I call this issue 66A as we skipped naming an issue 65; so we will catch up, and the next issue will be 67.  In a couple of weeks, we will be heading for Minnesota\Wisconsin for the summer, returning in September in time for the USC/OSU game.  There will be no interruption of the Newsletter, as Len will be handling the June and August issues and I will come to you from the upper Midwest in July and September.  I will see what my friends Ole, Sven, and Lena are up to.

I attended an event honoring USC Senior VP Dennis Dougherty last week.  It was a very nice event, and Dennis received the many accolades he deserved as he retires at the end of June.  He will be greatly missed by the University.  The SRA will also miss him as he has been a strong supporter.  I believe we can count on the continued support of his replacement, Todd Dickey.


FROM SRA PRESIDENT CAROLE GUSTIN

A big THANK YOU to Dick Martin for organizing our Theatre Party.  Carousel was brilliantly performed by USC students.  It was an enjoyable afternoon.

Thanks, again, to Louise Ball for her masterful coordination of the annual Staff Recognition Luncheon in March.  We honored 76 retirees, who served a total of 1,499 years (average 20 years).  Over the past three years, 222 staff have retired with a total of 5,120 years of service.

You will be receiving the next Emeriti Ccnter Retiree Community Newsletter early in June.  Be sure to note the information about our June meeting.  Lynn Williams arranged for a presentation on Antarctica.  Jeanne and Bob Church are working on lunch that will follow the program.  THE DATE IS JUNE 16.  TIME:  11:00 a.m.  RSVPs to 213-740-7122.

It's dues time, again.  You will soon receive notice that annual dues checks and updated information should be sent.  Life members will be asked for contributions.  The one big difference is that this year there is the possibility to contribute to the new SRA Endowment.  Those contributions will receive an official USC letter that confirms they are tax-deductible.  I have been asked to explain what an endowment is and how it works.  I hope that the paragraph below is helpful.

An endowment account is established for a particular purpose that will survive into the future.  The University agrees to accept that purpose as within the mission of the University.  The University stands safeguard to assure that the funds go for that purpose and invests the funds as part of its regular endowment pool.  California's Attorney General provides oversight of the University.  The University assures that none of the principal from gifts made to that endowment (at the time it is created or subsequently) are spent, but each year authorizes a certain percentage of the yield produced by the endowment as a whole to be spent on behalf of the purposes for which gifts have been made.  The University provides strong investment oversight and typically earns a substantially greater yield than bank investments.  As a tax-exempt institution, USC does not have to pay any tax to the federal or state government.  In recent years, the University endowment fund earned in excess of 12 percent annually, while permitting up to 5 percent to be spent in the following year.  The key advantage is that none of that yield is lost, since the difference between what is spent and what is available to spend is reinvested in the endowment to increase its value.  This means that the gift has a strong chance of being carried forward into the future rather than being eroded by inflation.  USC's strong institutional professional investment advice and freedom from taxation benefit the SRA's investment.

Trojan ENCORE Update:  On April 29th, Janette, Diana Seyb (Employee Recruitment), and I met with four SRA retirees (Mary Arrendondo, Sharon Cuthbert, Bill Mann, and Christine Shade), two Hiring Managers (Steve Wagner, LAS Business Office, and Laura Carlos, Graduate School), and Barbara Elwood, who is both a retiree and hiring manager.  We learned a lot about how best to develop our software, questions we need to ask, and of whom to ask the questions.  It is a big step forward, but we still have work to do.  Look for another update in June.

Carole Gustin
<cgustin@usc.edu>


HOPEFULLY HELPFUL TIPS

POTENTIAL HONDA HYBRID BUYERS — If you buy it before June 30, you will receive 50 percent of the full hybrid tax credit.  Depending on the model, the tax credit would from about $650 to $1,050.  From July 1 until the end of the year, a buyer will be able to claim 25 percent of the original credit.  On some hybrids, you can still qualify for a full tax credit.  Check it out at <http://www.IRS.gov>.  (In the Search Box at the top, type in "Hybrid Auto Tax Credits," and then look a couple of items down the new page.

CELLPHONE RECYCLING — If you have an old cellphone you want to get rid of, you can recycle it.  Logon to <http://www.gooddeedfoundation.org/aarp> and follow what are called "the easy prompts."

SAFEGUARD FINANCIAL DETAILS — You can download a free brochure at <http://www.finra.org/investor/keepingtoyraccountsecure> that describes steps that investors can take to safegard their financial accounts and help prevent identity theft.  It is titled "Keeping Your Account Secure."  (Kiplinger's Retirement Report, April 2008, page 10.)

NO NEED TO RENEW — If you signed up for the National Do Not Call Registry in 2003, you do not have to renew after five years like we were first told.  The Federal Trade Commission expects to make registration permanent.  (Kiplinger's Retirement Report, March 2008, page 9)

SCAMS ON TAX REFUNDS — Those of you lucky enough the have a tax refund coming beware of a call from someone claiming to be from the IRS and asking for personal and financial information.  If you get such a call, hang up.  The IRS never sends unsolicited email or gathers such information by telephone.  As always, check your credit card statements carefully.

CHECKING UP ON A DOCTOR — The three Web sites listed below are listed by Money Magazine (4/2008) as the best Web sites to check on a doctor: Check a doc's credentials at <http://www.Abms.org>.  Check on Dr.'s experience in a certain area of medicine at <http://.www.Vitals.com>.  Find average cost by area at <http://www.HealthGrades.com>.

FREE CREDIT REPORTS — For a FREE annual credit report from each of the three credit reporting companies once a year, go to <http://www.annualcreditreport.com>.  DO NOT go to any other site unless you want to sign yourself up for monthly credit checks at a price.  I thought they would never fool me, but they did.  I forgot what I am telling you above, and I went to <http://www.freecreditreport.com>.  (There are several others with "Free" in the address.)  I got a "free" credit report, but I did not read the fine print.  Unless you cancelled out within seven days, you were signed up for a monthly credit report for $29.95.  I found this out when it showed up on my credit card statement.


We will end this newsletter on a religious note.

CHURCH BULLETIN BLOOPERS!

These sentences are reported to have appeared in church bulletins or were announced in church services:

Ladies, don't forget the rummage sale.  It's a chance to get rid of those things not worth keeping around the house.  Don't forget your husbands.

For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs.

Barbara remains in the hospital and needs blood donors for more transfusions.  She is having trouble sleeping and requests tapes of Pastor Jack's sermons.

The ladies of the Church have cast off clothing of every kind.  They may be seen in the Church basement on Friday afternoon.

The Rector will preach his farewell message after which the choir will sing: "Break Forth Into Joy."

Irving Benson and Jessie Carter were married on October 24 in the church.  So ends a friendship that began in their school days.


C L A S S I F I E D  A D S
(Listed in order of receipt)

None this month.

[To have your free ad appear in the next issue, please send to <len@winesland.net> before the first of the month.]


_______________________________________

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*The content of this E-mail Newsletter is for the information of the members of the USC SRA.  It is not a University of Southern California official publication.  There is no intent to promote any particular product or point of view.  Personal decisions regarding health, finance, exercise, or other matters should be made after consulting with the reader’s own professional advisors.