Chapter 1072, Aurora, Monthly
Meetings
Members of Chapter 1072 meet the first Monday of each month at
at Mr. Panda Super Buffet, 2852 South Havana, Aurora, Colorado 80014
Next
Meeting: February 6, 2012 at 12:00 Noon. Come join us for lunch at the member's expense at 11:00 AM
Speaker: Rosemary Rodriquez from Senator Michael Bennet's office.
CHAPTER 1072 MEETING MINUTES:
October 3, 2011
President Fred Bond called the chapter meeting to order at 12:00. He
presided over a moment of silence and the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance.
Fred welcomed
David Hoppe to the meeting. He is the Family Services Director of the Colorado Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association.
Mr. Hoppe gave an interesting and informative presentation on Alzheimer's disease, including some discouraging statistics
and facts. It is a disease of the brain. At this time, there is no prevention and no cure, and it is eventually fatal.
The incidence of the disease is increasing, probably due to better diagnosis, as well as the increase in the older population.
He estimated that one in eight people over 65 have it, and one half of those over 85 have it.
Mr.
Hoppe distributed a paper, which outlined ten warning signs of Alzheimer's. The hope is to recognize the disease early,
in order to make arrangements for care that the patient will need. A person in otherwise good health will be able to
withstand some of the effects of it for a longer period of time. The Alzheimer's Association has a 24-hour helpline,
800 272 3900, and a website, http://www.slz.org/co.
Legislative Report. Eileen Bond referred to an Email from Narfe outlining some of the threats
posed by the current deficit reduction discussions going on in Washington. The ‘Super Committee' of twelve legislators
is tasked to come up with reductions to the deficit by late November, and even the President Obama has spoken of increased
contributions and lower benefits for programs such as Medicare. USA Today had an article about the costs of military
and civilian retirement programs. The 2012 FEHB information is now available on the OPM website. The expected COLA for
federal retirees is to be announced on Oct 19, and it is anticipated it will be 3.6 percent. Eileen spoke of concerns
about the Medicaid program, and its costs. A spouse's need for Medicaid will likely leave the healthier spouse in poverty.
It is something to think about ahead of time.
Treasurer's Report. Brenda Rivard submitted
the Treasurer's Report for the 3rd Quarter of 2011.
Sunhine Report. Dolores Collins
sent a Get Well card to David White, and will be sending a sympathy card for Fred Bond for the death of his sister.
Secretary Report. Jim Seaman read the minutes for the September meeting, and they were approved
by the members present.
Chapter Business. Fred Bond explained that the scheduling of monthly
meetings as the first Monday of the month is subject to change by the Executive Committee if that Monday falls on a holiday.
There was some discussion of the dues paid by new members, and how much of it is for Chapter dues and how much for national
dues. More study will be done to ensure new members are not being overcharged for the Chapter dues. November's
meeting will be at the Panda restaurant. Lunch is at 1200, and a health fair begins at 1300. December's meeting
will be the normal meeting at the usual location, and members are encouraged to bring a Christmas toy for distribution to
a local charity.
Alzheimer's Raffle. Jim Seaman won, and donated the winnings back to the
fund.
CHAPTER 1072 MEETING MINUTES
September
5, 2011
President Fred Bond called the chapter meeting to order at 12:00. He presided over
a moment of silence and the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance.
Fred welcomed Dennis Roose
to the meeting. He has been recovering from many health issues. We were also introduced to a visitor, Ron Little.
He is an Air Force and Postal Service retiree. Ron is care-giver for his wife, who is a stroke survivor who has been
diagnosed with Alzheimer's.
Fred introduced our guest speaker, Rhonda Fields. She is the representative
for district 42 in the Colorado House of Representatives. She explained that she is Democrat, while the Republicans are in
the majority. She therefore has concentrated on introducing and sponsoring legislation that can appeal to both parties.
She was able to get nine bills passed by the legislature. Representative Fields expressed concern for the education of children,
and is working on a proposal to intervene when it is determined that they cannot read in the third grade. She quoted
a statistic that $5700 is spent on educating children, while it costs the state $38000 to house an inmate in a state prison.
She supports an initiative for the voters to approve an increase in taxes to fund education.
Membership
Report. Carol Williams has completed the phone list. Letters have been sent to 16 members who may be dropping
out of NARFE.
Chapter Business. Two members are to attend the convention
in Albuquerque. Chapter 1769 is to vote on whether their members will join our chapter. Fred is going to see if the
bylaws need to be changed to clarify the meeting schedule when the first Monday of the month falls on a holiday. There
was some discussion about having a summer picnic next year. Eva Gardner's chapter had a picnic this year, at the Windsor Gardens
facility. Our November meeting will be held at Mr. Panda, and will include the annual health fair from 1:00 to
3:00.
Legislative Report. Eileen Bond summarized the workings of the Super Committee, whose
formation was a part of the debt ceiling deal. There are 12 members (6 from either party), and their tasking is to select
areas of the budget to cut spending by 1.5 trillion over ten years. A majority of the 12 will be needed to agree on
a comprehensive proposal by Thanksgiving, or some automatic cuts will be done. The full legislature will vote on their
whole proposal, with no filibuster allowed.
Sunshine Report. Delores Collins reported
that a sympathy card was sent for Jim Carson. A get well card with be sent to David White.
Secretary
Report. Jim Seaman read the minutes from the previous meeting. They were approved by the members present.
Drawings. Eileen Bond won the Alzheimers fund drawing for $14, and donated her winnings to the fund.
Colorado Chapter 1072 Budget for 2011
