ISSUE ͳ CenturyLink To Continue Retiree ‘Cap” for...

Retiree Guardian—2012 Issue 2 June 1 Colorado—Wyoming—New Mexico Edition

“To preserve and protect the pension and benefits that we earned.” — AUSWR Mission

CenturyLink To Continue Retiree ‘Cap” for Post-1990 Medicare Management

5-Year Agreement “To Not Reduce Health Benefit”

2012 ISSUE 2

Mary Ann Neuman, AUSWR NWB leader, and Glen Post, President and CEO of Centu-ryLink meet at the 2012 Annu-al Shareholders’ meeting at the company’s headquarters in Monroe, Louisiana, in May.

Thanks to CenturyLink’s Tam-my Matthews for the photos. For the full story and more photos, go to page 3.

In what is called a “partnering proposal,”

AUSWR and CenturyLink announced that man-

agement Medicare-eligible retirees (and eligible

spouses and dependents) who retired after 1990,

now have their health care subsidy payment

(known as the Cap) protected through March 31,

2017. Non-Medicare management who retire

after 1990 are included in the Agreement.

The post-1990 Medicare-eligible man-

agement retirees were eliminated from the Com-

pany health care plan in the 2012 Open Enroll-

ment period at the end of last year and shifted to

the Medicare open market to select a plan avail-

able in their area.

CenturyLink provides a reimbursed

monthly subsidy for the Medicare costs of the

selected plan.

The Company and AUSWR worked to

create this proposal and together stated that they

believe the Legacy Qwest Post-1990 Manage-

ment Retirees “will be pleased and will appreci-

ate the joint efforts to provide some stability in a

climate of increasing changes to health care.”

For the detailed Questions & Answers for this

agreement, go to page 8.

INSIDEINSIDEINSIDE

Page 2 AUSWR President Appreciation Pages 3 and 4 CenturyLink Annual Shareholders Meet-ing 2012 Page 5 Help to Access the Service Center Page 6 A Tale of Two HRA’s Page 7 Q & A on “The 5-year Agreement” Page 8 Retiree Advocate State Listings Pages 9-12 Local Pages


Retiree Guardian Staff

AUSWR Regional & Arizona Editor: Kitty Kennedy

Tel: 520-883-8272 / cell 520-444-6617

Email: [email protected]

Barbara Wilcox, AUSWR Colo/Wyo, reports retiree health care issues — Email your health care questions to: [email protected]

Colo/Wyo/New Mexico Editor: Pamela Davis

Tel: 303–932-7533


Utah/Idaho/Montana Editor: Susan Johnson

Tel: 801-963-6220


Oregon/ Washington Editor: Gary White

Tel: 253-952-4612


IA/MN/NE/ND/SD Editor: Jerry Miller

Tel: 763-424-3524 Email: [email protected]

AUSWR President’s Message

Appreciation is the theme of my message for this edition.

First —thanks for the good working re-lationship that our AUSWR leadership team has developed with the leaders of CenturyLink. Witness “the Agreement” that we mutu-ally hammered out working together over the past months that will protect the health care subsidy (known as the Cap) for post-1990 management retirees, spouses and dependents

and the $10,000 Life Insurance until March 2017. Now those retir-ees will know how to plan for the immediate future. Read the details of this Agreement on pages 8-9. (Of course the pre-1991 retirees continue to be protected by the Phelps Settlement and are not affected by this new Agreement.)

Next thanks for the AUSWR leaders: Mary Ann Neuman, Ha-zel Floyd, Jim Heinze and Curtis Kennedy, who attended the Centu-ryLink Annual Shareholders’ Meeting in Monroe, Louisiana, on May 23. That’s no easy trip from Denver or Minneapolis. AUSWR was very well represented by well-spoken voices acting on behalf of our membership. Read their report on pages 3-4.

Last, my thanks goes to the CenturyLink staff led by Marina Pearson, Vice President of Compensation & Benefits, who have worked so closely with our organization to help retirees make the transitions that followed the 2012 Open Enrollment. The change of the post-1990 management Medicare-eligible re-

tirees to the open market and the associated reimbursement process seems to be working well.

Recently we fixed a mistake for those pre-1991 retirees who ex-pected a full Medicare Part B monthly reimbursement but found their payments short. Read about the fix on page 6 —and if you are affected take action.

And PLEASE take action on continuing the “missing” beneficiary problems as described below.

