James “Bud” Willard Placek, 73, of Captain Cook, Hawai‘i, died September 18 at Kona Community Hospital. Born in Belleville, Illinois, he was an electrical engineer for the Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawai‘i Authority, U.S. Air Force retiree, member of the U.S. Air Force Reserve and member of the Hawai‘i Air National Guard.
Internment with military honors 9 a.m. Monday, November 4, at West Hawai‘i Veterans Cemetery in Kailua-Kona.
Survived by wife, Melvamae Placek of Captain Cook; sons, Colin Placek of Captain Cook, Justin Rickard of Honolulu, Christopher (Ashley Mello) Placek of San Diego; brother, Richard (Debbie) Placek of Arkansas; sister, Penny (Harold) Schmidt of Columbia, Illinois.
Arrangements by Dodo Mortuary.
Retiree News extends heartfelt sympathy to his family and friends.
Forrest Clay Fanning, 73, of Hilo, Hawai‘i, died at the Hawaii Care Choices Pohai Malama Care Center on Thursday, August 15, 2019. He was born in Nashville, Tennessee and was a Seafood Clerk with Malama Market and was the Seafood Manager at the former Sure Save Supermarket. He was also a Veteran of the US Army and the Hawai‘i Air National Guard.
Private family services were held.
He is survived by his: Wife, Darling Wilson-Fanning of Hilo, Hawai‘i; Sons, Wayne Fanning of Honolulu, HI and Brian Fanning of Hilo, Hawai‘i; Sister, Anita F. (Arnold) Ausenbaugh of Nashville, Tennessee; Step-Sons, Flynn (Emily) Wilson of Mountain View, Hawai‘i and Israel Wilson of Hilo, Hawai‘i; cousins, nieces, nephews and two step-grandchildren.
Retiree News extends heartfelt sympathy to his family and friends.
This current photograph of the Hawaii Air National Guard alert facility shows one of the F-22 Raptors standing alert.
The alert facility was dedicated on October 22, 1958. The 199th Fighter Squadron and their F-86 Sabers began 24-hour active air defense alert at 0001 on October 23, 1958. Since then, the hanger facility has housed F-86s, F-102 Delta Daggers, F-4 Phantoms, F-15 Eagles and the current F-22s.
The groundbreaking for the new F-22 Aerospace Control Alert (ACA) Facility was held on February 18, 2019. When the new facility becomes operational, the old hanger will be demolished.
Related Retiree News posts:
A bank or brokerage can’t just take your money when you die. If you don’t have a will or other estate plan, the laws of your state determine who gets the value in those accounts.
Your digital assets are a different story. Your online photos and videos, frequent flyer miles, cryptocurrency and other digitally stored files may well disappear without a trace if you don’t make a plan to pass them along.
Your digital assets are a different story. Your online photos and videos, frequent flyer miles, cryptocurrency and other digitally stored files may well disappear without a trace if you don’t make a plan to pass them along.
Conversely, some stuff you may prefer to shut down or keep private — emails and texts, social media accounts, dating app profiles — could be shared or hacked unless you take steps to secure the information.
From the U.S. News & World Report website
Many Medicare beneficiaries need glasses, hearing aids and dental work, but Medicare typically won’t pay for any of these services.
This undated photograph shows three 199th Fighter Squadron pilots (L-R): George Duncan, John “Moon” Carroll, and James “Kimo” Moncrief.
John Carroll’s flight suit appears to be a lighter color because during the 1960s, flight suits were orange. Clint Churchill comment, “I recall wearing orange flight suits in 1969 and 1970 but not after that.” Rick Richardson added a more detailed comment:
As you know the F-102 was used extensively by Air Defense Command and the orange flight suit was thought to be good for the command since it was easy to see when a pilot bailed out. The 199th used it too for we thought we could be seen if we bailed out over the ocean until we heard that sharks could also see us too because of the contrast in color. But it became a moot point during the Vietnam War.
On the right shoulder of John’s flight suit is the Deuce patch. It was red with a yellow deuce silhouette.
The each of the 199th Fighter Squadron flights had identifying colors: A-Flight – red, B-Flight – blue, C-Flight – yellow, and later, D-Flight – green. Those were the colors of the flight’s ball capes and scarfs.
