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Pension Action Center | Gerontology Institute 
Project Work Adds UP
The Pension Action Center has:
  • Helped over 8,000 workers and retirees 
  • Recovered more than $58 million in benefits
In This Issue
The Pension Action Center has received two new grants that will help it continue free pension counseling and legal assistance to low-and moderate-income workers in Illinois. The separate grants from The Retirement Research Foundation in Chicago and the United States Administration for Community Living total nearly $200,000.

PAC Director Jeanne Medeiros commented, "the Illinois project has seen significant results since it began. In just five years we have recovered over $3 million in benefits for retirees in Illinois who other wise would have nowhere else to turn. We are grateful for the support we receive and that we will be able to continue providing fee legal assistance to retirees who have rightfully earned pensions during their working years but for various reasons they are unable to collect the benefit."
 
bPAC Director Jeanne Medeiros Cautions ERISA Panel on Electronic Delivery of Pension Documents
Routine documents and notifications, once dropped in the mail by companies and other organizations, are often sent of electronically or stored on a website now. The obvious reasons: convenience, simplicity and savings.

But is that a good way to handle the important documents related to retirees and their pension benefits?

Absolutely not, said Jeanne Medeiros, director of the Pension Action Center in testimony before the ERISA Advisory Council in Washington DC.  She said electronic delivery of those documents would create a host of practical problems for beneficiaries. 

 
ePAC Helps Widow Get Survivor Benefit After Husband's Tragic Death
A 67-year-old widow from Charlestown came to the Pension Action Center with a sad story and a serious problem. Her husband had worked cleaning offices as a member of the Service Employees International Union for over 30 years. But union pension fund officials told her she was not entitled to a survivor's benefit as a result of his sudden death - just one day after signing forms to begin receiving his pension.
 
fPAC Welcomes New Legal Staff
 
Sophie Esquier, J.D., joined the PAC in September as Staff Attorney for the Illinois Pension Assistance Project (IPAP). Sophie worked as the legal intern for the PAC for a year before receiving her law degree from Boston College Law School in May of 2017 and has recently passed the Massachusetts Bar exam. We are thrilled that Sophie has returned to the center as Staff Attorney for IPAP. Sophie brings a breadth of experience to her role. Prior to her work at the PAC, she worked as a legal intern at the U.S. Department of Labor, was a law Student Volunteer for Volunteer Lawyers Project, Student Attorney for the Boston College Legal Assistance Bureau's Juvenile Rights Advocacy Project and a Judicial Intern to the Honorable Charles J. Siragusa of the United States Western District Court of New York.  Her experience and commitment to the Center makes her a valued addition to the project.

Chelsea Pande, a third year Suffolk Law School student, joined the PAC in May as a legal intern. Ms. Pande's' past experience includes working as a judicial intern in The Boston Municipal Court and as an investigative intern for The Massachusetts Commission against Discrimination. She is enjoying her work helping clients obtain their pension benefits and has proven to be a tremendous asset to the center. 

gYou Can Make A Difference in the Lives of Retirees - Donate Today

The center's cases are managed by four pension counselors and two attorneys. Our staff, although small, works tirelessly for weeks, even years, to obtain pension benefits for our clients. In fact, for every dollar that we have received of federal, state, and foundation support, we have recovered $14 in pension benefits for our clients.

 

You can help us to continue making a difference in retirees' lives by donating online today or, to give by mail, please make checks payable to "University of Massachusetts Boston" and send to:  

 

University of Massachusetts Boston 
Gerontology Institute, Pension Action Center 
c/o Louise Cataldo
100 Morrissey Boulevard, Boston, MA 02125-3393

 

We are extremely thankful for the contributions that we receive from supporters like you who make our pension counseling work possible.

 

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