Commun ty Matters Manor of the Plains
April 2017
Your guide to investment jargon By Jack Fehr for Next Avenue As the stock market continues its gyrations, now is a good time to buy an investment with a favorable NAV and alpha that keeps on giving while reducing beta. Got that? If not, don’t be embarrassed. Investment companies and financial advisers love to load up their materials with this kind of jargon. Here are two of the more widely used, but not widely understood, financial terms you should know: Alpha is a measure of investment performance adjusted for risk. Think of alpha as the two extra chocolates you happily found in your bag of JARGON, continued on page 2
Don’t let fear stop you End-of-life planning makes a difference to loved ones By Debbie Reslock for Next Avenue When I was in my early 20s, my mom was diagnosed with cancer. It felt like a one-two punch, since my dad had died unexpectedly a few years earlier. Although Mom tried chemotherapy, the results seemed to suggest that this was going to end badly, which it did — less than six months later. During that time, her life became a mere shadow of what it once was. And yet no one, including her doctors, myself or my mom, ever talked about what was happening. PLANNING, continued on page 2
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Only in the last few days did her doctor suggest to me, not her, that we were reaching the end of this painful road. And then he asked if I thought she’d be more comfortable at home or in the hospital. I remember how angry I was, unprepared to make this decision and wanting to scream, “Why are you asking me?” But of course when I got older, I realized the real question was why hadn’t any of us asked her?
cause some to fear they’re tempting fate. Or we wait for our physicians to bring it up, while they’re waiting for us to do the same, Radulovic adds. Others don’t follow through because they say it doesn’t really matter what happens to them, Markley says. But then she asks why they want to make their kids’ lives so hard.
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candy. Alpha is like an overfilled box of chocolates, the part of your investment return that is more than a benchmark market index.
No shortage of obstacles
Survivors can still feel great anxiety years after the death of a loved one without advance directives, says Markley.
Beta is a measurement of investment volatility or risk compared to the market overall. For example, when your investment’s beta is 2, that means its volatility, or risk, is twice as great as the volatility of the entire market. Tech stocks often have a beta of more than 1.
We may put this matter off because we think we’re too young or too busy to complete end-of-life directives. Markley also notes the jinx factor can
“And not because they felt like they did something wrong, but because they didn’t know if they did the right things,” Markley adds.
If you’re near retirement, keeping many investments with high beta probably isn’t wise, because you’re taking on extra risk.
Community Matters is published monthly for residents and friends of Manor of the Plains by Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America, Inc., a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. Learn more at PresbyterianManors.org.
Jerry Korbe, executive director Kurt Lampe, marketing director Lisa Montoya, activity director Jacque Soltero, health care activity director To submit or suggest articles for this publication, contact Kurt at klampe@pmma.org. Telephone: 620-225-1928 Fax: 620-225-3982 Address: 200 Campus Dr., Dodge City, KS 67801-2760
Our mission: We provide quality senior services guided by Christian values.
Pancake races Residents and staff at Manor Of The Plains had a great time last week with Shrove Tuesday pancake races.
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Community Matters April 2017
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