___Mimi

2011– 2012 AUSWR Officers

President —Mimi Hull (Colorado)

Treasurer —Roger Sanger (Arizona)

Secretary —Eve Mary Verde (Utah)

Retiree Advocate Ombudsman — Jim Heinze (Colorado)

Litigation Attorney — Curtis L Kennedy

Retiree Guardian Regional Editor —Kitty Kennedy (Arizona)

2011-2012 Board of Directors and State Leaders:

Arizona President

Kitty Kennedy — tel 520-883-8272


Colorado/Wyoming Presidents

Hazel Floyd — tel. 303-455-1535


Bob Rucker — 307-632-8470


New Mexico President Irene Chavira —tel. 505 352-6666


IA/MN/NE/ND/SD Chair

Mary Ann Neuman —tel. 763-535-3865


OR/WA President Judy Stenberg —tel. 425-746-5248


UT/ID/MT Chair

Donnetta Mitchell —tel. 801-269-9997 Email: [email protected]

Mimi Hull

AUSWR President

Life Insurance Beneficiary “Missing”

PLEASE check and confirm the Life Insurance beneficiar-ies on your Group Life Insurance. We continue to hear that about “lost or missing” beneficiary problems. Be sure to make contact with the Service Center or go on-line and confirm that your beneficiaries are the right ones. Easy instructions to access the Service Center are on page 5.


CenturyLink Annual Shareholders’ Meeting On May 23 in Monroe, Louisiana, at 10

o’clock in the morning, the first Centu-

ryLink annual meeting since the mer-

ger with Qwest convened in the corpo-

rate headquarters. There to see and

hear it all were AUSWR leaders, Mary

Ann Neuman (NWB Chairperson), Ha-

zel Floyd (Colorado/Wyoming Co-

President), Jim Heinze (Retiree Advo-

cate Ombudsman) and Curtis Kennedy

(Litigation Attorney).

Below is a collabora-

tive report from our

AUSWR attendees.

Upon entering the

“conference room” it

became obvious that

this was more than an

annual shareholder

meeting as almost all

of the 500+ chairs in

what appeared more

like a hotel grand

ballroom were occu-

pied. It became fur-

ther obvious during

the presentation by

CenturyLink Presi-

dent and CEO Glen

Post III that it was

more like a pep rally for the employees, who filled most

of the chairs, than a report to shareholders. It can be as-

sumed that the employees are probably shareholders as

well.

William Owens, non-executive Chairman of the

Board of Directors presided over the meeting and was

joined at the dais by Glen Post, Stacey Goff, Executive

Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary; and Mark

Asbury, Judge of the Election.

Owens did the introductions and called the meet-

ing to order, describing aspects of the proceedings to be

followed, recognizing various shareowners with long-

standing ownership and asking the employees present to

raise their hands – leaving few others in attendance. This

process was a noticeable difference from past U S WEST

and Qwest annual meetings.

Stacey Goff, as Secretary for the company, gave

his necessary report on materials available for the meeting

and verification that a quorum of ownership was repre-

sented, and identified the four candidates to be elected at

this meeting for one-year terms. It is note-

worthy that only one member of the Board

of Directors is a former Qwest director,

Michael Roberts, a former officer of the

McDonald’s corporation.

Owens then introduced the other

members of the Board of Directors who

were present with only two of them unable

to attend and concluded the introductions

by having the nine leaders of the company

stand for individual recognition.

Then the eight agenda matters re-

quiring a vote of the share-

holders were presented by

Owens. He started with

the first five proposals

which were recommended

for approval by the Com-

pany. Next on the agenda

were the proxy proposals

submitted by shareholders.

The first share-

holder proposal was pre-

sented by Ralph Maley,

national CWA Vice Presi-

dent on behalf of the CWA

Members’ General Fund,

which dealt with a bonus

deferred policy for the

senior executives. Maley

is familiar to AUSWR

leaders because he is a

NRLN Board member with Mary Ann Neuman and Judy

Stenberg.

The next shareholder proposal was presented by a

representative for the Trillium Asset Management LLC

requesting a semi-annual report dealing with the corporate

political contributions.

The final shareholder proposal was presented by

Hazel Floyd, President of AUSWR Colorado. Her pro-

posal would require that future grants of long-term incen-

tive awards to senior executive officers in the form of per-

formance-based restricted shares will vest and become

payable only if Total Shareholder Return equals or ex-

ceeds the median performance of the company peer index

selected by the Board of Directors.

There were no questions following the presenta-

tion of the first five agenda items but after each of the

three shareholder proposals, Owens gave a response of the

company’s position recommending a vote against each

(...continued on the next page…)

CenturyLink’s Stacey Goff (center) with AUSWR attendees Mary Ann

Neuman (L), Jim Heinze, Hazel Floyd, and Curtis Kennedy at the Annu-

al Shareholders’ Meeting May 23

CenturyLink Corporate Headquarters

Monroe, Louisiana


(...continued from the previous page…)

one. He then asked if anyone present was voting in person

whereupon twelve CWA representatives (each wearing a

red shirt with the CWA logo) proceeded to register their

votes with the Secretary and Judge of the election.

While Goff and the election judge were tabulating

the updated results of the votes cast, Post gave a presenta-

tion on the company’s past year performance and plans for

the future – the focus going forward to be in three recently

formed Groups: Enterprise Markets, Regional Markets

and Wholesale Markets. Slides depicting numerous statis-

tics detailed the company’s four key strategic initiatives:

Broadband expansion, Prism TV, Fiber to Tower service

and Managed Hosting & Cloud services. He then made

brief mention of the company’s past three major acquisi-

tions: Embarq, Qwest and on July 15, Savvis, Inc

At the end of his presentation Post entertained

questions and comments from the floor:

—Five CWA employees asked for his response to issues

dealing with the increases in healthcare costs and concern

over existing bargaining negotiations. His response to

each was, not surprising, along company lines of protect-

ing the competitive position in the marketplace, and intent

to bargain in good faith.

