Three World War II veterans from Trinidad, Colorado were honored guests at a luncheon with 4,000 Air Force Academy cadets. One of the veterans, Lowell Thompson of Trinidad, said it was one of the most memorable experiences of his life. At the luncheon, the veterans met the Commandant and enjoyed eating with him and 13 cadets. They were then introduced to the 4,000 cadets assembled. Afterwards, the veterans met with groups of 500 cadets each to talk. One Trinidad State softball player, Macie Christian, was named Region IX Offensive Player of the Year after setting the school record for hits in a season.

1. The Chronicle-News Trinidad, ColoradoPage 8 “Weekend Edition” Friday, Saturday & Sunday, May 8-10, 2015
Lori M. Hoffman
Financial Advisor
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Trinidad, CO 81082
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Help Mom with Her Retirement Income Strategy
Mother’s Day is almost here. This occasion
may have special significance for you if you’ve
been fortunate enough to have your mother
around for your adult life. So naturally, you’ll
want to bring Mom some flowers or another
gift. But if she’s planning to retire soon, you
may want to think about a longer-term way
to improve her life — namely, by initiating
a conversation about her retirement income
strategy.
Of course, she may already have matters well
in hand. But a great many people on the verge
of retirement have not planned for those years,
so you may be able to provide some valuable
suggestions. Here are a few ideas:
Boost contributions to retirement plans. If
Mom is still working, urge her to contribute
as much as she can afford to her IRA and her
employer-sponsored retirement plan, such
as a 401(k). The chances are pretty good that
she will be spending many years in retire-
ment — in fact, the average life expectancy
for a 65-year-old woman is 20.5 more years,
according to the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention. So she’ll want to accumulate
as much as possible before she bids “adieu” to
the working world.
Discuss appropriate withdrawal rates. En-
courage your mother to meet with a financial
professional to determine an appropriate rate
of withdrawal from her investments. To help
ensure that she doesn’t outlive her resources,
she needs to avoid taking out too much during
her early years of retirement.
Take care of legal arrangements. If you
haven’t already done so, ask your mother if she
has drawn up the important legal documents
related to her estate plans. Does she have a
will? Has she created a durable power of at-
torney, which allows her to name someone to
make financial and health care decisions on
her behalf if she becomes incapacitated? As
you know, this is a sensitive topic, so you’ll
want to approach it with care.
Evaluate Social Security options. Your
mother is probably well aware that she can
start taking Social Security as early as age 62,
but will get much bigger monthly payments if
she waits until her full retirement age, which
will likely be 66 or 67. But she may not know
that she might be able to benefit from a Social
Security “spousal strategy” that could result in
her receiving more income than she could get
by just taking her own benefits. For example,
if her spouse is the higher wage earner and
can afford to delay taking benefits, your
mother could eventually receive higher survi-
vor benefits. Or, your mother and her spouse
could employ a “file and suspend” strategy.
Under this strategy, her spouse, upon reaching
full retirement age, files for retirement benefits
and then immediately requests to have those
benefits suspended. As a result, your mother
can file for spousal benefits, which would be
larger than what she would receive at her full
retirement age. To make sure they are making
any Social Security-related moves correctly,
though, your mother and her spouse will want
to consult with a tax advisor who is thorough-
ly familiar with Social Security rules.
You want your mother to enjoy a long, happy
and active retirement. So, talk to her about the
moves she can make to help turn that aspira-
tion into reality.
Community&Sports
HONORING THOSE WHO SERVED
Trinidad World
War II Veterans
honored at Air
Force Academy
Cadet luncheon
Special to The Chronicle-News
Three World War II Veterans from
Spanish Peaks Veterans Community Liv-
ing Center in Walsenburg were invited to
be the honored guests of 4,000 cadets at the
Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs on
Thursday, April 9, 2015.
U.S. Army veterans
Lowell Thompson (of
Trinidad), Orlando Gar-
cia, and U.S. Navy vet-
eran Gladys Beatty were
three of the eleven World
War II veterans recog-
nized at the luncheon or-
ganized by Honor Flight
of Southern Colorado and
the Air Force Academy
Center for Character for
Leadership Development.
Prior to lunch, the vet-
erans got to meet person-
ally with the comman-
dant of cadets, Brigadier
General Stephen C. Williams, who later
gave an address recognizing the WWII
veterans for their service during the lun-
cheon, where they enjoyed eating with the
commandant and 13 cadets. The veterans
were then honored by 4,000 cadets when
they were introduced to the group by Wil-
liams.
