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  • When Should You Take Social Security?

    Edward Jones Financial Advisor CFP Arron Franzen, For the Courier|Mar 27, 2024

    One of your important sources of retirement income will likely be Social Security — but when should you start taking it? You can start collecting Social Security benefits at 62, but your checks will be considerably bigger if you wait until your full retirement age, which is likely between 66 and 67. You could even wait until you’re 70, at which point the payments will max out, except for yearly cost-of-living adjustments. But if you need the money, you need the money, even if you’re just 62 or any age before full retirement age. However, if yo...

  • 2024 Schmeckfest

    Vivian Wall, For the Courier|Mar 27, 2024

    The 2024 Schmeckfest was held March 22, at the LCHS gymnasium on a 60 degree day. The walls were lined with displays of buffalo, LGS school kids’ beautiful art, quilts in honor of McKenna Bell, a student who completed her chemo treatments, and LCHS Basketball team pictures with their trophies and team ball. It is always wonderful to see the family heritage quilts brought to show, and new ones made for the occasion. The mild evening with good roads were all part of making it successful with an attendance of 744. The theme of the evening was “God...

  • Peeves and Bugbears

    Mary Honrud, For the Courier|Mar 27, 2024

    This past week, while in conversation with a friend, we talked about pet peeves. I volunteered to air hers. She really wants everyone to have their headlights on at all times while driving. The lack of visible headlights in oncoming traffic, especially during snow and fog events, is not only annoying, it’s downright dangerous. You may feel you don’t need your headlights to see what you’re driving into, but they are definitely needed by the people you meet. Light-colored vehicles blend into that snow or fog. Even dark-colored vehicles can be ha...

  • Time For Financial Spring Cleaning?

    Edward Jones Financial Advisor CFP Arron Franzen, For the Courier|Mar 20, 2024

    Spring is almost here, which means it’s time for some spring cleaning. This year, in addition to tidying your home and surroundings, you might want to consider sprucing up your financial environment, as well. Here are some suggestions for doing just that: • Improve your vision. Once the days are warmer and longer, you may want to get outside and clean all the winter grime and smudges from your windows, allowing you to see the world more clearly. And you may want to bring more focus to your financial vision by asking some key questions: Is my...

  • Mishmash

    Mary Honrud, For the Courier|Mar 20, 2024

    I'm going to go on about a variety of things this week. The term "mishmash," which means 'a confused mixture of different types of things,' seemed apropos to me. Similar terms would include: hodgepodge, patchwork, mixed bag, jumble, assortment, or mess. Of course, mishmash is often used in a negative way, as if the person it refers to couldn't stay on topic. I'm okay with that, as often I am confused and disorganized. (I'm thankful that those who don't care for my ramblings don't bother to tell...

  • Family Kaffir Lily

    Mary Honrud, For the Courier|Mar 13, 2024

    My sister Cece, who lives in southeast Missouri and is enjoying spring flowers (and her asparagus) already, recently sent me pictures of her Kaffir lilies. The mother plant has lots of red berries on the stalks the flowers had been on. Her smaller one is just now blooming. I’ve always cut off the flower stalks once they start puffing up to make seeds. I’d thought maybe if I didn’t, it would somehow diminish the plant and prevent future blooms. But Cece says she hasn’t and it’s always bloomed again. So now I need to go look up proper care of K...

  • How Can You Manage Student Loan Payments?

    Edward Jones Financial Advisor CFP Arron Franzen, For the Courier|Mar 13, 2024

    If you have student loans, you likely received a “payment vacation” over the past few years, due to legislation related to COVID-19. But if you’re like millions of other borrowers, you may have recently been required to resume your payments. How will this affect your overall financial situation? Of course, the first thing that comes to mind is the effect on your monthly cash flow. But the amount of pressure you feel will depend on your income and the size of the required payments. If these payments do represent a real challenge, you may need...

  • Congratulations To LCHS Boys

    Vivian Wall, For The Courier|Mar 13, 2024

    The LCHS boys’ team were victorious over Harlowtown-Ryegate March 9 in the Consolation round of the State Tournament, winning by a score of 53-43. They placed third. First place went to Box Elder, second to Manhattan Christian. Lustre won three games at State, and lost only one, and it was by six points to Manhattan Christian....

  • Marching Bands

    Gwen Cornwell, For the Courier|Feb 28, 2024

    I was remembering marching bands of the past. Since I do not live in town I shouldn’t make statements that I cannot verify, but I am pretty sure that folks living in the vicinity of the high school and middle school today do not get to see the band and baton twirlers practicing. As a youngster I lived on 4th Ave. No. in Glasgow and always thought it was really cool to get to watch the High School band practice on our streets. I remember going to Moose Jaw, Sask., for a band marching competition at one time (I can remember that but do not r...