The final person to address Post at this point in the meet-

ing was our own Mary Ann Neuman who delivered a

statement commending the company’s top management

and Board of Directors for their willingness to listen to our

concerns – both as retirees and as shareholders, expressing

appreciation for the amendments to the benefit plans stated

elsewhere in this issue of the Retiree Guardian.

Neuman went on to request the company continue

to work with AUSWR and be mindful of the cost of

healthcare increasing each year and that as a result of the

cap being stabilized a higher share of the costs will be

borne by retirees each year.

Neuman concluded her statement by further com-

mending the Board for at least partially adopting the share-

holder proposal she had submitted on behalf of AUSWR

concerning the ‘Golden Goodbye’ severance agreements.

AUSWR withdrew the proposal in December 2011 at the

request of CenturyLink after the Company Compensation

committee announced a new severance policy stated in

their proxy statement.

Neuman did state that AUSWR still has a mission

to protect retiree interests and would continue to author

proxy proposals in the future that would benefit retirees

and shareholders.

The meeting was then turned back over to Owens

who called for the results of the voting tabulated by Goff

and the election judge. All of the company recommended

proposals were approved and adopted.

The three shareholder proposals all failed includ-

ing our own; voting results are as follows:

CWA proposal: 28.85% in favor 70.18% against

AUSWR proposal: 27.16% in favor 71.89% against TAS Mgmt. proposal: 37.75% in favor 54.14% against

(Note: Some shareholders abstained)

At this point the formal meeting was adjourned.

However Owens asked if there were any general com-

ments on matters not presented during the meeting.

Curtis Kennedy eloquently expressed the concern

over the under-funded status of the pension fund, citing

specific company-provided data in the CenturyLink Annu-

al Financial report, noting the “unfunded gorilla is more

like a monkey on the backs of the retirees”.

In year 2011 CenturyLink contributed $500 mil-

lion to pension plan funding. However, this year Century

Link reports it plans to contribute less than $50 million,

even though there is a huge deficit of $1.7 billion, includ-

ing over $900 million under-funding with the Qwest Pen-

sion Plan. Curtis pressed CenturyLink leaders not to turn

away from this huge problem, one that received hardly any

attention in the company’s annual report and proxy state-

ment, and is a matter rarely discussed at shareholder meet-

ings. Both Owens and Post gave a response to Curtis’s

plea for more attention to pension plan funding by agree-

ing that the Board would re-look at the situation.

Ralph Maley restated the benefits concerns ex-

pressed during the meeting by the CWA attendees who

represented the 18,000 union members nation-wide.

Miscellaneous Notes of Interest

- This annual meeting began with a prayer. (Not done in

previous U S WEST, Qwest annual meetings)

- Following the prayer Owens paid tribute to the 100 em-

ployees who had died during the past year, especially not-

ing the close relationship the Board had to one of them

who had been their van driver.

- Post and Owens gave some attention to keeping the for-

mat somewhat friendly to the attendees by including a few

humorous remarks and even a joke at the expense of two

of the senior executives.

- The CenturyLink corporate headquarters is a beautiful

structure inside and outside.

- There were no disruptions of any kind during the meet-

ing, but there were several CWA members from across the

country who picketed outside of the building in their red

shirts.

- After the meeting we were able to arrange a “photo op”

with Goff and Post. It was at that time of meeting them

individually that we were able to complement Marina

Pearson and her staff for the cooperation and partnership

we have with them and our Retiree Advocacy program in

resolving retiree benefit issues and each of them responded

that they were very much aware of the valuable services

AUSWR provides.


Service Center: Here’s How to Access It Report by Martha Deahl, Arizona Retiree Advocate

First, I’d like to thank all of the retirees for

their patience during my first couple of months as the

new Arizona Retiree Advocate. Jim Heinze,

AUSWR Retiree Advocate Ombudsman, shares his

knowledge, experiences, and dedication —and makes

the RA job a lot easier. I have found the CenturyLink

Service Center representatives and the staff in Centu-

ryLink Human Resources to be very responsive and

helpful.

Many retirees seem to be having difficulty

understanding the menu options when calling the

CenturyLink Service Center at 1-800-729-7526.

Hopefully, the following instructions will help

you, the retiree, when making your call. If you are

unable to make the call yourself, another person may

represent you. But, you must be available in person

or on the phone to give the Service Center representa-

tive permission to access your private information

and discuss it with your representative.

Before you call have the following infor-

mation at your fingertips:

-Your Social Security Number

-Your Date of Birth

-Your Current Address and Zip Code

And… -Your password

If you are unable to locate your password or

you don’t know it, don’t worry. When prompted for

your password just say “I don’t know it”. Hint: Your

password must be 8 digits.

