Congratulations to James Wise (above), Benton Foundry’s 2nd shift Employee of the Quarter. James works in our Shipping and Receiving Department. He has been employed since January of 2015. James lives in Catawissa with his wife Alesha. He enjoys spending time with his wife and four children when he is not working.
Congratulations to Eric Barnes (below), Benton Foundry’s 1st shift Employee of the Quarter. Eric has worked in our Finish-ing Department since February of 2018, as a stationary grinder. Eric lives in Stillwater and he enjoys playing music in his spare time. Thank you both for a job well done!
Benton Foundry held its 24th annual company picnic on Saturday, August 10th at Knoebels Grove. It was a prefect summer day with lots of sun and fun. We had a nice turnout, with 380 attending. There were lots of great prizes, many of which were donated. We enjoyed each others company, good food, games and rides. A big thank you to all that participated in making this event possible.
Keith Provine
Keith is retiring after a 17-year career with Benton Foundry, as our metallurgist. Keith has his BS in Material Science and an MS in Metallurgy. He earned his degrees from Lafayette College and Lehigh University, respectively. He honed his skills during a career that included 15 years as a lab manager at Bethlehem Steel, an 8-year career as lab manager/metallurgist at Doehler-Jarvis and an 8-year career as a melt manager for OZ Gedney. Keith currently lives in Bloomsburg with his wife, Ruth. He and Ruth enjoy visiting their daughters in Pittsburgh and Buffalo. Keith is an avid golfer and he plans on enjoying this sport more during his retirement.
We wish Keith a very happy, healthy and long retirement.
Roger Green
Roger recently retired after 45 years at Benton Foundry. In looking at all current employees, Roger is the longest serving employee. Roger has been a member of the molding department for many years and has contributed greatly over his career in many departments. For years, Roger would come in at midnight to put up the cupola. Roger plans on spending a por-tion of his retirement working in a part-time capacity at Benton Foundry. Roger will continue to share his knowledge and expe-rience with his co-workers. Roger and his wife Mary live outside of Benton. (Mary is also a Benton Foundry employee.) Roger enjoys working as a mechan-ic in his free time, as well as, restoring old John Deere tractors. Roger plans on enjoying these hobbies and spending more time with his friends and family.
We wish Roger a very happy, healthy and long retirement.
Nyman Engel
Nyman retired August 1st, after a 28-year career as a mechanic at Benton Foundry. Nyman has been instrumental in keeping our trucking fleet and company cars on the road. He has also spent count-less hours working on our forklifts and many other items over the years. Nyman enjoys working on vehicles outside of work and plans on continuing that, along with enjoying more camping during his re-tirement. Nyman lives outside of Millville with his wife, Angela.
We wish Nyman a very happy, healthy and long retirement.
Janice Chapin
Janice retired late last year after a 20-year career as a core cleaner in our core room. Janice lives outside of Benton with her husband, Homer. Homer works in our shipping de-partment, on first shift. We wish Janice a long, happy and healthy retirement.
We wish Janice a very happy, healthy and long retirement.
Jim Culver
Jim also retired late last year, after a 20-year career in our pattern shop and our molding department. Jim resides at Harvey’s Lake with his wife, Carol. We wish Jim a happy, healthy and long retirement.
We wish Nyman a very happy, healthy and long retirement.
Thank you all for your hard work and dedication!
The core conventional retirement planning is this: Save, invest intelligently, work as long as practical and if those measures aren’t enough, learn to live on less. For decades, those have been the big levers that the typical person can manipulate to plan for the future.
However, there is something else you can do. It has rarely been part of mainstream discussions of personal finance, which I deeply regret. It is time for you to get political and to start thinking of activism as a behavior equal to saving and investing. This isn’t just my belief. It is the view of a range of experts who argue about many things, but agree on the need for people to start thinking and acting differently about personal finance.
Let me explain why. The best thing most Americans can do to improve their financial prospects in retirement is to insist that Social Security is made financially solid. As I wrote last week, the nation’s core retirement system is moving slowly toward insolvency. Social Security must draw down its assets starting in 2020, officials say, unless government officials act, benefit cuts are coming in 15 years.
Those reductions would be severe, starting at 20 percent and rising. Tens of millions of people would be harmed. The stakes, naturally are highest for those with the least. For half of Americans currently in retirement, Social Security is the main source of income and has kept many people out of dire poverty. For those fortunate enough to have more money in the bank, any cuts to Social Security would still seriously affect their budgets and quality of life.
Solidifying Social Security may be the most important personal finance dilemma that most people will ever face.
The question is, what should you do about it:
The program’s fiscal issues have long been known and the traditional advice has basically been: Make the best of it. To that, I’d add: Speak up and demand action from the people who are or want to be your elected representatives.
As Alan K. Simpson, the former Republican senator from Cody, Wyoming told me “Nobody in politics, and I mean nobody, really wants to deal with Social Security a second before they have to.” He added, “People have to stand up and make their voices heard or nothing will happen until it’s too late.”
