looked forward to time for more physical activity, travel, time at home and with family and to finding a venue for giving back to a community that had given me so much over the years. Maybe because of old farm roots in my ancestral background, I settled on taking the Master Gardening training at the Pima County Cooperative Extension Center. The program is under the U of A's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and is headed by the Center's Urban Horticulturalist, John Begeman.

Requirements for the Program are simply a desire to learn, to help others and to become a better gardener. An excellent fifty-hour training course, beginning each September and finishing in mid-November, covers many topics including basic plant science, desert soils, entomology, plant pathology, diagnosing plant problems, landscape plants, vegetables, herbs, fruits, wildlife management and water conservation. What follows is an opportunity to volunteer, with over 150 others in the Program, by staffing the Plant Clinic to answer questions from the public, by presenting landscape and gardening programs in local libraries and by working on various committees in the Demonstration Gardens at the Extension Center. The gardens include vegetable, herb, flowers, roses, cacti/succulents, xeriscape and landscape plants. A summer youth education program for children, greenhouse operations, plant propagation and other volunteer opportunities exist for Master Gardeners.

The Master Gardener Program has been wonderfully fulfilling these past five years. In some ways, gardening is the perfect mind/body/spirit activity. There is always much to learn, the only way to get things done is by one's own physical effort and there is, by simplifying life and slowing down, the chance to gain a fuller appreciation of the cycles of nature to nurture the spirit. Among all the other pleasures has been the affiliation with many colleagues in the Program. Gardeners are generous by nature; and now, when I make morning rounds in our own landscape, I find myself admiring the many plants which have been shared by Master Gardeners over the years and which now are thriving around our house. When I first retired, I missed most the warm relationships with many colleagues and friends on campus. The Master Gardening Program has connected me with a remarkable cadre of people from diverse backgrounds who

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have become quite close over these years and who share endless fascination and pleasure in gardening.

Gardening is an activity for the longer haul of life. It holds many analogies to aging. We cultivate our gardens like our lives and come to appreciate changes in life as we more deeply understand seasonal change. The Director of the Missouri Botanical Garden said that as stewards of our gardens, we become stewards of what the world is. And, also, there is the hope and joy that seem inextricably bound to gardening. Such sentiments were movingly expressed by E.B. White who described his wife, Katherine, in her final years; "The small, hunched-over figure, her studied absorption in the implausible notion that there would be yet another spring...sitting there with her detailed (garden) chart...in the dying October calmly planning the resurrection."1

1 G. E. Vaillant, Aging Well, (Little, Brown, and Co., 2002), p. 130.

SOCIAL SECURITY REFORM

by Les Forster

There will be an effort in Congress to change the Social Security System. Two issues stand at the heart of proposed reform: 1) the perceived need to "save the system from bankruptcy," and 2) the desirability of increasing the benefits to future retirees. The stakes are high and the issues complex. Furthermore, the players have ideological motives. Few in Congress and still fewer in the general public will have the background to judge the merits of the various proposals. There are some basic guidelines that will help to see beyond the rhetorical smokescreen.

Will Social Security go broke? Demography is central to this question. The ratio of the retired population to the number of active workers is likely to rise with time. Currently, earned income up to $90,000 is subject to Social Security taxes of 6.2% from both the employer and the employee. These receipts go into the Social Security Trust Fund which is only a bookkeeping device. There is no money in the Trust Fund! When receipts exceed the

benefit payout the "surplus" is diverted to the general fund to be used for any purpose and IOUs are recorded in the Trust Fund account. According to one estimate, the surplus will disappear in 2016 and the system will be required to redeem the IOUs in the Trust Fund. These must be paid by higher taxes, increasing the national debt, or reductions in other spending. From a bookkeeping standpoint, the IOUs will last some twenty years and then the Trust Fund will be technically bankrupt. But this is a fiction. If desired, the difference between receipts and payments can still be covered from general revenues.

All the proposals for privatization involve diverting a portion of the employee's FICA contribution to personal accounts. It is assumed that the government contribution can be reduced more than the amount transferred to the personal account because the current benefit level would be maintained if the yield on the funds in the personal account are high enough. There may be long periods when this is not the case. If the yields are insufficient, the difference must be made up by the government from general revenues. Furthermore, proponents of privatization predict that the overall benefit level will rise because the rate of return in the personal accounts will be so high.

There are problems with privatization. In the initial years, the Social Security income will be reduced when a portion of the contributions from younger workers is diverted to personal accounts, but payments to current retirees continue unabated. The government will have to make up the difference from general funds. This is the so-called transition cost and it can be high.