  • Lustre News

    Vivian Wall, For the Courier|Feb 28, 2024

    On Feb. 10 Gary and Roxann Funk were in Great Falls as Gary’s dad, David Funk was inducted into the Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame along with 23 others from throughout Montana. The event took place at the Heritage Inn. Along with those from Montana, extended family came to the event from Tennessee, Minnesota, South Dakota, California and Washington. Gary and sister, Arlene, received a plaque in honor of their Dad. Congratulations to the LCHS basketball teams in their victories last Saturday in Glasgow. The girls beat Circle in overtime 44-42. T...

  • Tripping Again

    Mary Honrud, For the Courier|Feb 28, 2024

    I apologize for not writing anything last week. We were away on another trip. This one was to Nashville. Our 13-year-old grandson and his hockey team from Clearwater, Fla., were competing in a President’s Day tournament just outside Nashville, in Franklin, Tenn. They won, without suffering a single loss, although they did have one game that ended in a tie. Their trophy was a guitar. What else would you expect from Music City? (Each individual player also got a medal to take home. That guitar will go in the trophy case at their rink.) We went ea...

  • Benefits Of Fixed-Income Investments

    Financial Advisor Arron Franzen, For the Courier|Feb 28, 2024

    When many people think about investing, the first thing that comes to mind is the stock market. And that’s not surprising, as the rise and fall of stock prices is constantly in the news. But if you’re going to achieve your financial goals, you may well need to look beyond stocks and include fixed-income investments in your portfolio. Fixed-income investments offer three important benefits: • Income – When you invest in fixed-income vehicles, such as bonds, Treasury securities and certificates of deposit (CDs), you receive regular income...

  • Lustre News

    Vivian Wall, For the Courier|Feb 21, 2024

    The LCHS girls basketball team defeated Frazer 68-30 in Wednesday's District 3C tournament game, and lost to North Country on Thursday at 3 p.m. They were victorious against Dodson 61-19 on Friday afternoon, qualifying them to play against Circle in Saturday's consolation game. Coach is Bill Reddig, assisted by Sadie Brown. The LCHS Boys tied for first place with 17 wins and 1 loss, but lost the coin toss for seeds in the tournament. They beat Frazer Wednesday at 4:30, and Circle Thursday...

  • How Can Business Owners Plan For An Exit?

    Financial Advisor Arron Franzen, For the Courier|Feb 21, 2024

    If you’re a business owner, you always have a lot to do and a lot to think about. But have you put much thought into how you’ll eventually leave it all behind? Even if you’re a few years away from that day, it’s a good idea to create an exit strategy. If you’re like most other owners, most of your net worth may well be tied up in your business — so how you exit that business can have a big impact on your finances and your retirement. As you begin the exit strategy process, you’ll need to examine some basic questions, such as how much you want...

  • Treasury Bonds: Still Safe For Investors

    Financial Advisor Arron Franzen, For the Courier|Feb 14, 2024

    You may have read reports about an impending “debt crisis” in the U.S. Should you be worried about investing in Treasury securities? Part of the concern over debt has been driven by the cost of government borrowing, which has risen because of higher interest rates. But it’s worth noting that while interest expenses have risen to nearly two percent of gross domestic product (GDP), this measure had exceeded three percent in the early 1990s. So, while the upward trend of federal debt could prove problematic down the road, the claims of a current c...

  • Groundhog Predictions = Bunk

    Mary Honrud, For the Courier|Feb 14, 2024

    I meant to open this column with some light-hearted joking about taking weather forecasts from rodents and fell down a rabbit hole. (And rabbits aren’t rodents.) Prepare yourself for a lot of useless information. It might come in handy next time you compete in Trivial Pursuit. It is true that the groundhog is a rodent. Sometimes known as a woodchuck of tongue-twister fame, these rodents belong to the group of large ground squirrels (family Sciuridae) known as marmots. Gophers are also ground squirrels, but are rather puny in size next to ground...

  • Soup Season?

    Mary Honrud, For the Courier|Feb 7, 2024

    Mary Honrud For the Courier Usually our minds will turn to soups as fall arrives with the cooler weather and more gloomy skies. For me, that season of soups is now. Well, really, I think soup is always good. We’ve had some really nice weather recently, but the fog and no sun is here right now. That has me wanting comfort food. Soup fills that want. First up is a hearty soup featuring wild rice and mushrooms. I combed through several variations on this theme, and settled on one that didn’t call for cream or milk. Those of you who don’t do well...