If you are using the CenturyLink web site:

www.centurylinkhealthandlife.com your call-in

password will be the same as the one you use on-line.

After reaching a Service Center representa-

tive, you may need to establish a new password to

access certain information.

The service Center representative will send

you a postcard to reset your password which will take

about 5 days.

After you receive the postcard, call the Ser-

vice Center (1-800-729-7526) and when prompted

enter the temporary password.

You will be able to create your own personal

password with the Service Center representative on

this call.

Reminder: Keep your password in a safe place with

your other documents for future use because without

your password, it may delay accessing your important

information.

To call the CenturyLink Service Center: Dial 1-800-729-7526

Press 2 – For Former CenturyLink Employee (includes all retirees)

Press 1 - For Medical, Life, Dental, Vision,

—Choose this option if you want to report a Retiree’s Death,

or access your HealthCare Reimbursement Account (HRA)

Press 2 - For 401K

Press 3 – Pension or Pension Payroll After making your selection you will be asked to enter the following:

The last 4 digits of Your Social Security number

Your Date of Birth in this format XX/XX/XXXX

Now you will be asked what you are calling about:

Healthcare, Life or Disability, Commuter Benefits,

Healthcare Reimbursement Account, Report a Death,

or other benefit questions?

—You will be asked to please hold and a representative will join your call.

CL

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‘A Tale of Two HRAs’ by Barbara Wilcox, AUSWR CO/WY Health Care Specialist

[REMEMBER: HEALTH BENEFITS ARE

PROTECTED BY THE PHELPS SETTLEMENT

FOR ALL PRE-1991 AND ERO RETIREES ]

When CenturyLink offered new health care options to

Post-1990 Management Retirees for 2012, we were intro-

duced to Health Reimbursement Accounts (HRAs), some-

thing that U S WEST/Qwest retirees had not seen before.

Those not on Medicare had the option to choose between

two Company plans, either a Preferred Provider Organiza-

tion (PPO) plan or a Consumer-Driven Health Plan

(CDHP).

The CDHP provides an HRA to help pay out-of-pocket

expenses, such as coinsurance or co-pays for doctor visits,

prescription drugs, etc.

Post-1990 Management Retirees who are on Medicare

were given an HRA to help pay premiums for plans they

enrolled in to replace the Company plan.

These two HRAs work differently from each other, which

has caused some confusion.

In this article, I’ll give some background information on

HRAs and lay out the differences between the two HRAs

CenturyLink is offering to Post-90 Management Retirees.

Q. What is an HRA?

A.The Health Reimbursement Account (HRA) is one of

several programs set up by Congress to give individuals

and employers tax advantages for health care costs. The

HRA is funded entirely by the employer. It is available

only to present or former employees and their qualified

dependents, who receive reimbursement tax-free for quali-

fied medical expenses. See IRS Publication 969 for more

information.

Q. Who decides things like, how much money goes

into the HRA, what medical expenses will be reim-

bursed, whether any unspent balance will roll over in-

to 2013?

A. The employer.

Q. What decisions has CenturyLink made about

these features of the HRAs it offers Post-90 Manage-

ment Retirees?

A. CenturyLink has set completely different rules for

the two different HRAs. The table below gives a sum-

mary of how they differ from each other.

Note: I have compiled this information from documents

issued by CenturyLink, however this article is not an

official CenturyLink document. If you have questions,

call the Service Center and ask about your Benefits.

CenturyLink HRAs for Post-90 Management Retirees CDHP-Related HRA HRA for Medicare-Eligible

Who is eligible Post-90 Management Retirees not on Medicare

who choose the CDHP medical plan

Post-90 Management Retirees on Medicare

Administered by The insurance company Your Spending Account division of Aon Hewitt

Amount for 2012 $1000 – Retiree only

$1500 – Retiree + spouse or partner or child

(children)

$2000 – Family

$1740 for each Medicare-eligible adult (retiree,

spouse, and/or dependent)

Reimbursed for Covered medical expenses, e.g. office visits,

prescriptions, lab tests

Premiums for Medicare Advantage, Medigap or

Medicare Prescription Drug Plan

Debit card Yes – Consumer Account Card (CAC) No

Unused balance car-

ried over to next year

Yes, if you continue in the CDHP No

Reimbursement and

payment processes

1. Automatic payment to provider when claim

is approved.

2. Use CAC at time of payment.

3. Submit receipts and claim form.

1. Automatic reimbursement if you signed up for

your Medicare plan through Aon Hewitt Navigators

or Extend Health.

2. If you signed up directly with the insurance com-

pany, submit proof of payment and claim form each

month.


