Senior Page: Harwich COA Offers September Retirement Planning Series

Tirelessly committed to advocating for older adults and those who care for them, the Harwich Council on Aging provides countless programs and resources to members of the community. This September, the COA is hosting a Planning for Retirement Series consisting of three talks, each one focused on a different component of the retirement process. 

 First in the lineup is Retirement Planning Strategies for Today and Tomorrow, to be held on Thursday, Sept. 12, from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. This session will be led by a representative from AARP, who will teach guests how to determine if they are on track to retire. They will also share tips and strategies to financially prepare for retirement, explain how to determine the amount of money one will need to retire, discuss how to manage debt and income and highlight ways to maximize savings to “close the gap.” 

 The following Thursday, Sept. 19, the COA will be hosting Planning for Medicare from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. This session will be led by a representative from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts and is specifically geared toward individuals approaching eligibility for Medicare. The discussion will include how to approach health insurance outside of employer-sponsored coverage, how to enroll in Medicare, the Medicare enrollment timeline, coverage plans available to early retirees, and Continuation of Health Coverage/COBRA. 

 While some may be concerned about the objectivity of a Blue Cross Blue Shield representative in a discussion of health insurance coverage, COA Director Julie Witas said that, just as with the COA itself, this talk is purely focused on educating and supporting community members. 

“Even though it is led by someone from a commercial company, there is no marketing,” said Witas. “[Blue Cross Blue Shield isn’t] just trying to sell their plan, and they are providing information on all the plans that are available.”

 The next and final installment of this series will be hosted on Sept. 26 from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. Titled Social Security: Understanding Your Benefits, this talk led by an AARP Representative will be a crash course in accessing and getting the most out of your SS benefits. Describing the intricacies of the social security system, explaining how and when to access one’s social security benefits, and discussing the consequences of working while collecting social security, will all be covered in this enriching session. 

 This series aims to meet the specific needs of the community’s elders. “Questions about retirement, specifically about social security and Medicare, are some of the most common questions we get from members of the community, especially from people who are about to retire,” said Witas. 

This attunement to the community’s questions is characteristic of the COA and its community outreach; however, certain age groups can feel forgotten or underrepresented by its programming. This series aims to change that. Said Witas, “We felt it was incredibly important to offer that education to the community, but also to reach out to a population that feels like they don’t have a place at the COA. We do tend to attract older members of the community, but we do serve everyone age 60 and up, and we want them to know we are here for them.” 

 The sessions included in this series are free. All talks will be hosted at the Harwich Community Center. Registration is required to guarantee a seat; with only about 40 spaces available for each session, it may fill up quickly. Currently, there is no option to attend virtually. To save a seat, call the Harwich COA at 508-430-7550.