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Social Security and You: World War II History With a Social Security Link
World War II History With a Social Security Link
My wife and I were recently doing a little house cleaning and downsizing. Specifically, we were going through many of our old books. We've finally decided that having shelves and shelves of hardbacks and paperbacks and other volumes wasn't impressing anyone anymore -- including ourselves. So, one...Read more

5 best retirement income strategies
If you’re stressed about running out of money in retirement, you’re not alone.
More than half (57 percent) of American workers think they’re behind where they should be on their retirement savings, according to Bankrate’s Retirement Savings Survey. Fueling the stress about retirement income needs are worries about inflation, a weakening...Read more

His heart stopped after a run. His daughter, a nurse, helped restart it
Home from a 5-mile run one August day, Mark Kleinschmidt couldn't stop sweating. He blamed it on the heat. Then his chest felt tight.
He sat on his bed for a few minutes. Once the pain subsided, he headed for the shower.
The tightness returned while he was showering. He got out, only to drop to the bathroom floor. Somehow, he managed to get ...Read more

Months after a serious stroke, he was back to drawing caricatures
A loud ringing and bright light jolted Adam English awake. Then he felt the bizarre sensation of a zipper closing from ear to ear across his face.
English tried to call out, but he could only make sounds.
Then he tried getting out of bed. He fell, hitting his head on the iron bed frame.
His wife, Joanne Pera, was in the bathroom around the ...Read more

Toni Says: Medicare or Medicare Advantage ... What is the right plan for me?
Hello Toni:
Thank you for teaching my husband Charley and me the value of finding the right Medicare option for him since he retired at age 70 a few months ago. Charley wanted to pick a Medicare Advantage PPO plan because it had a $0 monthly premium and he could still keep his doctors even though many of the offices were out of network. He ...Read more

A candid take on mortality and the power of friendship
They gather several times a week in the parking lot of a Vons supermarket in Mar Vista, and no subject is off-limits. Not even the grim medical prognosis for 70-year-old David Mays, one of the founding members of the coffee klatch.
"It's one of our major topics of conversation," said Paul Morgan, 45, a klatch regular.
Mays is a cancer survivor...Read more

A candid take on mortality and the power of friendship
They gather several times a week in the parking lot of a Vons supermarket in Mar Vista, and no subject is off-limits. Not even the grim medical prognosis for 70-year-old David Mays, one of the founding members of the coffee klatch.
"It's one of our major topics of conversation," said Paul Morgan, 45, a klatch regular.
Mays is a cancer survivor...Read more
Social Security and You: One Big Ugly Press Release
I am so embarrassed by my former employer, the Social Security Administration. By issuing a press release that not only supports but outright glorifies the recently passed "One Big Beautiful Bill," they have crossed a line that should never have been crossed. They may even have acted illegally. It was One Big Ugly Press Release.
Before I ...Read more

This former teacher and coach is staging his first art exhibition — at age 90
PHILADELPHIA -- Seymour Lemonick just accomplished something few 90-year-olds can dream of: staging his first art exhibition.
For the retired Philadelphia teacher and football coach — a sculptor and self-taught woodworker whose Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, home is a makeshift museum — it’s a pinch-me moment.
“This is beyond my wildest ...Read more

This former teacher and coach is staging his first art exhibition -- at age 90
PHILADELPHIA -- Seymour Lemonick just accomplished something few 90-year-olds can dream of: staging his first art exhibition.
For the retired Philadelphia teacher and football coach — a sculptor and self-taught woodworker whose Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, home is a makeshift museum — it’s a pinch-me moment.
“This is beyond my wildest ...Read more

DOGE cuts have made it hard for seniors to get Social Security offices on the phone
PHILADELPHIA -- For a “real lesson in torture,” try calling your local Social Security Administration office with a question.
That’s what Marcia Chestnut, a 62-year-old former housekeeper from Philadelphia, sardonically suggests.
In February, Chestnut — who lives with various disabilities — received a notice from the SSA saying her ...Read more

Travel Trending with Kathy Witt: Oceania Cruises’ Riviera immerses guests in Alaska by land and by sea
We’re sipping hot chocolate and watching a mama bear and her cubs nose around the beach when we catch sight of a shower of ice chunks plunging into the waters of Alaska’s Disenchantment Bay.
Standing on the deck of a catamaran anchored half a mile from Hubbard Glacier, we had been hoping to witness such a scene: North America’s largest ...Read more
Social Security and You: Another Grim Report from Social Security Trustees
I'm a little late in getting to this issue. But as the old adage goes -- better late than never. This column is going to be about the annual report of the Social Security Board of Trustees concerning the financial health of the program. (More about this board at the end of the column.) The trustees' report came out a couple of weeks ago and made...Read more

DOGE cuts have made it hard for seniors to get Social Security offices on the phone
PHILADELPHIA -- For a “real lesson in torture,” try calling your local Social Security Administration office with a question.
That’s what Marcia Chestnut, a 62-year-old former housekeeper from Philadelphia, sardonically suggests.
In February, Chestnut — who lives with various disabilities — received a notice from the SSA saying her ...Read more

'A purpose in this world': Older adults fear elimination of program that helps them find work
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Mike Leslie, 66, sits at a desk beneath the buzz of fluorescent office lights, his fingers hovering over his new laptop keyboard. He smiles, eyes crinkling beneath a worn baseball cap. It’s a place he never imagined he’d be sitting.
Before last year, he’d never used a computer.
For most of his life, Leslie hadn’t ...Read more
Social Security and You: Your Right to File a Claim
If you think you are eligible for Social Security benefits, you have every right to file a claim for those benefits. This is a message I've delivered before in this column. But recent emails tell me it's time to send the message again. Here are several of those emails.
Q: Even though my husband and I lived together for 20 years, we didn't ...Read more
America: Is learning about Medicare’s options stressing you?
Dear Toni,
I am an American turning 65 in September and am confused about my Medicare decision. I don’t know where to start or what to do.
Can you please help me with what my Medicare options are? Thanks, Toni.
—Stephanie from Orlando, Fla.
Hi Stephanie:
Don’t feel alone, because there is a person entering Medicare every 8 ...Read more
Social Security and You: No Magic Answers
There is probably no question I am asked more often than some version of this: "When should I file for Social Security?" And I've discerned from my emails over the years that there is no issue senior citizens fret over more than the answer to that question.
To answer it, many people prepare spreadsheets. They construct matrices. They buy books....Read more

Here’s the salary you need to claim the maximum $5,108 monthly Social Security benefit
The average Social Security benefit for a retired worker in February 2025 was $1,980 per month. That’s enough to help cover a few bills, but it’s far from what you may need for a comfortable retirement.
Many people dream of locking in the maximum Social Security benefit when they retire — and it’s easy to understand why. As the cost of ...Read more

After 2 decades of military service, 'the Viking sub' learned he had a tear in his aorta
During multiple tours in Afghanistan, Jeff Pharris conducted countless combat patrols and narrowly survived two bomb blasts. After 20 years of U.S. Army service as a communications specialist and combat advisor, he was honorably retired from active duty.
Soon after, he started substitute teaching at his local middle school and elementary school...Read more