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Wednesday, October 21, 2015 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Of a certain age…
By Sue Stafford
Columnist
Well, the bad news last
week is there will be no
cost-of-living adjustment
(COLA) in 2016 for over
70 million Social Security
recipients, disabled vet-
erans, federal retirees and
their survivors, and dis-
abled poor.
The COLA is based on
the Consumer Price Index
for Urban Wage Earners
and Clerical Workers (CPI-
W), a broad measure of
consumer prices produced
by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics. The CPI-W
measures price changes
for food, housing, cloth-
ing, transportation, energy,
medical care, recreation and
education.
The COLA is calculated
by comparing consumer
prices in July, August and
September each year with
prices in the same three
months from the previous
year. If prices go up, ben-
efits increase. If prices drop
or stay flat, benefits stay the
same. Due to falling gaso-
line prices that have been
90 cents lower than a year
ago, there isn’t much infla-
tion anywhere, according to
the government.
H o w e v e r, i t s e e m s
like many of my monthly
expenses continue to
increase, like cable ser-
vice, cell phone plan, and
house, car and flood insur-
ance rates. Every year, the
premium for my supple-
mental healthcare policy,
which pays for the 20 per-
cent of medical expenses
not covered by Medicare,
increases. The cost of my
Part D drug coverage policy
also increases annually. As
new medications are added
to my drug regimen, there
are more out-of-pocket
copays, which also seem to
increase.
This will be my eighth
year of collecting Social
Security and will be the
third time in those eight
years there is no increase in
the monthly benefit. Those
three years are the only
times in the past 40 years
that there have been no
increases.
Congress enacted auto-
matic increases for Social
Security recipients in 1975,
when inflation was high and
there was pressure to regu-
larly raise benefits. Since
then, increases have aver-
aged four percent a year.
See CERTAIN AGE on page 22
Caterer offers quality local food
By Jim Cornelius
News Editor
Wendy DiPaolo brings
years of catering experience
and a passion for quality,
locally produced foods to
her new enterprise, known as
Willow Camp Catering.
“I started catering 25 years
ago in Marin,” DiPaolo told
The Nugget.
She catered film sets,
weddings and private parties.
Eventually moving to Sisters,
“I met Sarahlee Lawrence
and I’ve gotten very involved
in the organic movement,”
DiPaolo said.
Lawrence operates
Rainshadow Organics at
Lawrence Farms just east
of Sisters. DiPaolo has been
partnering with Rebecca
Sokol of Sisters in present-
ing Longtable Dinners at the
farm.
Willow Camp Catering
also recently presented a
community dinner at The
Belfry in conjunction with
a literary evening centered
around Edgar Allan Poe. Last
Friday, she catered a ribbon-
cutting celebration at Three
Sisters Irrigation District’s
new hydroelectric facility
(see related story, page 1).
She loves presenting
photo by Jim Cornelius
Wendy DiPaolo catered an event at Three Sisters Irrigation District.
meals around local produce
— and that’s something more
and more clients respond to.
“People choose this area
because they like the area…
They really appreciate being
able to get food that was
grown and raised here… I
found I really like it and pre-
fer cooking for people that
way when I can,” she told
The Nugget.
Local and organic can be
challenging in winter, and
DiPaolo doesn’t confine her-
self. Working out of a com-
mercial kitchen in Sisters,
Willow Camp Catering offers
a variety of options for all
kinds of events. To learn
more, contact Willow Camp
Catering at 541-923-8675.
Prevent a Litter,
Fix Your Critter!
FURRY FRIEND S
FOUNDATION
501 ( c )( 3 )
www.furryfriendsfoundation.org
541-549-9941
501(c)(3) nonprofi t organization
Spay/Neuter Sponsorships - Easy as 1-2-3
1 Stop by The Nugget offi ce to fi ll out a short form
2 Call Bend Spay & Neuter for the appointment
3 Take your pet — Furry Friends pays. Done!