October 2017 – WWII Planes and the “Noise” in our Economy

Dear Friends,

 “Come on, it’s going to take off in a few minutes!” Shannon said. Shortly afterwards I heard a loud roar and caught glimpses of a WWII bomber streaking by the open door of an airplane hanger at a new airplane museum north of Seattle, Washington. It was a “Mosquito,” a British twin fuselage light bomber that was very versatile and heavily used during WWII. We were visiting a recently opened museum recommended to us and it was amazing. Every plane in the museum is flight-worthy. The only planes that do not get flown are a few “one of a kind” which, if crashed, would be impossible to replace. The second I walked into the doors, I knew this was a different museum because I smelled engine oil dripping off all the engines. They all had oil pans under the engines to catch leaks. I was almost in heaven! :-)

The sound of the Mosquito taking off was deafening as it rattled the buildings and vibrated the ground. It was awesome! I immediately thought of a striking comment in a recent WWII documentary I saw. It was filmed on the Missouri battleship at the Japanese surrender ceremonies that officially ended WWII in the Pacific. (And saved another million lives by the way, but that’s another story…) I was vicariously there, having been on the Missouri and having seen this event in films and pictures many times over the years. The commentator said that, at the exact moment the Japanese officials began to sign the documents of surrender, there was a huge flyover of 1500 planes from all the Allied Forces. They included bombers, fighters, cargo planes, and everything that could fly. He stated that the sound and spectacle was so overwhelming that even hardened combat veterans fell on their knees and lifted their hands to the sky, thanking God the war was over!

In all the years of studying WWII, I had never heard about that display of air power. I was totally impressed by one light bomber taking off. I can not imagine the cacophony of sensations 1500 WWII-era planes would have made. I can imagine that it was overwhelming though. Thank the Lord they belonged to the Allies!

I also thought of the situations we all go through today. We are definitely in a different society than the WWII era, yet we truly are bombarded with so much more information and demands on our attention than ever before. Not to compare our life situations with the sacrifice of our military both then and now and in between, because their commitment to serve us always amazes me. How blessed we are to live in this country! But at the same time, I talk to a lot of folks that just seem shell-shocked by the financial information that constantly barrages and, at times, overwhelms them. It can literally paralyze people into inactivity. That means financial matters are ignored or pushed aside because there is just too much noise and conflicting voices, all speaking at the same time.

I understand those feelings. Sound, collaborative, practical advice is sometimes hard to find or accept these days. I want to encourage you to not give up if you find yourself in this situation. Simply starting a conversation with someone who is ready to listen without any pressure to commit can be liberating. That’s why we do not allow any sales pressure in our meetings. It is a time for discussion, peace, and understanding. If you feel a need to talk to someone, please consider that we are here to help.

SEND US YOUR NEWS!!

Have things changed for you — new home, new phone number or email, new child, family changes? Do you need to change or review your beneficiaries? Please take a moment and send an email to rzimmerman@cfdinvestments.com We may simply need to update our files, but certain types of information should also be reported to the companies who hold your investments. Let us help you stay up-to-date!

We consistently add people to our mailing list who we think may benefit from the material. If this is one of your first newsletters, WELCOME!! We hope you enjoy it! We try to be informative and share our thoughts and our lives with you. We know you are busy and also realize that perhaps you are served well by another adviser and don’t “need” to hear from us. If that’s the case and you’d rather not receive these mailings, feel free to email rzimmerman@cfdinvestments.com or call us at 419-358-4207 to ask to be removed.

SOME RILEY CREEK ARBOR NEWS

The arbor offered free admission to the Suter Corn Maze on October 8 in exchange for food donations to the Bluffton Area Food Pantry.

Gary recently received the Fraternal Agent of the Year award from Gleaner for his involvement as a Gleaner agent and helping to start the Riley Creek Arbor. As a result, he was able to direct $1000 donation to the Bluffton Community Preschool in September. He was acknowledged at the Gleaner Convention in Traverse City, MI in October.

In November, the arbor will be opening a Financial Library at Faith Investment Services’ office at 122 N. Main St, Bluffton. The library will be available during hours office is open (Tues-Fri 9-1 pm) and will feature adult and children’s books on managing money, stewardship, investing, and more. For more information or to donate items in good condition, please call 419-358-4207 or email kdunlap@cfdinvestments.com

NEWS THAT MAKES A DIFFERENCE

Faith Investment Services is working with Ebenezer Mennonite Church in Bluffton and Cable Road Alliance Church in Lima to facilitate a “Work as Worship” conference February 23, 2018 for Christian business people to integrate their work with their faith. This one-day simulcast retreat will cost $25 per attendee. Speakers can be seen at www.workasworshipretreat.org Please watch our e-newsletters, social media, and the mail for information after Christmas.

