Wednesday, June 27, 2007

What a great weekend for Hawthorne!

What a great weekend for Hawthorne Credit Union! Why was it great? It was great because we demonstrated support of two very worthwhile organizations in Bolingbrook and Naperville.

First---our fantastic representation in the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life Walk held last Friday @ Naperville North High School. We had the highest turnout ever of Hawthorne employees and their family members for a community volunteer event. I would like to thank our two staff co-captains Cheryl Lestina and Carl Freundt for their special efforts to make this a successful event for the “Relay” and for Hawthorne. Their efforts along with those of several others: Carla, Becky and Mary contributed to a fun night and raised more than $2,000 for the American Cancer Society. What a great way to raise money for an important cause while having a good time and representing Hawthorne all at once!

Thanks to everyone who participated!

A special thank you to Judy Clyne and her husband John who attended the Bolingbrook Park District Dance Force Awards Dinner last Saturday night. I know they both had a very busy and full day last Saturday topped off by the awards dinner. As Judy stated in her email, we do make a difference in our communities---not just through the services that we offer and how we help our members, but also how we help out various community based organizations. We should all be proud of the way Hawthorne Credit Union was represented this past weekend—and how you made that distinction!

Thanks again to all who participated.

Carl S.

Roth IRA - - more than just a great retirement investment.

Roth IRAs: The Swiss Army Knife® of Financial Planning
The Roth IRA is a great retirement program. The Roth allows the owner a great degree of flexibility and control, not available in other retirement vehicles. The referenced article goes over some of those points. I consider the Roth IRA one of the best gifts that Congress has given US citizens. I encourage my clients that qualify to fund their Roth contributions.
Mike Pozzi
Investment Adviser Representative
Hawthorne Credit Union
630-983-2310
pozzim@financialnetwork.com


Roth IRA - - more than just a great retirement investment.

The Roth IRA was first introduced in 1998. Since its introduction, it has become an investment program of choice for a number of our clients because of its versatility.

Like the regular IRA, annual retirement contributions for 2007 to the Roth IRA are $4,000 per person (or $5,000 if you are over age 50) and you have to April 15th to make contributions (Roth IRA contributions are subject to a phase out based on income. You need to be in a qualified income level to contribute).
And, although Roth IRA contributions are not tax-deductible, you may still benefit from the ability to withdraw earnings tax-free.


Here are a few examples of the Roth IRA’s flexibility:
** Saving for college tuition? You can draw on a Roth account to help with your child’s educational expenses, and still retain control of the funds. In addition, if you hold onto your account for at least five years and you’re older than 59 1/2, no taxes would apply on earnings. In fact, contributions can be used at any time, free of taxes and penalties.
** Encourage your youngsters to save. If you have children who have part-time jobs, they too can open a Roth IRA.
** Shopping for your first home? If you’ve had your Roth IRA for at least five years, you can withdraw up to $10,000 ($20,000 for couples) in earnings “tax-free and penalty-free” if you use the money for a “first time home mortgage purchase.”
** Passing on your investments to heirs couldn’t be easier. You can bequeath the funds in Roth IRAs to your beneficiaries, who can withdraw money from the account tax-free over a number of years.
** Roths offer great estate planning advantages. Beneficiaries can withdraw money from a Roth account tax-free. And, unlike regular IRAs, there is no minimum distribution starting at age 70 ½, so seniors with earned income can keep investing in the Roth account at any age.
** If you’re a retiree, you don’t have to worry about being pushed into a higher tax bracket with your Roth distributions, since Roth IRA distributions are tax-free.

Keep in mind that a Roth IRA may not be appropriate for everyone. For example, the IRS requires the owner to hold his/her Roth for 5 years or until age 59 ½ (whichever is later) in order to avoid penalties and taxes on the earnings upon withdrawal. To determine whether a traditional IRA, Roth IRA or other retirement investment program is right for your specific financial goals, contact Mike Pozzi, our Hawthorne Credit Union Investment Adviser at (630) 983-2310.


