Wednesday, January 15, 2014
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The Kings Mountain Herald | www.kmherald.net
Page 7A :
RED & WHITE VALENTINE
BALL — The 6th annual Ball will be held
Saturday, Feb. 15, from 7 p.m. until 12:30
a.m. at Bynum Chapel Family Life Center,
cornet of Cansler and Ellis streets.
Tickets are $10 donation in advance, $12
at the door.
Dress is semi-formal, refreshments will
be served, and door prizes and a fashion
show will feature the event to which the
public is invited. z
The Ball is sponsored by Bynum Chapel
Evangelism Board and Bynum Chapel AME
Zion Church. Rev. Donald Campbell and
Rev. Joann McGill are Associate Ministers.
For tickets contact Andrew “Bubba”
DEMOCRATS TO MEET — The Ex-
ecutive Committee of the Cleveland County
Democratic Party will hold its first meeting
of the new year at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan.
30, in the Commissioners Chamber of the
Cleveland County Administration Building,
311 E. Marion St. in Shelby. The Executive
Committee’s meetings are open to all local
registered Democrats who are interested, in
addition to the voting members who include
party officers, precinct chairs and vice-
chairs, and elected Democratic officials.
Newcomers and volunteers are welcome.
The group will launch plans for the
party’s March precinct meetings and annual
county convention in April and hear updates
FEES: No gas fee hike on horizon
From page 1A
currently
rented
from
a rate increase,” said the
Brown at 704-772-5129; Family Life Center
at 704-730-0027 or any member of Bynum
Chapel Church.
on elections and campaign activities.
%
spring as Wal-Mart moves to town.
The popular hot dogs and burger joint Weiner Works will have a new neighbor come this
Photo by DAVE BLANTON
WAL-MART: fo begin building in March
From page 1A
Already, many Kings Mountain residents
are eyeing job opportunities at the new
store.
"For 26-year-old Jeffrey Rhodes, Wal-
Mart may provide an opportunity to leave
behind a textile plant job that he describes
as “boring.” .
“Actually, I've already applied on the
web site — not for this new location because
Dear Savvy Senior,
Can you give me some tips on how to
choose a good financial planner or advi-
sor? My wife and I are five or six years
away from retiring and could use some
professional help to get us on track.
Seeking Advice
Dear Seeking,
With all the different financial advis-
ers and services available today, choos-
ing a trusted professional that can meet
your, needs can be a bit confusing. Here
are some suggestions that can help.
Where to Look
A good place to start your search is
by asking friends or relatives for recom-
mendations. If you don’t know anyone
who can give you a referral, and you're
looking for broad-based financial ad-
vice, hire a Certified Financial Planner,
or CFP, who are considered the “gold
standard” in the industry. To get the CFP
credential, they must have a college de-
gree and be educated in a wide range of
personal finance subjects, pass a 2-day
exam, have at least ‘three years experi-
ence, meet continuing-education re-
quirements and abide by a code of
ethics.
you can’t yet but down the road I want to
work at the new one,” he said. “It would be
better than the job I have.”
Wal-Mart launched its Neighborhood
Market concept in 1998 and now operates
about 200 of them nationwide. The Triangle
city of Cary was host to the first one in
North Carolina in 2012. A second one was
built in Charlotte last year. Wal-Mart is also
* planning a Neighborhood Market in Gasto-
nia for 2015 or 2016, according to officials.
CFPs are taught to look at the big pic-
ture view of your finances, talking you
through your goals, as well as advising
you on the details of your financial life.
You're also probably better off hiring
a CFP that’s a fee-only planner, verses
one who earns a commission by selling
you financial products. Fee-only plan-
ners charge only for their services — for
example you might pay $150 to $300 an
hour for a financial tune-up, a flat fee
per project or an asset-based fee.
To find a fee-only planner in your
area, use the Financial Planning Associ-
ation (fpanet.org) or the National Asso-
ciation of Personal Financial Advisors
(napfa.org), which has online directo-
ries. Or try the Garrett Planning Net-
work (garrettplanningnetwork.com),
which is a network of fee-only advisers.