2012: Legacy Qwest Post-1990 Management Retiree Company Health Care Caps

(Dollar Amounts are “Rounded”)

Medical Dental

Eligible Non-Medicare Retiree $390/mo $20/mo

Eligible Non-Medicare Spouse $390/mo $20/mo

Eligible Medicare Retiree $145/mo $20/mo

Eligible Medicare Spouse $145/mo $20/mo

Eligible Child(ren) $275/mo $15/mo

Questions and Answers …

to the “Proposal To Not Reduce Certain Benefits For A Limited Group of Legacy Qwest Retirees

From April 1, 2012 To March 31, 2017” Q. What does the Outline of Proposed Benefit Plan Changes Mean?

A. It means that CenturyLink intends to amend the CenturyLink Retiree and Inactive Health Plan and the

CenturyLink Life Insurance Plan (the “Plans”) to provide that for the 5 year period from April 1, 2012 to

March 31, 2017, the Company will make no changes to the following benefits provided to Legacy Qwest Post-

1990 Management Retirees (as this term is defined in the Plans_: (1) the Company’s subsidy or “Cap” on its

contributions, as set forth below under the Retiree Health Plans, or (2) the $10,000 life insurance benefit cur-

rently available under the Life Insurance Plan. The Cap is the amount of subsidy or money the Company con-

tributes towards the premium cost of a Legacy Qwest Post-1990 Management Retiree’s health care coverage;

the balance of the premium cost of the health care above the Cap is paid for entirely by the Legacy Qwest Post

-1990 Management Retiree. The Chart below sets forth the amount of the Company’s proposed subsidy to-

wards the cost of health care coverage for eligible Legacy Qwest Post-1990 Management Retirees (as this

term is defined by the Plans) for the period April 1, 2012 to March 31, 2017:

These Plan amendments will not apply to any other retiree populations. All costs in 2012 and future years that

exceed the Company’s Cap, will be the obligation of the current and future Legacy Qwest Post-1990 Manage-

ment Retirees.

Q. What happens after 5 years?

A. The 5-year period will expire on March 31, 2017. After that date, the Company may amend, change, or

eliminate: (1) the Cap, or (2) the $10,000 life insurance benefit.

Q. Will the amended Plan documents allow the Company to make any changes to the CenturyLink Re-

tiree and Inactive Health Plan and/or the CenturyLink Life Insurance Plans during these 5 years? A.Yes, those documents will continue to allow the Company to change carriers, administrators, health benefits

and co-pays and deductibles, coinsurances, etc. during the 5-year period.

Q. I am a Legacy Qwest Post-1990 Occupational Retiree. Does this proposal apply to me?

A. No, it does not. The Company is required to negotiate with the legacy Qwest Unions for the benefits the

Company provides during the term of the Collective Bargaining Agreements to its Union-represented employ-

ees who retire during the term of the Collective Bargaining Agreements. While the Company does not negoti-

ate with the Unions for retirees, the Company negotiates the Cap, which is the amount of premium subsidy it

provides to occupational employees who retire during the term of the Collective Bargaining Agreements and

who become Legacy Qwest Post-1990 Occupational Retirees. (...continued on the next page…)


Retirement Age Term of Employment

Any Age at least 30 years

50-54 at least 25 years



65 and older at least 10 years

(...Q&A continued from previous page…)

Q.Will Legacy Qwest management employees (non-represented) who are eligible to retire as Legacy

Qwest Post-1990 Management Retirees (as defined by the Plans) after 4/1/2012 also be covered under

the proposed Cap and $10,000 Life insurance benefits freeze?

A Yes, if a Legacy Qwest employee retires from the Company after April 1, 2012 but before March 31, 2017,

and he or she is eligible for retiree coverage as a Legacy Qwest Post-1990 Management Retiree (as defined by

the Plans).

Q. Will the “Cap” freeze under the Retiree Health Plan apply to the eligible spouses and dependents of

Legacy Qwest Post-1990 Management Retirees? A. The Company’s Cap on the amount of premium subsidy it provides on behalf of eligible spouses and de-

pendents of Legacy Qwest Post-1990 Management Retirees will be frozen for the 5-year period as represented

on the Chart in Answer 1 above.

Q. Who is eligible to be a Legacy Qwest Post-1990 Management Retiree?

A.A Legacy Qwest Post-1990 Management Retiree is a Retired Employee who retires on or after January 1,

1991 and who is a former non-represented employee with the following age and service combinations:

A Legacy Qwest Post-1990 Management Retiree also includes a Retire Employee who is a “Protected Em-

ployee” or “Protected Participant,” which is a non-represented employee. If you believe that you are included

in this group and are not receiving the Cap, contact the Service Center or call your state Retiree Advocate.