Are there alternatives to personal accounts that will remedy the predicted gap between income and benefits under the current system? Yes. These include: eliminate the cap on income subject to FICA taxes, limit future benefit increases to indexing for inflation, or increase the retirement age.

The current system includes a social component. The defined benefits are skewed toward lower income workers. There is a

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provision for disabled younger workers and widows with dependents. Divorced spouses can receive benefits based upon the working spouse's work history.

In judging the merits of the several proposals, we must understand the uncertainties inherent in predictions, especially when periods exceeding thirty years are involved. All of the actuarial analyses depend upon assumptions. Past experience indicates how difficult it is to make predictions when so many unknowns are involved. We must demand that all proposals for reform clearly spell out the assumptions contained therein.

LONG-TERM CARE INSURANCE

NOTES FROM PIMA COUNCIL ON AGING

by Les Forster

Medicare does not pay for services that are classified as custodial. If care is not likely to result in improvement of a medical condition, it is defined as custodial. Chronic conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and strokes that have caused irreversible damage are examples of syndromes that, if severe, can require custodial care. Levels of required care depend on the extent of the disability produced by the condition, and range from a few hours daily by an aide in the home or an assisted living facility to full -time care in a nursing home. Current costs for such care may be as high as $60,000 annually and long-term care insurance (LTC) is designed to defray all or part of this cost.

When contemplating the desirability of purchasing a LTC policy, the main question to ask is, "What is the purpose of the policy?" The answer to this question is straightforward, "Do you have assets you want to leave to someone?" The state of Arizona has the ALTCS (Arizona Long-Term Care System) program that provides LTC to qualified individuals. The qualifications are financial and medical. Financial qualifications are assets and income. The asset level, excluding a home and a car is $2,000. A single person with more than this amount would have to spend down until only $2,000 remained and then ALTCS would be activated. For married couples, there is a spousal exemption of 50% of the assets with a maximum of $92,760. There is also an income limit, but there are ways to circumvent this.

Medical eligibility includes an inability to perform several activities of daily living. These are dressing, eating, toileting, bathing, and transferring into or out of bed. The Pima Council on Aging holds ALTCS workshops on the third Friday of each month from 2-4 p.m.

Once the decision is made to purchase LTC insurance, one is faced with a variety of options that include the full range of possibilities, from home health care to nursing homes, or are limited to a single type of care. In addition, the policies specify a daily benefit level which may be as low as $50 or be as high as $350. There may be a limited benefit period or coverage can continue for the lifetime of the insured. Many policies have an elimination period before benefits are paid. There is also the question of the "trigger" that specifies the way to qualify for the benefit.

The costs and benefits of LTC policies vary so much that only an examination of the proposed policy will permit an intelligent decision. The Pima Council on Aging can provide such an analysis and anyone who is thinking about LTC insurance is encouraged to confer with a councillor.

STAND UP AND BE COUNTED

by Betty Snider

UARA President Steelink presented a challenge last year when he reported that other universities were tallying volunteer activity by their retirees. It was decided that if UARA were to do so, we would have a way to show how valuable retirees are to the University community.

UARA canvassed 87 U of A departments asking for the names and service records of retirees in their departments for the past

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two years. Sixteen departments responded, representing 18.4% of those contacted (Iowa State, which originated the challenge, had only a 15% departmental response). In our 16 departments, 50 retiree volunteers gave about 11,500 hours of service per year. At a comparable salary of $15/hour, this saved the University

$172,500.

The Iowa State study also included retirees' volunteer efforts to the greater communities. In our last issue of Jubilación, we asked for this information on a "Stand Up and Be Counted" flyer. Thirty-four retirees responded: Alberta Allen, Bette Anderson, Jack Arndt, Ruth Beeker, Ellen Beerden, Norma Billard, Bonnie Donis, Frances and Thomas Duddleston, Marion DuPlain, the Elsons, Fran Evans, Carol Fane, Betty Fink, Betty Hillman, Susan Hopf, Ronald Hummel, the Jenkins, Edward Lonsdale, Doris Manning, Barbara Mather, Richard and Mary Jeanne Munroe, Barbara Ross, Nancy Shiley, Betty Snider, Gladys Sorensen, Judy Sorensen, Norman and Barbara Staab, Richard Willey, and Christine Ziegler. These generous people donate an average of almost 300 hours per year helping in faith and community outreach programs throughout the city.

More input at both the departmental and greater community levels would be appreciated. If you would like to "Stand Up and Be Counted," send a note, that includes your name, campus and greater community volunteer work, and the hours/years you contribute, to Betty Snider, 4828 E. Grant, Space 57, Tucson 85712 or

email her at bsnider@email.arizona.edu or phone (520) 240-0594.