Securities are offered through Financial Network Investment Corporation, a registered broker/dealer and member of the SIPC. Financial Network Investment Corporation is not an affiliate of Hawthorne Credit Union. Mutual funds, annuities and other investments available through Financial Network Investment Corporation are not insured by the FDIC, NCUSIF or any federal government agency, are not deposits, or obligations of nor guaranteed by Hawthorne Credit Union, or any other affiliated entity. Investments are subject to investment risks including loss of principal invested.

Thursday, June 21, 2007

Staying Organized, the Job is Endless

I don’t know about you, but I am constantly working to keep myself organized. Whether it means making lists or folders to file things in, the management of “stuff” never seems to end. Between work, finances, household chores, Zach's toys and school projects, it is like a bottomless pit that I can’t get out of. The only solution to avoid complete chaos that I have been able to come up with, is to never fall too far behind on anything. That can be easier said than done.

My neighbors always ask how I do it. Anytime they stop by, the house is never messy and nothing seems unorganized. This of course is not true. There are always things that are just waiting for me to get them done or in a pile, hiding in a closest.

My daycare lady, who is also a neighbor, always says that my worst day is a lot better than her best. But, she runs a daycare and has four kids of her own, so I am always in amazement at how she can keep up with everything.

Now, I am going to share one of my quarky secrets with you. I have been doing this since I lived in my first apartment after college, and the highlight of my Wednesday was to catch the back to back episodes of 90210 & Melrose Place, (about 15 years). I would clean during advertisements. During the advertisements of those two shows I could get the apartment cleaned. It is amazing how much I can get done in such a short period of time, especially when I know that you can sit back down on my lazy butt, in just a few minutes.

Since then, the space has changed a few times and more advertisements are required to accomplish things, but it still for the most part works. It drives my husband crazy because I am constantly up and down, but the alternative of a messy house is not a good option for him, so he has gotten used to it, plus sometimes he helps.

I just never (make that almost never) sit and watch the advertisements or fast forward through them with our DVR. It may seem a little crazy, but it is a lot easier that doing continuous work. It is nice to be able to break the jobs into simple tasks that I can do while catching an episode of Desperate Housewives.

I am often amazed at how little time it takes to do some of things around the house that I hate doing. For example, I can usually come close to getting a load of laundry folded during this time, or empty the dishwasher, clean out a drawer, vacuum or, take out the garbage. The list seems to never end.

My least favorite thing to do, but the easiest to get done, is paying the bills. Thanks to the great Online Banking and BillPayer service that Hawthorne provides, I can easily have a stack of bills taken care of in less than 5 minutes. I just click on the QuickPay button and go down the list, pay all the necessary bills and click submit. It could not be easier.

Sometimes, I also read organizing books, or catch a good organizing show on TV. I don’t think I will ever have the concept mastered, but a least I try. I still have piles of pictures in a closest waiting to be added to yet another picture album, and as soon I get that done there will be more pictures. Or, as soon as I have sorted through one pile of mail, there is another. The mailman never stops coming. I guess that is just how life goes. We never run out of things to do.

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Bolingbrook Teacher Wins Scholarship to Colonial Williamsburg

Hawthorne congratulates Susan Bahl, a second grade teacher at Jonas E Salk Elementary School in Bolingbrook, who was awarded a grant provided by Hawthorne to participate in a week-long Early American History workshop at the Colonial Williamsburg Teacher Institute in Williamsburg, Va. More than 600 teachers will attend the Institute in 2007. More than 4,500 teachers from 47 states have participated since the Institute’s inception in 1990. Bahl was one of 25 teachers selected among hundreds of applicants to attend the week-long Institute July 10-17.

The Colonial Williamsburg Teacher Institute was created by The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation to encourage history education and make it exciting and engaging for students. Now in its 17th year, the Teacher Institute helps teachers and students meet national and state history standards through on-site, hands-on immersion experiences in colonial history. Teachers will also prepare new classroom teaching materials as part of the workshop.