  • Lustre News

    Vivian Wall, For the Courier|Jan 31, 2024

    Dense fog covered our region until Wednesday with rain last Sunday and 26 degree temps making ice on the gravel. Warmer temperatures and clearing skies came Wednesday and Thursday. Many prayers went up for those travelling to Billings with students competing in the FIRST Lego League Qualifying Tournament on Jan. 20. Students of the Lustre Lego Lions League are Liam Reyneke, Joseph Olfert, Coleman Hilkemann, Gunner Damboise, Justin Schiller, Jake Neufeld, Drew Reddig, Curt Teichroew, Nancy Schill...

  • Weather Happens, Whether You Want It To Or Not...

    Mary Honrud, For the Courier|Jan 31, 2024

    Mary Honrud / For the Courier What a difference a week or so makes, huh? We've gone from bitter cold with frigid winds, to ice fog and freezing rain, to balmy spring temps in a short amount of time. And don't we enjoy northeastern Montana through all of it? But we've had enough with the icy fogs and freezing rains, don't you agree? Mother Nature could get her act together at any time. There was enough weight on the trees after that rain last Saturday night and most of the day Sunday that I know...

  • How Are Your Investments Taxed?

    Financial Advisor Arron Franzen, For the Courier|Jan 31, 2024

    As we begin the new year, you may be receiving various tax statements from your financial services provider — so it’s a good time to consider how your investments are taxed. This type of knowledge is useful when you’re doing your taxes, and, perhaps just as important, knowing the type of taxes you generate can help you evaluate your overall investment strategy. To understand the tax issues associated with investing, it’s important to understand that investments typically generate either capital gains or ordinary income. This distinction is mean...

  • Home, Sick

    Mary Honrud, For the Courier|Jan 24, 2024

    Either being out in the cold (be it outdoors or inside the ice rinks) OR being in crowds of people didn't agree with me. In any case, I started feeling punk on the second day of our drive home from Minneapolis. We'd split the trip into two days, both going and coming. We stayed overnight in Fargo both ways. I'm still really glad we went, it was a great weekend of hockey. Our grandson's team ended up with bronze medals. And he and our daughter survived a cold afternoon of outdoor sledding at...

  • How Would You Handle Forced Early Retirement?

    Financial Advisor Arron Franzen, For the Courier|Jan 24, 2024

    When you plan to retire at a certain age, you can follow a strategy that incorporates your investment moves, your health insurance and other factors. But what happens if you’re forced to retire earlier than you anticipated? Unfortunately, this situation is not that uncommon. About 40 percent of Americans say they have been forced into retirement, according to a recent survey from Edward Jones and Morning Consult, a research firm. If this were to happen to you because of a layoff, company downsizing or a health issue, would you be prepared to ma...

  • On The Road – Again

    Mary Honrud, For the Courier|Jan 17, 2024

    I think those words are in a song…Willie is a genius. This week, instead of heading to sunny Florida, we’re going to cold, snowy, blowy Minnesota. The youngest grandson, 11, has a hockey tournament in Minneapolis this long weekend. The Florida teams always seem to have tourneys scheduled in far locales every time there’s an extra day off school. (It’s not just Florida, of course.) These tourneys require the kids missing school on both sides of the long weekend as they have to travel to and from said locales. This particular tourney has 10 team...

  • New Year's Financial Resolutions

    Financial Advisor Arron Franzen, For the Courier|Jan 17, 2024

    Now that we’ve reached 2024, you might be thinking about your goals and hopes for the new year. But in addition to whatever personal resolutions you might make — volunteering, going to the gym more, learning a new language and others —why not make some financial resolutions, too? Here are a few to consider: • Boost your retirement savings. If you can afford it, try to increase your contributions to your IRA and 401(k) or similar employer-sponsored retirement plan. The more you put away in these accounts, the greater your chances of reachin...

  • Time: A Key Element Of Investing

    Financial Advisor Arron Franzen, For the Courier|Jan 10, 2024

    Who knows where the time goes? We’ve reached the end of another year, so it’s appropriate to reflect on the nature of time and how it affects us. And time certainly is a key element in the pursuit of your financial goals. As an investor, time can be your greatest ally. If you hold some investments for the long term, you could achieve an impressive cumulative growth in value. Furthermore, if you keep adding shares to these investments, possibly through a dividend reinvestment plan, you could attain “growth on growth” through the power of comp...

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