COMMUNICATING WITH PUBLIC OFFICIALS*

By Phone or Fax or E-Mail

Be brief - call during working hours.

By Letter

Be brief - one issue per letter. Identify bills correctly by title or contents or number. State personal position.

Give reasons.

Be objective. Write legibly, include your name and address. Commend officials when they do things you approve. Salutation to any government dignitary may be:

Dear (Mr., Mrs., Miss, or Ms.) ___________________________

It is significant to a legislator if s/he gets five or six letters on a bill. Your communication with your legislator counts.

There are some excellent legislative web resources: www.lwv.org (League of Women Voters); www.uaadvancement.arizona.edu/ (click on Government Relations/State Relations/District Maps to find your legislative district); www.vote-smart.org (for detailed information about the President, Congress, State Governors, State Legislators, the U.S. political process or simply to register to vote; or telephone, 1-888-868-3762); www.asrs.state.az.us (click on Legislation/Legislative Update to view a summary of retirement related bills in the current legislative session); www.azleg.state.az.us (State Legislature). Many of the foregoing addresses are also available through the UARA web site: www.retirees.web.arizona.edu. In addition, the UARA Office is available for assistance, 325-4366.

*From the League of Women Voters of Greater Tucson 2002 Political Directory and Voter Information.

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47^th ARIZONA STATE LEGISLATURE

January 2005 - January 2007

Southern Arizona Legislative Districts (Tucson Office - 400 W. Congress St., #201, 85701;

Senators/Representatives, 398-6000; FAX for both, 398-6028;

Phoenix Office: State Capitol, Senate Wing/House Wing, 1700 W. Washington 85007;

Toll free telephone line 1-800-352-8404)

# Name/Party Email

25 Sen. Marsha Arzberger (D) marzberg@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-4321

Rep. Manuel Alvarez (D) malvarez@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-5895

Rep. Jennifer Burns (R) jburns@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-5836

26 Sen. Toni Hellon (R) thellon@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-4326

Rep. Pete Hershberger (R) phershbe@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-5839

Rep. Steve Huffman (R) shuffman@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-3394
27 Sen. Jorge Garcia (D) jgarcia@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-4171

Rep. Olivia Cajero Bedford (D) ocajerob@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-5835

Rep. Phil Lopes (D) plopes@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-3278

28 Sen. Gabrielle Giffords (D) ggifford@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-5262

Rep. David Bradley (D) dbradley@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-3300

Rep. Ted Downing (D) tdowning@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-5108

29 Sen. Victor Soltero (D) vsoltero@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-5342

Rep. Linda Lopez (D) llopez@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-4089

Rep. Tom Prezelski (D) tprezels@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-3424

30 Sen. Tim Bee (R) tbee@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-5683

Rep. Marian McClure (R) mmcclure@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-3312

Rep. Jonathan Paton (R) jpaton@azleg.state.az.us 602-926-3235

United States Congress: U.S. Capitol Switchboard (202) 224-3121; Toll free: 1-800-648-3516

Senators: 6 year terms; U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C. 20510; www.senate.gov

John McCain (R) www.mccain.senate.gov 450 Paseo Redondo #200, Tucson, 85701, 670-6334;

John Kyl (R) www.kyl.senate.gov 7315 N. Oracle Rd., #220, Tucson, 85704, 575-8633

Representatives: 2 year terms; House of Representatives, Washington, D.C. 20515

1. Rick Renzi (R) www.house.gov/renzi 2707 S. White Mountain Road, Suite E, Showlow, Az. 85901;

866-537-2800 (toll free); 928-537-2800

2. Trent Franks (R) www.house.gov/franks 7121 W. Bell Rd., #200, Glendale 85308; 623-776-7911

3. John Shadegg (R) www.house.gov/shadegg 301 E. Bethany Home, Suite C-178, Phoenix 85012,

602-263-5300

4. Ed Pastor (D) www.house.gov/pastor 411 N. Central Ave., #150, Phoenix 85004, 602-256-0551

5. J.D. Hayworth (R) www.house.gov/hayworth 14300 N. Northsite Blvd., #101, Scottsdale 85260,

480-926-4151

6. Jeff Flake (R) www.house.gov/flake 1640 S. Stapley, #215, Mesa 85204, 480-833-0092

7. Raul M. Grijalva (D) www.house.gov/grijalva 810 E. 22d St., #102, 85713, 622-6788

8 . Jim Kolbe (R) www.house.gov/kolbe 1661 N. Swan, #112, Tucson 85712, 881-3588