Following the luncheon, there were four
venues where the veterans were divided
into groups, and each got to meet and talk
to about 500 cadets. As part of the event held
in their honor, the veterans also got to meet
“Echo,” the Air Force Academy falcon mas-
cot.
When Lowell Thompson was asked
about his day trip to the Air Force Acad-
emy, he said, “It was one of the single most
memorable experiences of my life.”
Gladys Beatty said her day with the ca-
dets was “Wonderful! I felt very much at
home and very honored.”
Orlando Garcia said, “It was a terrific
experience! I felt overwhelmed and hon-
ored.”
Certified Nursing Assis-
tant Roberta Espinoza and
their driver, Demi Vallejos,
who also got to enjoy the
luncheon, accompanied the
three veterans to Colorado
Springs.
Neva Deschner, Activi-
ties Director with the Span-
ish Peaks Veterans Commu-
nity Living Center, said, “I
can’t tell you how much the
vets enjoyed themselves.
Frankly, all of them were
pretty overwhelmed by the
entire event, and now, three
weeks later, they are still
talking about it.”
Honor Flight of Southern
Colorado is a 501c3 non-prof-
it organization that takes
World War II veterans to
Washington, D.C. to visit
the memorial built in their
honor.
To learn more about this
organization, or to make a
donation, visit www.hon-
orflightsoco.org.
TRINIDAD STATE SOFTBALL
Lady Trojans end
season at regionals
By Mike Salbato
Correspondent
The Chronicle-News
The 2014-2015 softball season did not end
as coach Steve Swazo had hoped for, howev-
er, the team still had a very successful year.
The Lady Trojans closed the season with a 31-
20 record, finished second in the regular sea-
son standings, and were third at the regional
tournament. Macie Christian, a sophomore
from Hesperia, California was voted first-
team All-Region and was named Offensive
Player of the Year in Region IX. The two-time
All-Region standout set a school record for
hits in a season with 87 and her .509 batting
average jumped her ahead of former stand-
out Julia Diehl for the best season batting
average in the twelve-year history of the soft-
ball program at Trinidad State.
“This team gave me everything they had
each game when they got on the field, and
from a coaching standpoint that’s all you
can ask from your team,” Swazo said. “At
the regionals we didn’t get the big hits that
we were getting earlier in the year and when
that happens the other team is usually going
to win. Overall, I am very proud of my team
this year. They competed hard and played
the game.”
Christian finishes her career with 128
hits, third best in school history, and a .457
career batting average, which is now second
best on the all-time hitting charts at TSJC.
“Macie was fun to watch,” the TSJC coach
said. “When she came here as a freshman,
we had her in centerfield, (where she was a
first-team all-region selection last year) and
after that season she said she wanted to play
short, and man did she play that position
well. Any accolades and awards that she got
this year from the regional coaches were well
deserved. She is hoping to transfer to the Uni-
versity of Arizona or University of Texas to
complete her degree.”
Other sophomores moving on to the next
level to further their softball careers are
Sami Miele and Morgan Ginger (who was a
second team all- region selection) to Missouri
Valley College in Marshall, Missouri; Teaja
River who is heading to Adams State Univer-
sity and Victoria Gonzales will be
attending New Mexico Highlands
University.
Freshmen Jessica Salbato also
received honors as the Region IX
coaches selected her first-team all-
region as a pitcher. Salbato com-
pleted her initial season with a
17-7 record. Her 17 wins in a single
season puts her second all-time in
wins behind Kaycee Prevedel who
just completed her senior season at
Adams State University, and her
117 strikeouts places her fourth in
the TSJC record books.
For the 2016 season, Coach Swa-
zo will bring in nine freshmen to
join the 14 returning sophomores.
They will once again compete for
the Region IX title.
Photos courtesy Todd Huffman
Gladys Beatty poses for a
photo with one of the female
cadets. World War II veteran,
Lowell Thompson, center, with
one of the Air Force Academy
cadets. Orlando Garcia got up
close and personal with “Echo”
the Air Force Academy falcon.
Photos courtesy of Mike Salbato / TSJC
Macie Christian, Jessica Salbato and Morgan
Ginger, above left, received All Region honors
this past week at the Region IX tournament in
Sterling, Colorado (photo by Corey Aragon).
Macie Christian wrapped up her tremendous
career at TSJC as the Region IX Offensive Play-
er of the Year and is fourth in the nation with her
.509 batting average.