Mountain Views News          Saturday, November 14, 2015

11

THE GOOD LIFE

 Mountain Views News Saturday, November 14, 2015 

SENIOR HAPPENINGS

REQUIRED IRA AND 401(K) 

WITHDRAWAL RULES FOR RETIREES


HAPPY BIRTHDAY! …November Birthdays*

Flo Mankin, Alberta Curran, Carmela Frontino, Kathy Wood, Lena Zate, Joe 
Pergola, Janice Kacer, Valerie Howard, “Mike” Ruggles, Joan Ruggles, Lois Stueck, 
Jean Wood, Shirley Yergeau, Kathi Jefferson, Pat Krok, Irene Nakagawa, Anna Ross, 
Mary Steinberg and Sue Quinn. *To add your name to this distinguished list, 
please call the paper at 626.355.2737. YEAR of birth not required

...................................................................

ACTIVITIES: Unless listed differently, all activities are at the 
Hart Park House (Senior Center) 222 W. Sierra Madre Blvd., Sierra Madre

 

 Activities at the Senior Center

 YWCA San Gabriel Valley - Intervale Senior Cafe 

Seniors 60 years of age and up can participate in the YWCA Intervale 
daily lunch program held at the Hart Park House Senior Center. Meals are served Monday through 
Friday at 12:00 pm and participants are encouraged to arrive by 11:45 am. Meals are a suggested 
donation of $3.00 for seniors 60 and over or $5.00 for non-senior guests. Daily reservations are 
necessary, space is limited. Please reserve your lunch by calling 626-355-0256.

Tech Talk: Held on Monday, October 19th and 26th from 1:30-2:30pm. Learn how to use your new 
technology devises. Please reserve your space with the Hart Park House by calling 626-355-7394. 

 

Hawaiian and Polynesian Dance Class: Every Tuesday morning from 10am to 11am. Join 
instructor Barbara Dempsey as she instructs you in the art of hula. 

 

Bingo: Every Tuesday beginning at 1:00pm. Cards are only $0.25 each! Everyone is welcome to 
join. May be canceled if less than 5 people. 

 

Free Blood Pressure Testing: 2nd Tuesday of the month from 11am to 12pm. No appt. is 
necessary. 

 

Brain Games: Thursday, October 15th, 10:30am - 11:30am, improve your memory and strengthen 
your brain. Activities facilitated by Swati Puri, Community Liaison for New Wave Home care of 
Pasadena. 

 

Free Legal Consultation: Wednesday, October 21st from 10:30am to Noon. Attorney Lem 
Makupson is available for legal consultation. He specializes in Family Law, Wills, Trusts, Estates, 
and Injury. Appointment are required by calling 626-355-7394. 

 

Chair Yoga: Mondays and Wednesdays from 11:00 to 11:45 am. A suggested donation of $5 at one 
of the classes is requested, but is not required. 

 

Case Management: Meets the 2nd Thursday of the month. Case Management services are 
provided by the YWCA and provide assistance in a variety of areas. Appointments are required 
and can be scheduled by calling the HPH Office at 626-355-7394. 

 

Birthday Celebrations: Every second Thursday of the month at the Hart Park House. The free 
birthday cake is provided by the Sierra Madre Civic Club. 

 

Game Day: Every Thursday starting at 12:00pm. (Please note the time change.) A regular group of 
seniors play poker. Other games available for use. 

 

Free Strength Training Class: Every Friday from 12:45pm to 1:30pm with Lisa Brandley. The class 
utilizes light weights for low impact resistance training. All materials for the class are provided. 

 

Senior Club: Every Saturday at the Hart Park House Senior Center. Brown bag lunch at 11:30am. 
Club meeting at noon. Bingo 12:30-3:30pm. Annual Membership is only $10.00. 

CANDLELIGHT PAVILION (CLAREMONT) 

 HOME FOR CHRISTMAS

DATE: FRIDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2015 

TIME: 10:30AM - 4:00PM 

MEETING LOCATION: HART PARK HOUSE SENIOR CENTER 

COST: $75.00 (LUNCH IS INCLUDED) 

 

Description: Ben D. Bollinger’s Candlelight Pavilion Dinner Theatre in Claremont provides 
patrons with a dinner theatre and musicals for a theatrical experience the caliber of the 
Broadway shows in downtown LA. The gourmet food prepared by the executive chef and served 
by his formal wait staff ranks the Candlelight Pavilion Dinner Theatre as a fine food restaurant 
that rivals any fine dining establishment in Los Angeles and San Bernardino. For 30 years, the 
Candlelight Pavilion has written and produced each of its Christmas shows with a focus on 
the spirit of Christmas and bringing family and friends together. Appropriate dress requested: 
Jackets for gentleman, tie optional, dress or dressy pant suits for ladies, no jeans, t-shirts or 
tennis shoes. Price includes lunch, show and gratuity. Level of Walking: Low. Last day to register 
is November 2nd. Please call the Hart Park House at (626)-355-7394. 