We have a new staff member at Faith Investment Services—Orrie Augsburger. Orrie works with us part-time while completing a bachelor degree in business with a Certificate in Financial Planning and working full-time at a local business. He was active duty Air Force (USAF) for 4 years. He is married to his wife, Tamar, and lives in the Bluffton community. We are very pleased to have him join our staff after completing an internship with us this past summer.

EVERPLANS

We are very happy to announce a new value-added service to our clients and friends called EVERPLANS. Everplans is a simple, step-by-step guide through legal, financial, healthcare and personal decisions—a tool that ensures your wishes are met and your loved ones aren’t left with hassles.

It is a discussion starter to help you have important conversations with your parents or children. It is an online organizer. It is a place for personal letters of blessing to pass to your family upon your death. It is a password vault and document storage tool. It is a way to express your funeral wishes and elaborate on your inheritance desires. It is a place to record a “moral will” of those intangible values you’d like to pass on to the next generation.

Guidance: Get help organizing your vital documents and final wishes. Everplans guides you through everything from taking care of your will, to keeping usernames and passwords. It gives you tips to organize documents and shows you what to save.

Secure Storage: Save all your information safely and in one place. Everplans operates like an electronic safety-deposit box, but it’s safer and smarter because it allows you to keep a scanned copy of your information in a totally secure—yet instantly accessible location.  Share only what you want and designate who gets to see it. Pick “deputies” who can access your documents and information—family members, friends and other beneficiaries or professionals—and ensure that even after you’re gone, you maintain control.

Email kdunlap@cfdinvestments.com to request your complimentary membership. Your Everplan is the easiest, most important plan of your life. Get started today!

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SOCIAL SECURITY AND HOW IT INTEGRATES WITH YOUR OTHER INCOME SOURCES

How do you learn about Social Security and the way it works? From friends? On the TV? By talking to a Social Security representative?

There are things that you NEED to know before you make decisions about when to draw Social Security and we can help. How will working part– or full-time affect your benefits? How much can you earn without causing your benefits to be taxable? What income sources can you receive without negatively affecting Social Security?

Because Social Security and other income sources are inter-related, it is important to talk to someone who is an expert and who has your best interest in mind. Let Gary review your total situation and help you make good decisions during your retirement transition.

Call today to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation.

HOW INHERITED IRAs WORK

A beneficiary can be any person or entity the owner chooses to receive the benefits of a retirement account or an IRA after he or she dies. Beneficiaries of a retirement account or traditional IRA must include in their gross income any taxable distributions they receive.

IRA Beneficiaries

Inherited from spouse. If a traditional IRA is inherited from a spouse, the surviving spouse generally has the following three choices:

1) Treat it as his or her own IRA by designating himself or herself as the account owner.

2) Treat it as his or her own by rolling it over into a traditional IRA, or to the extent it is

     taxable, into

1. Qualified employer plan,
2. Qualified employee annuity plan (section 403(a) plan),
3. Tax-sheltered annuity plan (section 403(b) plan),
4. Deferred compensation plan of a state or local government (section 457(b) plan), or

 3) Treat himself or herself as the beneficiary rather than treating the IRA as his or her own

If a surviving spouse receives a distribution from his or her deceased spouse's IRA, it can be rolled over into an IRA of the surviving spouse within the 60-day time limit, as long as the distribution is not a required distribution, even if the surviving spouse is not the sole beneficiary of his or her deceased spouse's IRA.

Inherited from someone other than spouse. If the inherited traditional IRA is from anyone other than a deceased spouse, the beneficiary cannot treat it as his or her own. This means that the beneficiary cannot make any contributions to the IRA or roll over any amounts into or out of the inherited IRA. However, the beneficiary can make a trustee-to-trustee transfer as long as the IRA into which amounts are being moved is set up and maintained in the name of the deceased IRA owner for the benefit of the beneficiary.  Like the original owner, the beneficiary generally will not owe tax on the assets in the IRA until he or she receives distributions from it.

Roth IRAs

Generally, the entire interest in a Roth IRA must be distributed by the end of the fifth calendar year after the year of the owner's death unless the interest is payable to a designated beneficiary over the life or life expectancy of the designated beneficiary.

If paid as an annuity, the entire interest must be payable over a period not greater than the designated beneficiary's life expectancy and distributions must begin before the end of the calendar year following the year of death. Distributions from another Roth IRA cannot be substituted for these distributions unless the other Roth IRA was inherited from the same decedent.

If the sole beneficiary is the spouse, he or she can either delay distributions until the decedent would have reached age 70½ or treat the Roth IRA as his or her own.