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MOVING FORWARD
Going with the Flow—With a little help, one retired couple overcame cash-flow woes.
 Even though Ruth Cook-Begany and Bill Begany, retirees from Bardonia, New York, had tried to ensure a steady income stream in their retirement, rising expenses and property taxes impacted the bottom line. Despite the best efforts, their monthly cash flow wasn't enough.
Knowing they needed to make a change, Ruth, 72, and Bill, 78, met with Louis Leskosky, a Thrivent Financial representative, to look at ways to make the best use of their financial resources.
At the time, Ruth was receiving income from a part-time job, and she and her husband, Bill, each collected a small pension and Social Security check monthly. Ruth also had invested an inheritance with a brokerage firm more than a decade ago, but the returns had been minimal.
After listening to Ruth and Bill, Leskosky helped them think through their financial goals and talk about how life events, such as the death of one of them, could affect them. For instance, because Ruth and Bill had begun to draw from their respective pensions and Social Security before they married 11 years ago, neither was entitled to the other's payments should one of them die. Together, they created a program that generates a consistent current income stream, provides income to a surviving spouse and allows for flexibility should things change.
One of the most important things Ruth and Bill took away from this experience is the peace of mind knowing they have someone to turn to and talk through options. "They wanted to be sure that the relationship with their financial representative was just that—a relationship," Leskosky says.
—Holly O'Dell and Sue Kraus
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