Excursion Refund Policy 

Notification of the cancellation must be made at least 3 business days before the excursion. A refund 
will only be issued 1) for a medical excuse or 2) if the Department is able to fill the patrons spot 
from a waiting list. This refund will be issued in the form of a credit which will be applied to the 
patron’s account with the City, less a $11 cancellation fee. The credit will remain on your account for 
one year from the date issued and the credit may be used for any program or service offered by the 
Community Services Dept. 

Dear Savvy Senior,

Can you give me the details on required IRA and 
401(k) distributions? I turned 70 this year, and 
want to be clear on what I’m required to do, and 
when I’ll have to do it. 

Planning Ahead

Dear Planning,

The old saying “you can’t take it with you” 
is definitely true when it comes to Uncle Sam 
and your tax-deferred retirement accounts. 
Here’s what you should know about required 
retirement account distributions along with 
some tips to help you avoid extra taxes and 
penalties.

 

RMD Rules

Beginning at age 70., the IRS requires all seniors 
that own tax-deferred retirement accounts – 
like traditional IRAs, SEP IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs, 
SARSEPs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s and 457s – must start 
taking annual required minimum distributions 
(RMDs), and pay taxes on those withdrawals. 
The reason: The IRS doesn’t want you hoarding 
your money in these accounts forever. They want 
their cut. Distributions are taxed as income at 
your ordinary income tax rate. 

 There are, however, two exceptions. Owners 
of Roth IRAs are not required to take a 
distribution, unless the Roth is inherited. And 
if you continue to work beyond age 70., and 
you don’t own 5 percent or more of the company 
you work for, you can delay withdrawals from 
your employer’s retirement plan until after you 
retire. But if you have other non-work-related 
accounts, such as a traditional IRA or a 401(k) 
from a previous employer, you are still required 
to take RMDs from them after age 70., even if 
you’re still working. 

RMD Deadlines

Generally, you must take your distribution 
every year by Dec. 31. First timers, however, 
can choose to delay taking their distribution 
until April 1 of the year following the year you 
turn 70.. So, for example, if your 70th birthday 
was in March 2015, you would turn 70. in 
September and your required beginning date 
would be April 1, 2016. But if your 70th birthday 
occurred later in the year, say in August, you 
wouldn’t turn 70. until 2016. In that case, you 
would be required to take your first distribution 
by April 1, 2017. 

 But be careful about delaying, because if you 
delay your first distribution, it may push you 
into a higher tax bracket because you must take 
your next distribution by December 31 of the 
same year. 

 Also note that you can always withdraw more 
than the required amount, but if you don’t 
take out the minimum, you’ll be hit with a 50 
percent penalty on the amount that you failed 
to withdraw, along with the income tax you owe 
on it. 

Distribution Amounts 

Your RMD is calculated by dividing your tax-
deferred retirement account balance as of Dec. 
31 of the previous year, by an IRS estimate of 
your life expectancy. A special rule applies if 
your spouse is the beneficiary and is more than 
10 years younger than you. 

 IRA withdrawals must be calculated for each 
IRA you own, but you can withdraw the money 
from any IRA or combination of IRAs. 403(b) 
accounts also allow you to total the RMDs and 
take them from any account or combination of 
accounts. 

 With 401(k) plans, however, you must 
calculate the RMD for each plan and withdraw 
the appropriate amount from each account. 

 To calculate the size of your RMD, you can 
use the worksheets on the IRS website – see irs.
gov/Retirement-Plans and click on “Required 
Minimum Distributions.” Or, contact your IRA 
custodian or retirement-plan administrator 
who can do the calculations for you.

 For more information, call the IRS at 800-
829-3676 and ask them to mail you a free copy of 
the “Distributions from Individual Retirement 
Arrangements” (publication 590-B), or see irs.
gov/pub/irs-pdf/p590b.pdf.