AUSWR Retiree Advocates —Here To Help YOU! If you have questions about your benefits, FIRST contact the: Service Center at 800-729-7526

—Select Option 2, then select the appropriate options. If you are unable to resolve your problem or get

an answer to your question, THEN call your state AUSWR Retiree Advocate:

State Tel. No. Email State Tel. No. Email

ARIZONA: 602-504-6774 [email protected]

NEW MEXICO: 505-298-8666 [email protected] Martha Deahl Cassie Kelley

COLORADO: 303-442-1831 [email protected]

NO. DAKOTA: 763-757-4985 [email protected] Jim Heinze Barb Hermanson

IDAHO: 208-342-3449 [email protected]

OREGON: 503-628-0555 [email protected] Shirley Moss Jim Haynes

IOWA: 605-332-3670 [email protected]

SO. DAKOTA: 605-332-3670 [email protected] Vikki Farrand Vikki Farrand

MINNESOTA

763-757-4985 [email protected]

UTAH:

[email protected] [email protected]

Barb Hermanson Dick Johnson 801-963-6220 Byron Lemmon 801-295-4653

MONTANA: WASHINGTON: 206-368-8686 [email protected] Shirley Moss 208-342-3449 [email protected] Shirley Jones

NEBRASKA: WYOMING: 303-442-1831 [email protected] Jim Heinze 303-442-1831 [email protected] Jim Heinze


By Don Warsavage

Back in the mid ‘70s Mountain Bell hired a very un-usual man. He had two childhoods; one he was born into and the other he chose. This man was also blind from birth.

He had many roles in his adult life and he became quite famous. There is much about him on the internet today. He produced a show in Minneapolis called, “Stories and Stuff.” In that show he described some of his experiences of early childhood. Like the times his Dad came home drunk and beat his Mom. When that happened he would roll out of bed and find the tele-phone. Then he would curl up on the floor and listen to dial tone. It was always there for him. It was steady and it was safe.

He was sent off to a school for the blind when he was still a child. While there, he was both physically and sexually abused.

His name was Joe Engressia, a name he later changed to Joybubbles.

Joe had an IQ of 172 and he also had perfect pitch. It was so perfect, while in college, he could whistle at the precise frequencies that unlocked the telephone system allowing him to call anywhere in the world—for free. He did it for his classmates and charged them a dollar. The college took notice and suspended him.

Joe loved the telephone system and wanted to be a regular working man—a telephone man. Through an elaborate plan of using the long distance network, ille-gally, he deliberately got himself arrested. The tele-phone companies took notice and he received four job offers.

Mountain Bell hired him as a network trouble shooter. One of his supervisors said he was a hard worker and everyone liked him.

Hard worker? In fact everyone thought he was nothing short of amazing. After new switching systems

were turned over to Mountain Bell by Western Electric, Joe could find errors in them by just listening to their tones. He was so good at it he could find the specific location of the trouble among all the wires and switches of the network.

Some of his workmates said he would tease and joke with them often making fun of himself. He didn’t think of his blindness as a handicap. Someone thought his dog’s name was Popcorn. His cane’s name was Edith.

Once a pregnant clerk on the switching staff al-lowed Joe to listen at her tummy just as the baby moved. The Network Technicians, who were there, said his an-gelic smile lit up the room. Each day after that Joe asked about her and the baby’s health.

There were often school tours of the switching cen-ter in Denver back then. No tour was complete without taking the kids to see the “Whistling Marvel.” Joe would go out of his way to delight them.

He moved to Minneapolis in 1982. He loved chil-dren. He remained active with them in unique ways: with his shows, his volunteer readings at the library and setting up telephone calls to terminally ill children around the world. He was an avid fan of Mr. Rogers and listened to all his programs.

He decided to return to the childhood he never had. He wanted to remain five years old forever. He once said, “When you’re playing and you’re just you, powerful things happen.” He changed his name to Joybubbles be-cause, he said, “it made people smile.”

Those retired Telephone Company people who con-tributed to this article and had lost track of Joe ex-pressed a sincere sense of sorrow when they were told that he died in 2007.

Some of them remembered Joe very well and when they were told he’d changed his name to Joybubbles—some laughed and some just chuckled.

JOYBUBBLES

Gone But Not Forgotten: Deaths thru May 2012

COLORADO DEATHS

Barber, Patricia Carol

Burchett, Irene

Burnett, Meribelle

Burns, Robert Gordon Jr

Ferguson, Ronald W.

Gillespie, C. Douglas

Heath, Rodman H. (Rod)

Humphrey, Margaret

(Marge)

Keller, Albert S.

Leonard, Albert (Al)

Lester, Linda Diane

Pastore (Schuett), Linda L.

Patterson, Tom

Pimple, William D.

Romsos, E. Duane

Smith, Merlin E. (Smitty)

Soli, Douglas Warren

Unger, Clay

Wilkison, Rodney (Rod)

Wisner, Richard E.

NEW MEXICO DEATHS

Bailey, Jerry Don

Long, Ray E.

Smith, Jean (Gigi)

York, Jimmy Frank

OTHER DEATHS

ARIZONA

Schwede, Agnes S. (Aggie)

CALIFORNIA

Barber, Marjorie

Koester-Adams, Helen R.

