The Foreign Service Journal, May 2017

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | MAY 2017 53 STAY INFORMED. STAY CONNECTED. Getting the Most Out of Your Social Security Most AFSAmembers now retire under the Foreign Service Pension System, for which Social Security is a major component. With the Social Security provisions of the 2015 Bipartisan Budget Act closing off some options, AFSA invited Social Security expert Ed Zurndorfer to dis- cuss the changes, how they affect FSPS members and how to get the most out of Social Security. More than 50 people attended the March 2 discus- sion at AFSA headquarters. Mr. Zurndorfer began his presentation by reminding the audience that Social Security does not only refer to the well- known retirement benefit, but also disability, survivor and Medicare benefits. He reviewed a number of topics, including how to calculate your retirement benefits, your choices on how and when to start receiving benefits and federal taxation of your benefits. Following the presenta- tion, Mr. Zurndorfer answered questions from the audience. A video of the event is avail- able at the AFSA website, www.afsa.org/video, and additional resources about Social Security planning and other matters of interest to our members are available from www.afsa.org/retiree. n Social Security expert Ed Zurndorfer discusses the different types of social security benefits at the March 2 event at AFSA headquarters. AFSA/GEMMADVORAK Retiree Outreach in Action Retired Ambassador Lange Schermerhorn spoke at the Goodwin House retirement community in Alexandria, Virginia in late March. Her talk, “Climate Change and Diplomacy,” was enthusiasti- cally received by the highly informed attendees, who asked numerous questions given the news that the Trump administration was about to issue an executive order on climate change. The lecture was arranged through AFSA’s Speakers Bureau by retired FSO Pierre Shostal, a resident of Goodwin House. Allen Keiswetter , a retired Foreign Service officer, joined members of the Greenspring Great Deci- sions program in Springfield, Virginia, to discuss “Saudi Arabia in Transition.” Mr. Keiswetter, a Middle East expert and frequent lecturer at AFSA Road Scholar edu- cational programs, engaged with an inquisitive audience who had many questions about oil, Islamic extremism and the recent changes in the Saudi royal family. Ambassador (ret.) Michael Cotter met with almost 50 members of the Carolina Meadows retirement community in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, to talk about dissent and the Foreign Service. This discussion occurred shortly after heavy media coverage of a State Depart- ment dissent channel message on the president’s immigration executive order, and Amb. Cotter used the opportunity to talk about the long history of dissent in the Foreign Service and why it’s important to maintain that kind of conduit for opposing views. Retired AFSA member Tom Longo will meet with young 4-H participants at Purdue University’s extension program in West Lafayette, Indiana, in June. The focus of the discussion will be how to stay globally engaged in America’s heartland. AFSA particularly appreci- ates that Mr. Longo volun- teered for this engagement, as 4-H is one of AFSA’s national outreach partners, allowing us to tell the story of the Foreign Service and why diplomacy matters to an audience that often does not get the opportunity to inter- act with American diplomats. If you are interested in joining the Speakers Bureau, or inviting one of our speak- ers to come to an event, information is available on the AFSA website, www.afsa. org/speakers. Or if you are part of a retiree group and want to tell AFSA about what you are doing, contact us at member@afsa.org . n —Ásgeir Sigfússon, Director of Communications