 

 Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, 
P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit 
SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to 
the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy 
Senior” book.


UPCOMING EXCURSIONS:

KATIE Tse..........This and That

SUNDAY PUNDAY!

* The following is very, VERY 
corny. Proceed at your own 
risk. Also, you may not “get it” 
if you are not of a certain age. 
Other 
than that, knock 
yourself out!

 A guy walked into 
a Vegas casino and sat 
down at a slot machine. 
A cocktail waitress 
came by and he ordered 
a drink. As she walked 
away he noticed that 
her dress had a fancy 
parrot design and said 
“Parrot Bar.” When 
she returned with his 
drink, it, too, was in a 
festive parrot patterned 
glass with a matching 
parrot coaster. After 
sitting there a while 
he won $50! When he 
redeemed his voucher 
the receipt said, “Thank 
you for playing Parrot Slots!” He then decided 
to place some bets at the sports book. There 
also, he noticed a recurring parrot theme on 
the score cards and pencils. Overall he won 
$100 on football and horse racing. The cashier 
thanked him for betting in the Parrot Sports 
Book. Feeling lucky, the man meandered over 
to a black jack table. After two or three games he 
won $200 at Parrot Black 
Jack. Excited to see how 
long his luck would hold 
out, he then played a 
few rounds of Parrot 
Roulette and won $400. 
Just when he was ready 
to leave the casino, he 
noticed that a crowd had 
formed around a table 
where they were playing 
a game he had never 
seen before. Intrigued, 
he decided to join 
the next game. Each 
player was dealt cards 
and then had to come 
up with combinations 
using their cards and 
dice. Try as he might, 
he could not get the 
hang of it. A young lady 
sat down next to him and was about to pay to 
join the game when the man gave her his cards 
instead, saying, “You may as well take my hand. 
I’m a stranger in Parrot Dice.” 


SENIOR CINEMA - 1st and 3rd Wednesday Shown at the Hart Park House Senior Center

November 18 - Seven Days in Utopia (2011) 

 

Luke Chisholm (Lucas Black) is a young golfer who’s about to take a 
swing at the big time. Luke, however, has a big blow up that makes 
national news, drives away his father/coach, and seemingly scuttles 
his once-promising career. While driving along a Texas backroad, 
Luke crashes through the fence of eccentric rancher Johnny Crawford 
(Robert Duvall). Johnny makes Luke an irresistible offer: spend a week 
with him in the tiny town of Utopia and see if Luke can change his life. 
Rated G. Start time 1:00PM (run time 1h 40m). 


LUNCH AND HOME DELIVERED MEALS PROGRAM

Seniors 60 years of age and up can participate in the YWCA San Gabriel Valley Intervale daily 
lunch program held at the Hart Park House. Meals are served Monday through Friday at 12:00pm 
(participants are encouraged to arrive by 11:45am). Meals are suggested donation of $3.00 for 
seniors 60 and over or $5.00 for non-senior guests. Reservations for lunch must be made at least 
24 hours in advance by calling 626-355-0256. The Meals-On-Wheels program offers hot meals 
to homebound seniors within the community. Meals are delivered at the door, Monday through 
Friday. For more information on this program, contact the YWCA San Gabriel Valley Intervale 
program at 626-214-9467.

LIFESAVERS PARAMEDIC SUBSCRIPTION PROGRAM

The Sierra Madre Lifesavers Paramedic Subscription Program is an official program offered by 
the City of Sierra Madre which offsets the cost of emergency medical responses. The membership 
program is available to residents of Sierra Madre. Your subscription to the program will perform 
similar to a secondary insurance plan, with no out-of-pocket cost to you. Subscriptions are 
$60.00 per individual (July 1 – June 30). For additional information contact The Sierra Madre Fire 
Department 626-355-3611. 

626-355-5700245 West Sierra Madre BlvdSierra Madre, CA 91024www.TheKensingtonSierraMadre.comRCFE License198601953Join us for “A Night on the Town”
A musical tour of cities of the world,
featuring talented studentsof the Connie Washburn StudioThursday, November 19, 2015 from 6:00pm-7:30pmat The Kensington, 245 West Sierra Madre Blvd, Sierra Madre, CAHors d’oeuvres and refreshments servedRSVP to SSciurba@KensingtonSL.com or 626-355-5700YOUR INVITATION TO BE ENTERTAINED AT THE KENSINGTONPleaseRSVP
Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com