A central feature of the celebration was the recognition of Division 33’s past presidents and Board members, as well as its “longevity” members, retirees who have maintained CalRTA membership for 20 years or more. The Division now has over 80 such members, with fifteen honored in person at the luncheon, including centenarian Margaret Bagby, Rosemary Sears and Virginia Sisk, all with over three decades of service. Their decades of dedication reflect CalRTA’s enduring mission: safeguarding earned benefits, advocating for fair retirement policies, and uplifting public education throughout California.

Guests enjoyed a catered meal from Emilio’s Mexican Restaurant before being treated to a vibrant performance by West Valley High School’s Ballet Folklórico dancers and Mariachi ensemble under the direction of teachers Oscar Rivas and Maria Leon-Batres. Their colorful presentation added a joyful cultural highlight and underscored the strong connection between retired educators and the students whose futures they continue to support.

Serving Hemet, San Jacinto, Menifee, Romoland, and Nuview, Division 33 remains one of CalRTA’s most active Divisions. In addition to its advocacy work, it provides sixteen $100 teacher grants each year and offers fifteen $1000 scholarships to qualifying local high school graduates.

As Division 33 marks this milestone year, its members reaffirm their dedication to the mission that has guided CalRTA since its inception in 1929: protecting hard-earned pensions and benefits, supporting public education, promoting health care and healthy living and ensuring that the voices of retired educators remain strong across the state.

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Bethany Gibson teaches IB Language & Literature and AP Language & Composition at San Jacinto High School, where she is also Co-English Department Chair and IB Coordinator.  When she received notice that she was a grant recipient, she said, “I’m so thrilled to have this grant opportunity! I am in the process of creating supply boxes for our interactive notebooks we use in all my classes. Boxes will be available for each table group to use so supplies are only ever an arm’s reach away! I’m also considering investing in ambient lighting for my classroom. The overhead lights are bright and clear but ambient lighting helps soothe the mind and provides a more inviting atmosphere for learning.”

Valle Vista Elementary School Special Education teacher Kelly Hileman expressed her thanks to CalRTA for providing these opportunities to receive funds for their classrooms.  She said, “Thank you so much for holding such events for teachers! This check means so much to me! I plan on buying art and sensory items with the money. I teach TK-2 Special Education, and the Arts and sensory opportunities are so critical for this group of students. Thank you from room 16, Mrs. Hileman’s Class!”

Science teacher Melissa Ferguson teaches 6th and 7th grade Mild Moderate SDC/RSP (Special Day Class and Resource Specialist Program) at Kathryn Newport Middle School in Menifee.  As with the other grant recipients, Melissa is focusing on the necessities.  “Thank you!” Melissa responded when notified she was a winner.  “This $100 grant will go to starting my ‘I’m in need of…’ cabinet. Many of my students lack supplies or even basic necessities, and I want to take those factors that often become barriers to learning out of their picture.” 

Lisa Cameron teaches 7^th grade Special Education at Menifee Valley Middle School Menifee.  Given the limited budgets established by many districts, teachers are always in need of additional supplies to bolster instruction and increase student participation and engagement.  Lisa says that she plans to use her $100 grant to purchase “balance boards for students to stand and work at tall desks.”

The California Retired Teachers Association’s mission is to protect retirement security and other retirement benefits for teachers and to support public education.  Teacher grants are just one way in which retired teachers can support and advocate for current California educators.  CalRTA Division 33 awards 16 $100 Teacher Grants each year and offers 11 $1000 scholarships annually to graduating seniors from local high schools. For more information about CalRTA, go to calrta.org or div33.calrta.org.

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Retired teachers have not only spent decades helping future generations, but they continue to make a difference in the lives of others long after leaving their teaching careers. In 2023, CalRTA members statewide donated more than $40 million worth of time to their local communities. Members of local CalRTA Division 33, which serves Hemet, San Jacinto, Menifee, Nuview and Romoland, volunteered nearly 12,000 hours in the same year, with a value of over $437,000.  Retired teachers can often be seen volunteering their time and skills in community centers, libraries, schools, and local organizations. Their time enriches the lives of both children and adults, and their pensions uplift their local communities. Because retirees spend their benefit checks in their local community, their spending ripples through the economy as one person’s spending becomes another person’s income.

CalRTA members are part of that pool of retirees whose pension checks help stimulate and boost California’s economy. Members statewide also donated more than $750,000 in grants, scholarships and donations last year.  Division 33 also offers 11 $1000 scholarships annually to seniors planning to enter the teaching profession and awards 16 $100 “no strings attached” teacher grants to local teachers to use in their classrooms.

CalRTA highlights retired teachers’ contributions by celebrating Retired Teachers Week during the first week of each November. This year’s event, November 3-9, marks the 26th year the celebration has been held during the organization’s 95-year history. In 1929, as the country entered the Great Depression, a small group of teachers banded together to fight for retirement security. In addition to helping California’s educators, early CalRTA leaders went on to form other retiree organizations. One such leader was Ethel Percy Andrus who formed AARP.