Bahl has taught for four years at Jonas Salk Elementary. She holds a business degree from DuPaul University where and a Masters Degree in Education also from DePaul University.

The Colonial Williamsburg Teacher Institute provides participants with interactive teaching techniques and with the skills to become mentor teachers, assisting their peers and other educators in developing new techniques for teaching American History to students.
The Teacher Institute offers participants an extensive background in colonial history from the first English settlement at Jamestown to the American Revolution. Teachers participate in re-enactments of 18th century events and meet historians and interpreters portraying historical figures. Participants share teaching strategies to improve instruction, raise literacy levels and enhance historical thinking skills. Teachers that attend the Institute agree to conduct in-service training sessions to share their knowledge with other teachers.

Hawthorne joined credit unions in other states to send local teachers to the Teacher Institute and to fund all expenses. In addition, dozens of credit unions have supported the award-winning American History education programs produced by The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation by funding electronic field trips for local schools. The electronic field trips are interactive television events that bring the 18th century to life for millions of students nationwide.

Educational outreach initiatives at Colonial Williamsburg embody the motto adopted at the dawn of the restoration of the city that gave birth to the nation’s principles and values: “That the future may learn from the past.”

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

A Relay For A World Without Cancer

As many of you are now familiar, it has become a yearly event for Hawthorne to participate in the American Cancer Society's signature event, Relay for Life. Relay for Life raises money to fight cancer and to raise awareness of cancer in the community. The relay for life honors cancer survivors, and remembers those who have lost their lives to cancer.

When the American Cancer Society Relay For Life started over 20 years ago, one of the reasons given to explain why it was an overnight event was that "cancer patients don't get the night off from cancer, so why should we?". How true.

The fight against cancer goes on. There is no one I know who can say they DO NOT have a friend or relative who has battled this terrible illness.

Join us in the Relay for Life, June 22-23 from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. at Naperville North High School, as we help raise money and awareness for the American Cancer Society. If you’d like to make a donation, ask a representative or email us today.

The American Cancer Society Relay For Life raises hundreds of millions of dollars each year in the fight against cancer. Millions of people will walk or run through the night to raise money to fight cancer. Relay For Life builds awareness of this dreaded disease and makes a difference in the lives of those affected by cancer HERE AND NOW!

Below is a poem I found, that I thought you might like to read. This poem helps us increase our awareness of what the Relay for Life is all about.



"Relay For Life - Bring Hope"
1998 - Written at 3am at an Illinois Relay For Life Event. -j.smith

Is there someone that you know?
Whose life is on the line,
They've been going through
the fight of their lives..
Come Together, Come Together for them
For Relay for Life

There are people,
Too many people.. crying
For a loved one that they know..
Come Together, Come Together.. for them
For Relay For Life

Walk together,
and have faith together..
We can bring hope
into their lives
Please come together, for them
For Relay for life

We can bring hope, all around
we have faith in the people in your town
So Come Together
For Relay for life.

We can bring hope, all around
we have faith in the people in this town..
So Come Together, for them
For Relay for Life.

Monday, June 11, 2007

What is the difference between being Cheap and being Frugal?

Everybody knows a cheap person and probably hates them. But I think we often mislabel frugal people as being cheap. I started thinking about this the other night after listening to a “lecture” from my dad about how to manage our phone service.

The topic came up because periodically during our phone conversation he was not able to hear me. I explained that we have had this problem several times since switching our phone service to Comcast, several months ago.

He went on to explain that they only use basic phone service with no additional features. Yes, that means no call waiting and no caller ID! He then went on to tell me that during the week they only call me and my brother using their cell phone minutes, and calls everyone else that he needs to talk to either at night or on the weekend from his cell phone, since those minutes are free.

Now this is a man who had money saved for his kids to go to college, lives in a beautiful home and drives nice cars, has no credit card debt and never makes us pay for dinner when he is in town, but he is worried about minimal charges on his phone bill.