If your needs are more specific, some
other financial professionals to consider
are a Registered Investment Adviser
(RIA) who is registered with the Secu-
rities and Exchange Commission or a
state securities regulator to manage in-
vestment portfolios; a Chartered Finan-
. cial Consultant (ChFC), who specialize
additional expense because
of our healthy fund balance
in the gas department and I
recommended that council
_absorb the increases to cus-
tomers which would have
amounted to $2.59 addition-
ally per month. per cus-
tomer,” said Hendricks. The
city got an early Christmas
present on Dec. 6, 2013
when the FERC and the
N.C. Utility Commission
approved the 11% increase
(down from 28%, then 21%)
to the city and the other 16
municipalities effective in
March.
Looking for more cost
savings, Hendricks said that
the storage capacity space
Williams (Transco) is no
longer needed because there
is an abundance of natural
gas available and the city is
contracting with Texla En-
ergy to pool resources and
assure gas needs are met
without penalty. He said the
city will sell the existing
10,000 Dekatherm (DTs) in
‘storage at a onetime profit of
$55,000.
“We have one of the low-
est natural gas rates to cus-
tomers in the state,” said-the
mayor. With updated infra-
structure, on the job training
of linemen who are state
certified, and mitigation
with other municipalities to
hold the line on expenses we
are able to save our citizens
. increases to our citizens.”
mayor, adding, “during all
this process by cutting inter-
nally we did not pass on any
Hendricks said by enact-
ing other strategies and the
willingness to negotiate with
Williams (Transco) on be-
half of customers, the city
will save in excess of
$600,000 over a 10 year pe-
riod or $60,500 per year,
adding that overall esti-
mated savings, to customers |
due to not passing the in-
crease on is $1.2 million
over a 10 year period or
$121,000 per year. These ef-
forts have produced an esti-
mated monthly savings to
each customer of $2.59 per
month.
MAKE A DIFFERENCE,
BECOME A TEACHER!
Degreed professionals are invited to the
Professionals Aspiring to Teach program on
January 23, 2014
from 5 to 7 p.m. in the CCS Central Services
Staff Development Center.
Regional Alternative Licensing Center Director Penny Powell will offer
insight on how to begin teaching while working towards licensure.
Visit www.clevelandcountyschools.org for
event registration and information.
\Cleveland
County
SCHOOL
11 BT | BB
211003
How to Pick a Financial Advisor
in insurance and estate planning; and a
Certified Public Accountant (CPA), who
can help with tax planning.
Be leery of many other financial ad-
vising titles, designations and certifica-
tions that are out there like the Certified
Financial Consultant (CEC) or the
Wealth Management Specialist (WMS).
Many of these require no more than a
few courses at a seminar or online,
which means they're not worth much.
You can read more about nearly every
certification or designation at
www.finra.org/investors - click on
“Tools & Calculators,” then on “Under-
standing Investment Professional Desig-
nations.”
How to Choose
After you find a few candidates in
your area, call them up and schedule an
appointment to meet and interview
them. Find out about their experience,
expertise and the types of services they
provide; how they charge and how
much; what is their investment philoso-
phy; and how will they handle your on-
going questions or financial needs. Look
for someone whose clients are in situa-
tions similar to yours and who’s avail-
able as often as you need them.
It’s also wise to do a background
check on your potential advisor. You can
look up firms and individuals at
finra.org or sec.gov, and even check
state financial regulation departments
(see nasaa.org for state contact informa-
tion) and Better Business Bureau
records at bbb.org. Also, ask to see the
advisor’s ADV Form, part 2. This is a
form that the SEC requires advisors to
list their education, services, fees, disci-
plinary actions and conflicts of interest.
At the end of your meeting, ask your-
self: Do I like this person? If you have
any reservations, move on. There are
plenty of qualified advisors out there
who can help you.
For more tips on choosing a financial
advisor, visit the CFP Board at lets-
makeaplan.org.
Send your senior questions to: Savvy
Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070,
or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a
contributor to the NBC Today show and au-
thor of “The Savvy Senior” book.
AT SUMMIT PLACE OF KINGS MOUNTAIN, YOU'LL FEEL right at home.
Life at Summit Place is a chance to enjoy a healthy, happy retirement,
where every day brings a new experience. Offering...
o Three meals served restaurant style daily © Emergency call system
o Staff available 24 hours a day ® Assistance with activities of daily living
e Social, recreational, educational and spiritual activities
Call 704-739-6772 to learn more. |
SUMMIT PLACE
OF KINGS MOUNTAIN
FrviStaXeovon LIVING”
sds
Sr
Finny
FiveSTARKSENIOR LIVING™
1001 Phifer Road * Kings Mountain, NC 28086
704-739-6772 LE
www. SummitPlaceOfKingsMountain.com