“Our early leaders showed us what dedication, compassion and determination can accomplish,” noted Susan Dixon, CalRTA State President. “Today we’re trying to live up to their example as we continue our fight for retirement security while also giving back to our local communities and protecting public education.”

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Guest speakers included CalSTRS CEO Cassandra Lichnock, and AARP’s Chief Diversity Officer Edna Kane Williams

Sue Breyer | CalRTA Division 33 Vice President

“Focus on Success” was the theme for the recent California Retired Teachers Association’s (CalRTA) Annual Convention and Delegate Assembly held in Sacramento from May 13-15. Over 2000 California retired teachers participated in the event, which offered members a chance to reconnect in-person after several years of virtual meetings. During the three-day event, members went “back to school” at numerous education sessions on topics such as Medicare, online scams, CalSTRS resources, and various workshops designed for CalRTA leaders and volunteers.

Ron and Sue Breyer, CalRTA State President and CalRTA State Communications and Technology Chair, respectively, represented local Division 33 (Hemet and San Jacinto) at the convention and served as delegates for their Division. Mr. Breyer also co-presented a workshop for both new and veteran Division Presidents, facilitated an open discussion session on “Fostering Leadership” and addressed convention participants at the Saturday banquet on CalRTA as the “Best Kept Secret in California,” urging members to “get the word out” about CalRTA’s many successes and legislative achievements. Mrs. Breyer conducted a workshop on “Online Scams” targeting seniors and joined two other State Committee Chairs in a participant-generated Division idea exchange of “Best Practices.” Mrs. Breyer was also presented with the Ed Ely Outstanding Communications Award at the Awards Banquet, an honor granted annually to the individual member who does the best job of communicating the vision and goals of CalRTA to members, legislators and the general public.

Though much has changed in California since CalRTA was formed in 1929, the focus on retirement security remains firmly in place.

This year CalRTA is sponsoring two bills that will protect retired educators and their earned pension benefit:

• SB 868 (Cortese) will increase the financial assistance our oldest retired educators receive from the Supplemental Benefit Maintenance Account (SMBA), and

• AB 1667 (Cooper) will ensure retired educators are not held liable for prior overpayments that weren’t their fault.

In addition to providing security for retirees, pensions have a tremendous positive economic impact on California according to the report “Pensionomics 2021” by the National Institute on Retirement Security:

• $76.7 billion in economic output generated by retirees’ spending

• 395,520 jobs paying $25.4 billion in wages supported by retirees’ spending

• $15.1 billion in federal, state and local tax revenues

CalRTA also supports public education and current teachers with scholarships and teacher grants. Last year CalRTA and its local Divisions donated more than $750,000 in grants, scholarships and materials to California public schools. That was in addition to the $65 million worth of volunteer time.

Locally, CalRTA Division 33 offers ten $1000 scholarships to local graduating seniors and up to twenty $100 grants each year to area teachers. The Division is also a “Silver” sponsor of the Hemet San Jacinto Student of the Month Program.

“We cared about our students and our communities while we worked as educators,” said CalRTA State President Ron Breyer. “That caring doesn’t stop at retirement.”

Local teachers looking for grant opportunities should watch for announcements on the CalRTA state website (www.calrta.org/teacher-grants) and our local Division’s website (div33.calrta.org/scholarships-and-grants).

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Fifty members and friends of the California Retired Teachers Association Division 33 (Hemet, San Jacinto, and surrounding areas) gathered together December 14th at the Seven Hills Members Club to celebrate the holidays, reconnect with former colleagues and help spread a little holiday cheer and goodwill in the process. With a desire to help fill the great need of local families and struggling seniors in our community, especially over the holidays, Division 33 members donated bags, boxes and wagon loads of food and toys to the Valley Community Pantry in Hemet. As a bonus, Jim Lineberger, Executive Director and CEO of the Valley Community Pantry, was CalRTA’s guest speaker for the event and reflected on the many trials and triumphs the Pantry has experienced over the past 57 years.

Established in 1965 by Reverend Roy Schipling of the Hemet Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd, the Pantry was dedicated to ending hunger in our local communities. Lineberger joined the Pantry Board in 2007, two years after he came to Hemet, then took on the role of Executive Director shortly thereafter. His background assisting the homeless and less fortunate on the streets of Los Angeles Skid Row prepared him for this new position helping those in most need of help in his own local community.

The Valley Community Pantry currently serves nearly 14,000 registered families and seniors, assisting them with such necessities as food, utilities, prescriptions, and rental assistance. The Pantry’s motto is “Giving Hope, Helping Families, Blessing Lives,” and Lineberger is on the front lines when it comes to meeting these three goals. He knows what it’s like to be on the receiving end of assistance, his family having received food donations from the local PTA when he was growing up. The memory is what keeps him going. During his tenure – and with COVID-19’s closures and restrictions– it’s been a roller coaster of a ride with the Pantry, with some overwhelming challenges countered by generous and timely donations to keep them afloat, all of which has taught him to have faith. Grateful for the dozens of donated bags packed with toys and food items lined up on the venue’s stage, Lineberger reminded his audience, “We can’t solve world problems, but we can help solve the problems in our communities. We need to find a way to bless people and help people. We’re not the biggest or the best, but we do what we can.”