Ordinary Americans have an opportunity really, an obligation to force this debate to occur. “This is now a big enough issue that I think people should actually become politically active and let their congressmen and senators know how they feel about this program and how they think the financial shortfalls should be filled,” said Alicia Munnell, the director of the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College. “I cannot think of a more serious problem going forward than the fact that benefits might have to be cut by 25 percent if we don’t have some political action.”
Professor Munnell, an assistant secretary of the Treasury and member of the Council of Economic Advisers in the Clinton administration, says Social Security should be repaired solely by increasing tax revenues – not by cutting benefits, which, she says, most Americans simply cannot afford to lose.
Mr. Simpson, on the other hand, says a combination of tax increases and benefit cuts are needed, though says this solution isn’t popular. “Everybody and his brother will jump all over you,” he said, “I’ve been there!” A full-blown crisis has drawn close enough to make it worth the effort of trying to force the political class to pay close attention. Ask your elected representatives what they intend to do about Social Security, but expect to hear something like this: “No problem, we’ll fix it, don’t worry, there will be no benefit cuts.”
“Unless you force them,” Mr. Simpson said, “the politicians won’t even try to fix it until the last minute.”
It’s not hopeless. Bipartisan Social Security agreements have occurred in the past. President Ronald Reagan, a conservative Republican and the speaker of the House, Thomas P. O’Neill Jr., a liberal Democrat achieved one in 1983, but only after older people rebelled at the prospect of imminent benefit cuts. Members of Congress received an avalanche of calls and letters from their constituents and organized labor and the AARP vowed to put pressure on elected officials.
The Reagan-O’Neill Social Security fix effectively cut benefits by, in part, raising the so-called “full or normal” retirement age from 65 to 66 now, and 67 eventually. There is a paid incentive to work until 70: 8 percent annual benefit increases for every year you delay filing past your “full” retirement age.
The “full” age might be raised further in a future fix, Mr. Simpson says that is among the measures that would need to happen if direct benefit cuts are to be avoided.
Jeff Sommer
The New York Times
Did you know that Capital BlueCross offers free preventive services to help you kick tobacco products for good? From 180-day prescription services to smoking cessation counseling, you won’t be alone. All you have to do is try – we’re here to help with the rest!
Here’s why it’s important to quit – more than 16 million Americans are living with a disease caused by smoking. For every person who dies because of smoking, at least 30 people live with a serious smoking-related illness. What are these diseases? Cancer, heart disease, stroke, lung diseases, diabetes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (which includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis). Smoking also increases risk for tuberculosis, eye diseases and immune system diseases.
Helping yourself is huge, but when you quit, you can help others too. Secondhand smoke contributes to 41,000 deaths among nonsmoking adults and 400 infants each year. It can cause stroke, lung cancer and coronary heart disease in adults. Children specifically are at risk for sudden infant death syndrome, acute respiratory infections, middle ear disease, severe asthma, respiratory symptoms and slowed lung growth.
Positive things happen to your body after 20 minutes without smoking.
- 20 minutes without smoking will lower heart rate
- Eight to 12 hours without smoking increases your blood oxygen levels
- 48 hours without smoking improves your taste and smell
- Two weeks to three months without smoking will lower your risk of heart attack
- One to nine months without smoking will improve your breathing and you’ll cough less
Why are effects so immediate? Tobacco smoke contains a deadly mix of more than 7,000 chemicals; hundreds are harmful and about 70 can cause cancer. People who stop smoking greatly reduce their risk for disease and early death. With Capital BlueCross by your side, quitting is within reach. You got this!
Chewing Tobacco & Other Forms of Smokeless Tobacco – Get the Facts
T hey’re more harmful and addictive than you might think. Chewing tobacco and other smokeless tobacco products may be perceived as safer than cigarettes or other smoked tobacco products because they aren’t linked to lung cancer. Smokeless tobacco products are often promoted as a safer option. These products, however, result in some of the same risks as cigarettes, as well as additional health risks. There are no harmless tobacco products.
Chewing tobacco is a common type of smokeless tobacco. Nicotine is absorbed through the soft tissues of the mouth and in some cases swallowed.
All tobacco products contain nicotine, the chemical that makes the products addictive. Also, there are as many as 28 different chemicals, which are either present in tobacco or which form during the production process, that have been identified as cancer-causing agents (carcinogens). These substances in smokeless tobacco products have been linked to well-documented risk of disease.
The levels of nicotine circulating in the bloodstream are about the same for people who smoke cigarettes and those who use chewing tobacco. However, unlike smoked tobacco that is used periodically during the day, smokeless tobacco is often used constantly, exposing users to high levels of nicotine throughout the day, resulting in high levels of dependence. Just as with smoking, withdrawal from smokeless tobacco causes symptoms such as intense cravings, increased appetite, irritability and depressed mood.
The use of chewing tobacco and other smokeless tobacco products increases the risk of oral cancers – cancer of the mouth, throat, cheek, gums, lips or tongue. There’s also an increased risk of cancers of the pancreas and esophagus.