UTAH

Taylor, Merle


Upcoming Medicare 101 Classes If you are turning 65 this year, or if you want to get a head start on Medicare Open Enrollment for 2013, then you may want to attend a Medicare 101 class. These classes are of-fered free of charge by the state SHIP (Senior Health Insur-ance Assistance Program) WYOMING Wyoming Senior Citizens, Inc. will offer the following spe-cial classes for CenturyLink retirees. Call Jean Drucker at 307-632-8470 to sign up. Cheyenne: June 19 at the Country Buffet located at Fron-tier Mall at 11:30 AM to 2:00 PM Casper: July 2, at the Casper Senior Center, 1831 E. 4th Street at 11:30 AM to 2:00 PM COLORADO Denver: Special classes for CenturyLink retirees will be held August 1, and October 31 at 9 AM at the Health Pass-port office, 4200 W. Conejos Place, Suite 200, Denver. To sign up, call Barbara Wilcox at 303-377-5761. The following classes are open to anyone: Boulder: June 7, July 5, Aug. 2, Sept. 6, Oct. 4, Nov. 1, Dec. 6, 2:00-4:00 PM, 3482 N. Broadway (Sundquist Building). Call 303-441-1546 to register. Colorado Springs: June 18, July 16, August 20, September 17. Senior Insurance Assistance, Pikes Peak Area Council of Governments Area Agency on Aging, 14 S. Chestnut St. Call 719-635-4891 to register. Denver Metro: Call 720-321-8940 to register. Every third Friday, 1:00-2:00 PM, Belmar, 463 S. Vance

St., Lakewood Every second Tuesday, 9:00-10:00 AM, Health Passport

Office, 4200 W. Conejos, Suite 200, Denver Every fourth Thursday, 2:00-3:00PM, St. Anthony

North Hospital, 2551 W. 84th Ave, Westminster

Every first Wednesday, 6:00-7:00 PM, Van Gordon Of-fice, 34 Van Gordon, Suite 220, Lakewood

Estes Park: June 19, 1:00-2:30 PM, Estes Park Senior Cen-ter, 200 Fourth St. Call 970-495-8560 to register. Fort Collins: June 13, 6:00-7:30 PM. Poudre Valley Hospi-tal, Cafe F. Call 970-495-8560 to register. Grand Junction: The first Wednesday in June, July, Aug. and Sept. RSVP offices at 422 White Ave. lower level. Call 970-243-9839 to register. Greeley: June 12, 6:00-7:30 PM, Greeley Senior Center, 1010 6th St. Call 970-495-8560 to register. Lafayette: Aug. 24, Nov. 9, 1:30-3:30 PM, 103 S. Iowa Ave. (Senior Center). Call 303-665-9052 to register. Longmont: June 18, July 16, Aug. 20, Sept. 17, Oct. 16, Nov. 20, Dec. 17, 10:00am-noon. Also July 3, Sept. 11, Oct. 9, Dec. 11, 5:30-7:30 PM. 910 Longs Peak Ave. (Senior Center). Call 303-651-8411 to register. Louisville: Sept. 13, Dec. 13, 10:00 AM to noon. 900 W. Via Appia (Senior Center). Call 303-666-7400 to register. Loveland: July 31, 6:00-7:30 PM, Medical Center of the Rockies, 2500 Rocky Mountain Ave. Call 970-624-1860 to register. For further help with Medicare, call Colorado SHIP at 1-888-696-7213 or Wyoming Senior Citizens, Inc at 1-800-856-4398. For further information about your company benefits and how they may change when you go on Medicare, con-tact the CenturyLink Service Center at 1-800-729-7526. Barbara Wilcox Health Care Specialist 303-377-5761

Medicare Part B Reimbursements ‘Fixed’ Pre-1991 Medicare recipients and their eligible spouses receive monthly reimbursement for their Part B pre-

miums which are deducted from their Social Security. Beginning in 2012 when the Part B premiums in-

creased, a ‘glitch’ was found that continued reimbursements at the 2011 amount.

AUSWR Retiree Advocate Ombudsman Jim Heinze reports that working with CenturyLink staff has fixed the

problems. All reimbursements are now current and at the correct amount. If you are a pre-1991 retiree and

have questions or believe your reimbursement is not correct, please contact Jim at 303-442-1831.


AUSWR CO/WY New Membership Application or Member Change/Renewal Form

CHECK ONE: New Member[___] Annual Renewal [___] Change(s) Only [___] (Please Print) _____________________________________________ ______________________________________ Last Name First Name _____________________________________________ ______________________________________ Last Name (If Dual Membership (e.g., husband and wife) First Name Address _______________________________________________________________________________

City ______________________________________________ State __ __ Zip Code __ __ __ __ __

Phone _____________________________ E-mail: ___________________________________________

I would like to volunteer in the following areas:(you will be contacted)

Area Rep[__] Membership[__] Financial[__] Legislative[__] Media Relations[__] Other (specify) ________________________________________________________________________ I Retired from: (Company) __________________________________ Date ___________________

Spouse: (Company) __________________________________________ Date ___________________