The Valley Community Pantry is located at 191 S. Columbia St. in Hemet, behind Trinity Lutheran Church, and is open Monday-Friday, 8:30am to1:30 pm. For more information about the Pantry or to make a donation, go to https://www.vcpcares.org/.

Sue Breyer, CalRTA Div. 33 Vice President

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“I loved the children I taught. But I’ve been penalized for that decision by the government,” said Lee Giammona, who spent 25 years teaching elementary school children in Santa Rosa.

For her, it was a second career.

But as much as she loved teaching, she now questions whether she should have left her 10-year career in business for the classroom.

“If I had known that when I went back into teaching, I think I would have reconsidered that decision for sure,” she said.

When Giammona retired as a teacher in California, she didn’t know she would only be allowed to collect a small portion of the Social Security benefits she paid into before stepping into education.

Under the Windfall Elimination Provision, she gets only $42 a month from Social Security.

“They can just keep it. It’s embarrassing. It’s like a slap in the face,” she said.

Giammona does receive her teacher’s pension. But she didn’t teach long enough to max out her retirement. And now she says she struggles.

“It’s very hard to live on a limited amount of money,” she said.

Giammona also received another unwelcome surprise.

When her husband died last year, she was not allowed to collect any of his Social Security benefits.

“I get nothing. Nothing. Zero. And wow I get penalized again for being a teacher,” she said.

Giammona is far from alone.

The California Federation of Teachers (CFT) estimates almost two million retired teachers and public employees who once worked other jobs to supplement their lower pay, find out later in life that they will collect little to none of their Social Security.

“Once people realize this is what is going to happen, fewer people are going to go into teaching. We already have a severe teaching shortage,” said Doug Orr, who retired from the California Federation of Teachers. Orr chairs the CFT’s Retirement Policy Committee.

“People who thought they were going to get Social Security because they paid money in, paid for that benefit, are not getting that benefit,” Orr said.

California is one of 15 states in the U.S. where public employees are blocked from receiving most, if not all, of their Social Security. That also includes benefits from their late spouses.

It was a decision made by public employees back in the 1970s and 80s. But it backfired, and now workers who had nothing to do with that decision are paying the price. “It’s a lack of fairness. And that’s what we are trying to fix,” said Republican Rep. Rodney Davis of Illinois. He authored HR-82, proposed legislation he calls the “Social Security Fairness Act.” If passed, the bill would allow government workers to collect Social Security benefits from other jobs and their late spouses. Opponents argue that those changes could pose a threat to the overall health of the Social Security fund. The proposals would increase Social Security payouts by 1.5%.

“The unintended consequence of their version of trying to prolong the solvency of the Social Security system has been to punish families who have given their entire careers to public service,” said Davis.

Davis’ bill needs the support of 290 representatives to bring it to a vote in congress. He has 254 supporters so far.

He said the pandemic has slowed momentum. But Giammona said she can’t wait for change much longer.

Rob Roth | Contributed

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According to figures from the California Retired Teachers Association (CalRTA), retired teachers statewide donated nearly 2 million hours of volunteer service in the past year, valued at $60.9 million.

If you can read this article, maybe you should thank a teacher. The week of November 1 – 7, 2020, is California Retired Teachers Week, and we all owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to those teachers who not only taught us but shaped us in our youth.

Even after leaving their classroom, teachers continue to have a positive impact on their communities. According to figures from the California Retired Teachers Association (CalRTA), retired teachers statewide donated nearly 2 million hours of volunteer service in the past year, valued at $60.9 million. In addition to their donated time, retired teachers are part of the swell of economic benefits California receives from public pensioners as they spend their pension benefit checks.

Here in the Hemet San Jacinto valley, members of CalRTA Division 33 (Hemet/San Jacinto and surrounding communities) have actively volunteered over 5,000 hours over the past year and participated in a number of volunteer activities ranging from food drives to support our local Community Pantry, donations of school supplies and clothing to Valley Restart Shelter and HUSD “District Closet” and participation in NAMI Walks to benefit the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Division 33 has also provided $250 AVID and library grants to community schools and $100 teacher grants in multiple random drawings throughout the school year. In addition, six yearly $1000 scholarships are awarded to graduating seniors at high schools in both the Hemet and San Jacinto unified school districts.

After years, sometimes decades, in the classroom giving back to their students, California’s retired teachers continue to give back through their pocketbooks and their passion for volunteerism. “Our early leaders showed us what dedication, compassion and determination can accomplish,” noted Dr. James Mahoney, CalRTA State President. “Today we’re trying to live up to their example as we continue our fight for retirement security while also giving back to our local communities and protecting public education.”

Sue Breyer, Vice President, CalRTA Division 33

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