Special Thanks to Clint “Church” Churchill, Joseph “Primo” Ah New and Edward “Rick” Richardson for providing ID and comments for this post.
From the Honolulu Civil Beat website
One of Civil Beat’s most popular features, the database of public employee salaries, is now complete for the 2020 fiscal year, which began July 1. They update the salary database when new union contracts are signed, and new budgets are put in place reflecting salary increases.
The 2020 data base includes the addition of 8,000 City & County of Honolulu workers. This recent Civil Beat article discussed these salaries. The article also has links to stories about other public official’s salaries.
As more Boomers are becoming caregivers themselves for their parents and loved ones, the realities of the costs and work involved are sinking in. It’s time to make a plan for yourself.
Baby boomers are living longer than ever before. In fact, as a nation, we are getting grayer and grayer. The U. S. Census states that, “Already, the middle-aged outnumber children, but the country will reach a new milestone in 2035. That year, (they project) that older adults will edge out children in population size: People age 65 and over are expected to number 78.0 million, while children under age 18 will number 76.7 million.”
Many baby boomers have remained ignorant of the challenges of living longer and of the need to make the necessary preparations for this phenomenon. Have baby boomers saved enough to take care of themselves as they age?
The simple answer is: no. In fact, it’s NO.
From the Hawaii Magazine website
Visitors may not realize this, but Hawai‘i residents have a lot of superstitions. And they go far beyond “if you break a mirror you’ll have seven years of bad luck.”
Hawai‘i’s society is a thriving blend of cultures—food, drink, language, fashion, and with all that also comes superstitions. Some agreed upon, some conflicting—such is the nature of living in a melting pot. Growing up here in Hawai‘i it can be hard to keep up with all of them; even the most menial and tedious of tasks can be riddled with mystery: When can I cut my nails again? How am I supposed to eat this? Was I supposed to make eye contact with that? Wait, what even was THAT?
There isn’t a single culture that’s immigrated to Hawai‘i that hasn’t also brought with it the spiritual folklore of their origin. Mix that in with the supernatural history that has already existed here by ancient Hawaiians and you get an extensive list of “do’s” and “don’t’s.”
We compiled these in maybe the best and perhaps only way possible … asking friends, family and co-workers to relay superstitions to us as they remember them that they still carry with them everywhere, in and out of Hawai‘i.
When Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr., D-N.J., visited a senior living center in Englewood, New Jersey, last week, he had one main focus: Social Security reform.
Speaking to a room full of older Americans, Pascrell painted an urgent picture of what needs to happen in order to shore up the nation’s insurance program.
“Social Security is not going to die in the next couple of years,” Pascrell said. “But in about 10 years, it’s going to have to go into the trust to pay benefits.
Clutter addiction is a problem that effects up to five percent of Americans, many of whom are seniors. The problems can range anywhere from moderate messiness to hoarding so severe it may be related to a mental health disorder like obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Here’s what you should know, along with some tips and resources that can help.
From the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs website
Visitors to The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., can see a collection of Veteran portraits on display through Nov. 15.
The collection is Portraits of Courage: A Commander in Chief’s Tribute to America’s Warriors, painted by another Veteran, President George W. Bush.
The collection highlights 98 men and women out of the approximately five million post-9/11 Veterans. The exhibit showcases 66 full-color oil portraits and a four-panel mural painted by the former president, himself an Air Force Veteran.
From the Money Talks News website
Uncle Sam hopes to offer some relief soon to seniors who hate poring over federal tax forms crammed with words and boxes.
The IRS recently released the second draft of a new federal tax return, called Form 1040-SR or “U.S. Tax Return for Seniors.”
The new form features large print and streamlined boxes in an effort to simplify the tax-filing process for Americans ages 65 and older.
If you are age 65 or older, there are two different flu vaccines available this flu season that are designed specifically for you. One option is the Fluzone High-Dose, and the other is the FLUAD vaccine. You only need to get one of them.
These FDA-approved vaccines are designed to offer extra protection beyond what a standard flu shot provides, which is important for older adults who have weaker immune defenses and have a great risk of developing dangerous flu complications.
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