My father is not cheap, he just enjoys saving money, when he can. Saving money and being cheap are two totally different concepts. So different that, well, maybe another couple examples will help.

I like to buy decent clothing. It’s not always cheap, but I like to make sure I buy it on sale. The more on sale an item is, the better I like it. In fact, if two dresses are on sale, I can buy two good dresses instead of one expensive one. Does that qualify as being cheap?

I just have a hard time buying things at regular price when in a few weeks it will be on sale (which is the price it should’ve been in the first place, in my opinion).

Here’s another example…

Let’s say you need to put gas in your car and on the way to going somewhere you were going anyway you pass two gas stations right next to one another. Gas is $3.45 a gallon at one and at least $3.55 a gallon at the other.

All other factors being equal, you’d have to be a total idiot not to buy the$3.45 a gallon gas…
That’s managing your money well.

On the other hand…

To kill a half an hour of your time driving clear across town, way out of your way, just to “save” a buck or two would be “being cheap”.

Yes, that would be me sometimes! I hate to admit this, but I have driven to Costco for gas, which is a good 20 minutes from our house.

Although there is sometimes a fine line between the two, there’s a distinct difference between “being cheap” and managing your money well and it is important for us to know and understand the difference between the two.

Knowing and understanding this difference and applying this principle to our lives can make the difference between us having money or being poor.

Friday, June 8, 2007

Substance vs Flash

The shop was small, crowded, spider-webby and downright scary. And loaded with charm and history. I spent a little extra money for my new bike – probably $50-60 more than I had to. But what I got in return was priceless.

My first stop was to a big box store, Dick’s Sporting Goods, because of a promotional ad I found in the newspaper. They had several bikes on sale; so it was a good place to start. My daughter was lured into the 2-story rock climbing apparatus and the trampolines and tents on display. It was practically a playground. I stood in Dick’s for about 30 minutes and not a soul came by to say hello or lend me any help at all. (Even if they had, I doubt they’d know any more about the bikes than I did. Still, a little help would’ve been nice.) I tried my best to decipher between the bikes in stock on my own and left without buying a bike that night. My experience at Dick’s was all flash and no substance.

From the beginning I was uncomfortable making a big purchase at a big box shop, but my experience at Dick’s confirmed it. I wanted to spend my money at a local shop and support a local small business. The big box stores, being run by big corporations far away from my home town, could really care less if I get the right bike. They only want one thing – my money - as much of it as they can possibly get.

The next night I dragged went to a little bike shop downtown in my home town. In the end I spent more than I might’ve at Dick’s. But I’m sure I bought the right bike for me because the shop owner clearly had a passion for bikes and 40 years of experience. You’d be hard pressed to find 40 years of experience at Dick’s!

The Geneva Cycle Shop has been in existence since the mid 1970s. The owner, Ellis G, first opened the shop selling motorcycles. His shop looks virtually unchanged since 1970. Before I entered the shop, Mr. G had already greeted me and asked how he could help. He quickly located two bikes that might meet my needs and told my why, all the while, serving two other customers. A few minutes later he had the tires pumped and ready for me to ride around the parking lot. (Where would I have tried out the bike at Dick’s?)

I selected a bike and promised to return a few hours later to give him time to prepare the bike (adjust the gears; tune up the brakes – would Dick’s have done this?) We returned later and while we waited, we chatted about service at big box shops, politics, the history of his shop. He told me about some great bike trails nearby. And when he was finished he promised to take care of any problems concerning the bike – just bring it back if I need help.

We also talked about technology – Mr G’s technology consists of a telephone and mailbox. That’s the way he likes it and that’s the way he plans to keep it. He takes cash and checks only. Simple. And fabulous.

In the end what I got was all substance and no flash. The extra money I spent bought me an interaction with a new character in my town; a bike that truly fits my needs; info about some great bike trails and a promise to fix minor repairs if I have any problems with it. Priceless.