I am an active employee: (Company) _______________________

Spouse active employee: (Company) _______________________

I own CenturyLink Stock (circle one): Y N Spouse (Circle one): Y N Annual Dues: ($20.00 single $40.00 dual membership) $__________ Donation $_________ Mail completed Form to: AUSWR CO/WY, PO Box 27027, Denver, CO 80227-0027

Board of Directors CO/WY

Colorado President Hazel Floyd—303-455-1535

[email protected]

Wyoming Co-Presidents

Bob & Jean Rucker—307-632-8470 [email protected]

Vice President-Communications

LaVerne Lanskey—303-770-4147 [email protected]

Vice President-Membership

John Rommelfanger—303-475-8225 [email protected]

Secretary

Don Warsavage—303-776-7782 [email protected]

Treasurer-Receipts/Budget Bill Campbell—303-988-2800

[email protected]

Treasurer-Disbursements

Pat Wood—303-985-8827 [email protected]

Health Care Specialist

Barbara Wilcox—303-377-5761 [email protected]

Legislative Representative

Pat Finley—303-425-0804 [email protected]

Database Manager

Dale Thompson—303-439-8796 [email protected]

E-mail Editor

Bill Alsdorf—303-659-4189 [email protected]

Newsletter Editor Pam Davis—303-932-7533

[email protected]

CWA/Legislative Rep

Harvey Hoffman—303-733-1955 [email protected]

CO/WY Retiree Advocate

Jim Heinze—303-442-1831 [email protected]

Past President 2007-09

Joe Halpern [email protected]

CHANGES TO ADDRESS, PHONE NUMBER OR E-MAIL ADDRESS

If you have a change in your name, mailing address, phone number, or e-mail address,

please use the form above.

ALSO on the back page of this newsletter, your membership expiration date is included

on the mailing address. If your expiration date is near, use the form above to submit your

annual dues unless you have already done so.

IF YOU KNOW of any prospective members who have not yet joined the Association,

please provide them with a copy of the Membership Application form, or have them

contact John Rommelfanger, Vice President of Membership at 303-475-8225. A copy of

the form can also be printed from our web site at www.uswestretiree.org.

IMPORTANT TAX INFORMATION The AUSWR CO/WY is authorized as a

nonprofit tax-exempt organization however, dues and donations are NOT DEDUCTIBLE

on your personal tax return. Records are available via written request at P.O. Box 27027,

Denver, CO 80227.

Wyoming Area Representatives Out of State Members Contact

Casper Area

Gary Overturf—303-527-9005

[email protected]

Lander-Riverton

Jim Reddon—307-856-6833

[email protected]

Cheyenne Area

Dorothy Rhoades—307-235-4501

[email protected]

John Rommelfanger 303-475-8225

[email protected]

C:/Users/Carol/Documents/1 Publisher Files


















AUSWR CO/WY P.O. Box 27027 Denver, CO 80227

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Arvada Betty Moore—303-936-7917

[email protected]

Aurora Pat Finley —303-425-0804

[email protected]

Boulder/Longmont Volunteer Needed

Contact John Rommelfanger 303-475-8225

Broomfield John & Veronica Rommelfanger

303-475-8225—[email protected]

Castle Rock/Monument Charley Heard—303-660-9593

[email protected]

Colorado Springs Ralph Rohrig—719-550-8267

[email protected]

Denver East Ed Arnold—303-321-7766

[email protected]

Denver Southeast Robert Wiswell—720-859-7641

[email protected]

Denver Southwest Jim Hodges—303-798-3213

[email protected]

Englewood

Ed Payne-303-781-2222

Fort Collins/Loveland Chuck Rider—970-267-0817

[email protected]

Fort Morgan John Jump—970-867-7221

[email protected]

Golden

Bonnie Carter—303-279-6902

Grand Junction/Durango Jean Waid—970-256-0606

[email protected]

Greeley

Chuck Rider—970-267-0817

[email protected]

Lakewood Don Hinkley—303-988-0095

[email protected]

Littleton (80220—80222) Ed Dinkins—303-794-6625

[email protected]

Littleton (80223—80225—80227) LaVerne Lanskey—303-770-4147

[email protected]

Littleton (80224—80226—80228)

Tom Spall—303-768-9454

[email protected]

Middle Park Shirley Willis—970-468-0277

[email protected]

Parker/Sedalia Volunteer Needed


Pueblo/South Park Tony Juarez—719-546-6065

[email protected]

South East Colorado Wesley Colvin—719-384-2436

[email protected]

Thornton/Brighton Volunteer Needed


Westminster/Wheat Ridge Alice M. Peterson—303-424-7609

[email protected]

COLORADO AREA REPRESENTATIVES 2011

—Change Your Home Address? —Or Phone Number? —Or Email Address? PLEASE CHECK THE MAIL LABEL AND LET US KNOW YOUR CHANGES You can help us save $$$ in return postage, if we have your new address, phone no & email address. Contact Dale Thompson 303-439-8796 or [email protected] Or send a note to: AUSWR PO Box 27027 Denver, CO 80227-0027 Visit your website:

AUSWR.org

















mailto:[email protected]

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