Military Officer - June 2006 - (Page 24)

rapidfire Spotlight Scholarship Attention! Check out these military-related entertainment offerings. BOOK >> Fallujah, With Honor (Caisson Press, 2006): Gary Livingston uses personal accounts to describe the First Battalion, Eighth Marine’s attack into Fallujah as part of Operation Phantom Fury. MUSIC >> Voices From the Frontline (Crosscheck Records, 2006): This hip-hop album, featuring original material from U.S. military personnel serving in Iraq, reveals the difficult reality of life for the troops. It includes 12 musical tracks and 12 spoken-word vignettes. BOOK >> The American Civil War: 365 Days: From the Library of Congress (Abrams, 2006): Margaret E. Wagner draws from the collections of the Library of Congress to portray the epic drama and grand sweep of America’s watershed domestic crisis. T he next time you call MOAA’s headquarters, the person on the other end of the line may be 23-year-old Courtney Landwermeyer, a former MOAA scholarship recipient turned employee. How long have you worked at MOAA? I began working in MOAA’s Member Service Center (MSC) in June 2005. Where did you go to college? I received a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Texas A&M University. You received several volunteer awards in college. Are you still volunteering? Yes, I volunteer at the chapel at Fort Belvoir, Va., coach a kids’ soccer team, and teach children to swim. I love working with kids because you can see them improve and learn, and that’s really rewarding. How has The Scholarship Fund of MOAA helped you? My dad received orders to Japan before my junior year in high school, but my parents decided he would go unaccompanied so I wouldn’t have to switch schools. Even though he made that sacriﬁce, it still was a burden ﬁnancially because we were running two households. When it came time for college, the interest-free loans I received from the scholarship fund helped me alleviate some of the burden instead of adding to it. What are your future career plans? I’m starting graduate school this fall, and I plan to get a master’s degree in public administration. Eventually I’d like to run for public ofﬁce. — Kris Ann Hegle W Bond Funds Got You Down? ith 15 straight short-term interest rate hikes in a row by the Federal Reserve (as of March 2006), are bond mutual funds the place for short- to intermediate-term money? Maybe not. Unlike individual bonds, where there is no principal risk if held to maturity (assuming good quality bonds and no default), bond funds carry the risk of principal loss, particularly in a rising interest rate environment. Returns on many top-rated bond mutual funds over the last 12 months have been a measly 1 percent to 3 percent. With yields on short-term CDs approaching 5 percent or more, rotating money out of suffering bond funds and into a short- to intermediate-term CD ladder may provide better returns and lower risk. When interest rate policies change — as they inevitably do — and rates start heading back down, then bond funds may prove to be more attractive. MO RESOURCES ■ Need a financial advisor? The Garrett Planning Network provides hourly, fee-only financial planners. MOAA members receive a 20-percent discount on hourly fees with participating planners. PHOTO: STEVE BARRETT

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Military Officer - June 2006

Military Officer - June 2006 Contents From the Editor President’s Page Your Views MOAA Directory Rapid Fire Washington Scene Financial Forum Ask the Doctor Chapter Activities MOAA Member Services Living Well 5 Foods for Life The Kindest Cut Winning the Battle Cover Story: Choppers Pages of History Information Exchange Advertising Index MOAA Scholarship Donors Member Books MOAA Calendar Sounding Taps Encore

Military Officer - June 2006

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