Mayo Clinic
A few fascinating facts about Monarch butterflies:
The surface of a Monarch’s wing is covered with thousands of tiny, colorful scales. These tiny scales on the wings have been studied by biologists and aerospace engineers alike to better understand how they affect flight. Loss of these scales is what causes Monarchs to lose their color. After flying for a long period of time, these scales will fall off and the Monarch’s wings will appear faded or even clear.
The Monarch’s studded gold chrysalises are created by the coupling of a carotenoid pigment and a hill-like structure that reflects light from the peaks. They get the carotenoids from their diet of milkweed.
The Monarch caterpillar is a voracious eater and they can gain about 2700 times their original weight! Monarchs must consume a lot of food in a short amount of time in order to have enough food stored to go through metamorphosis. Monarchs literally outgrow their skin FIVE times. These sheds or molts are called “instars”. Once the caterpillar has reached their fifth instar, they will find a place to pupate.
Two black spots on the inside surface of their hind wings distinguish male Monarch butterflies from the females. Females generally have thicker veins on their wings and they do not have the two black spots
If you notice a female on a milkweed plant, they are most likely laying their eggs there. You can then bring those leaves inside to raise your own Monarchs.
One female Monarch butterfly can lay an average of 300 – 500 eggs in the wild. Captive monarch butterflies average about 700 eggs per female over 2 to 5 weeks of egg laying, with a record of 1179 eggs in captivity.
Monarch butterflies smell and taste with their antennae and legs which are covered with sensory cells called chemoreceptors. These chemoreceptors help Monarchs find milkweed to lay their eggs on. Like Monarchs, when we smell and taste we are actually sensing chemicals in our environment. We also have chemoreceptors, which are concentrated on our tongue as taste buds and in our nose. Monarchs use sensing chemicals in order to find their host plant, milkweed, quickly and accurately.
An overwintering Monarch typically lives 7-8 months compared to other generations that only live 2-6 weeks. During the summer breeding season, monarchs live for only 2-6 weeks. The monarchs that migrate to Mexico in the fall are different: They are born in late summer, stay alive all winter and mi-grate north the following spring.
Article – Rebecca Chandler
https://www.saveourmonarchs.org
Visit this site for further information and sources
Photographs were taken by Kevin Trychta outside the foundry where monarchs and their caterpillars were enjoying our milk-weed.
The duality of our industry existing in harmony with the most delicate of life.
“Fall driving means more deer are active and more people are driving on darker roads due to the shorter daylight hours,” says Jen Stockburger director of operations at the Consumer Reports Auto Test Center. Deer are most active at dawn and between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m., so use your high beams, Stockburger says. If you are about to hit a deer, don’t swerve, just brake. Swerving can cause you to lose control or crash into another car, both scenarios that could result in more injury than striking an animal. Don’t count on aftermarket deer whistles that attach to front bumpers to scare them off; deer reaction is too unpredictable. Though automatic emergency braking and forward collision warning can help, your seat belt is still the best defense for minimizing injury. Past research has found that more than half of people killed in animal-vehicle collisions weren’t wearing their seat belts. Also, be extra vigilant in high-risk states, such as West Virginia, Montana and Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania is the third most likely state.
Consumer Reports / State Farm Deer-Vehicle Collision Study 2017/2018
Bloomsburg Fair Winterfest
November 29 – December 1st
Small Business Saturday
November 30, 2019
Buy Local
Berwick Christmas Boulevard
December 1 – 31st
Lego Family Night
Second Thursday of each Month
6:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
All Welcome – Bloomsburg Public Library
Columbia County Lyme Disease Support Group
Third Thursday of each Month – 6:00 p.m. –8:00 p.m.
The group offers monthly meetings to provide support, education and resources to the community about Lyme disease and other tick-borne infections. – Meetings are open to all.
North Columbia Community & Cultural Center
Hosted by Vine Pharmacy
Why do we say something is out of whack?
What is a whack?
We appreciate the efforts of all our employees who have been working a large amount of overtime to meet customer needs.
As a result of all of this effort, we have poured more iron per shift during the quarter ending 09/30/2019 than ever before. We now hope to eliminate bottlenecks that showed up during this timeframe. We believe that we can accomplish this by working smarter, not harder. If you have any suggestions, please let us know.
In the words of Mia Hamm, retired professional soccer player and two-time gold medalist:
“Celebrate what you’ve accomplished, but raise the bar a little higher each time you succeed.”
Remember that summer day camp costs qualify for the dependent care credit. If you sent your child to any day camps this summer, such as those for sports, computers, math, theater or just general fun, don’t forget about this tax break. The same goes for camps to help improve your child’s reading or study skills. However, expenses for summer school, tutoring programs and overnight camps don’t qualify. Before and after school care programs are also eligible for the credit.What is in every episode of Seinfeld somewhere?
Answer will be in 4th Quarter 2019
2nd Quarter Question & Answer:
“The best things in life aren’t things.”
