The lead story in the Second Quarter 2009 issue of TI Alumni
News is the May 11 TIAA Annual Meeting at the Meyerson
Symphony Center. Because of high printing and mailing costs,
printed versions of the newsletter are now mailed only to
current TIAA members. However, all former TIers can view and/or
print out a copy of the newsletter using the TIAA website. A
downloadable version of the newsletter can be accessed at
www.tialumni.org/news. The eNews
bulletin announcing the availability of each newsletter is sent to all TI Alumni
who provide us with an email address. If you know
of any former TIers who might want to be put on this email list,
have them contact TIAA at 214-567-8444 or
admin@tialumni.org.
We’ll be happy to add them to our email list.
May 13 TIAA Seminar
On Wednesday, May 13, 1 – 3 p.m., TIAA and Zanda Hilger will
conduct a seminar on “Age Related Medicine Management and
Sensory Loss” in Collinwood Rooms 2 & 3, Plano Centre, 2001 E.
Spring Creek Parkway, Plano. Learn better ways to manage
medications and to communicate more effectively with doctors and
other health-care providers. Also, learn how common sensory
losses like hearing, vision, taste, touch and smells are
experienced as we age and new options for dealing with
them. Learn resources for older adults and family members who
help them. Zanda Hilger provides caregiver education, support
groups and individual counseling for family caregivers on behalf
of area agencies in North Central Texas, Dallas
and
Tarrant
Counties
. Admission is free, but reservations are required because
of limited seating space. Please phone TIAA at 214-567-8444,
press 3, and leave your name, phone number, and number of seats
needed.
Blue Cross Blue Shield Website
If you’re a member of the BCBS PPO, you may be interested in the
wealth of information available on their website
www.bcbstx.com.
You’ll need your identification number and the group number from
your BCBS ID card to set up a password-protected account. Once
your account is set up, you can view or print out any of your
Explanation of Benefits (EOBs) by clicking on Visits & Claims.
Since Medicare only mails out their EOBs quarterly now, you can
often learn about Medicare payments quicker by reviewing the
BCBS EOB, which also states what portion of the bill is your
responsibility. In addition, the site allows you to download
forms and to find a doctor or hospital. If you have trouble
setting up your account, you can contact the BCBS internet help
desk at 1-888-706-0583.
Life and Work After TI Seminar
About 140 recently retired and riffed TIers packed the room at
an April 6 seminar by the Ex-TI Network that provided practical
help in making the transition from TI and in obtaining other
employment or going into business for themselves. TIAA helped
publicize the seminar and paid for the meeting room at Plano
Centre. The presentations can be viewed at
www.tialumni.org/seminar.
Free
Collin College
Courses
Collin
College is presenting a free series of Career
Strategies Courses that may be of interest to recently – and
some not-so-recently – retired and riffed TIers. Each course
consists of one or two sessions from to at the
Courtyard
Center campus at 4800
Preston Park Blvd. in Plano . The
courses include: Starting a Blog, 2 sessions: April 27,
May 4; Steps to Take if You Lose Your Job, May 6; How
to Use Social Media in Your Job Search, June 3; Career
Strategies and Planning, July 1; and Marketing Yourself,
Aug. 12. To register or if you would like to obtain more
information, go to
www.ccccd.edu/ce/courselistings/careerstrat.html.
Another TI First
It is fairly well known that the integrated circuit, the
transistor radio, and the handheld calculator were developed at
TI. But did you know that closed captioning was also developed
at TI? Public Broad-casting contracted with TI 32 years ago to
design a device that would allow the deaf to read what was being
said on the air. Bill Kastner developed and built the first
decoder that makes closed captioning on television possible.
Bill’s decoder worked perfectly the first time it was tested.
Initially, it was thought that the decoder would be a separate
– and expensive
– adjunct to a television set. In 1993, however, the FCC
ordered that all television sets 13 inches or larger should have
a built-in closed-caption decoder. Use of closed captioning
exploded. Click here to read more
about Bill and view a television news story about him.
May TIAA Travel & Events
Mrs Baird’s Bakery Tour –Tuesday,
May 5 –
The smell of fresh-baked bread can’t be beat and it will be a
nostalgic trip down memory lane for many of us who were raised
on Mrs Baird’s Bread. Even with today’s technology, each loaf of
bread is twisted to ensure that it’s moist and flavorful. Come
see and taste for yourself. Rules include covered legs, no
open-toed or heel-out shoes like flip-flops, no jewelry, and no
video cameras. We will leave the Texins Activity Center parking
lot at 10:30 a.m. and arrive in Fort Worth for lunch at Stars
Café in the Stockyards at your own expense, and then to Mrs
Baird’s for the 12:45 p.m. tour. We should return to Texins
about Cost is
$15 for members and $17 for nonmembers. Please call Jessica
Stewart at 214-567-8444 to register by April 28.
TIAA Health & Wellness Resources
Did
you know that the TIAA website www.tialumni.org
makes health and wellness information readily available? Under
the "Benefits" column at the top, click "Health Excellence". You
can access information on health benefits for both TI and
Raytheon. You will also find information on specific health
topics from hearing to heart. If you have a question about a
medical term or a medicine, this page provides answers. Maybe
wellness is your focus. Links to the
Texins Activity
Center 's programs and
the Wellness & Prevention Newsletter are provided.
