Economic Freedom

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3 days ago
Congratulations and thank you!! Stay safe!

Congratulations and thank you!! Stay safe!This July, we're celebrating special milestones with a few of our beloved members of the Branson Police Department family!

Your dedication to keeping our community safe is truly commendable and deeply appreciated. Thank you for everything you do, day in and day out. Here's to another year of working together, protecting Branson with pride and unity.
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3 days ago
Thank you for your many years of service!! All the best in your retirement!

Thank you for your many years of service!! All the best in your retirement!Last week, we celebrated three people with more than 75 years of service to the Springfield community.

Our last retirement from that group is Lt. Jeremy Anderson! 🎉

Lt. Anderson began his career as an officer with the Webb City Police Department and the Newton County Sheriff's Department before joining SPD’s 50th police academy in 2002.

Before promoting to corporal in 2010, Anderson served eight years on patrol. As corporal, Anderson was assigned to the Property Crimes Unit and selected to the Traffic Section’s Leaving the Scene of an Accident Unit. When he was promoted to sergeant in 2015, he was selected as the Traffic Section supervisor.

In 2020, Anderson was promoted to lieutenant where he briefly served as a patrol commander before being selected as the Traffic Section commander.

Anderson retires with more than 22 years of service at SPD.
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3 days ago
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3 days ago
Thank you for your many years of volunteer service!!

Thank you for your many years of volunteer service!!Congratulations and thank you to Rick Harry, one of our outstanding volunteers who "retired" after serving the City of Grand Rapids for 15 years. We very much appreciate you and will miss working with you! ... See MoreSee Less

3 days ago
Welcome! Thank you! Stay safe!

Welcome! Thank you! Stay safe!Congratulations

We are excited to welcome Michelle Jimenez as our newest Police Officer! Michelle has always had a passion for criminal Justice and law enforcement, which she pursued by earning an associate's degree in the field. Her journey with our department began as a part-time Police Assistant, after which she moved up to a full-time Community Service Officer (CSO), and now, she has achieved her goal of becoming a Police Officer.

Before joining our ranks, Michelle made a significant impact as the youngest Director of Security in company history at a local area mall. Her leadership and dedication have been evident throughout her career. Michelle is bilingual, and she is particularly enthusiastic about engaging with the Latin American community in our town. Her ability to bridge language barriers will undoubtedly strengthen our community relations. In her free time, Michelle enjoys walking her dog, Luna, and traveling. She will be starting the Police Academy in August and is eager to begin this new chapter, serving our community with pride and honor. Please join us in welcoming Officer Michelle Jimenez to the team!

Congrats Michelle!
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3 days ago
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3 days ago
The Credit Union is honored to be attending the FOP of Ohio’s Annual Conference, which is being held in Columbus, OH, from July 21-23. Pictured are Erin Ingham and Jim Bedinger.

The Credit Union is honored to be attending the FOP of Ohio’s Annual Conference, which is being held in Columbus, OH, from July 21-23. Pictured are Erin Ingham and Jim Bedinger. ... See MoreSee Less

5 days ago
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5 days ago
Welcome and thank you! Stay safe!

Welcome and thank you! Stay safe!Welcome, Deputy Noah Manser!

We are thrilled to have Deputy Noah Manser join our team. Deputy Manser began our field training program this week, bringing valuable experience from his previous role as a part-time police officer with a local agency.

We're confident that his background and dedication will make a great addition to our department. Please join us in welcoming Deputy Manser and supporting him as he embarks on this new journey with us!
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5 days ago
Thank you for 25 years of service! All the best and every success in your retirement!Image attachmentImage attachment+3Image attachment

Thank you for 25 years of service! All the best and every success in your retirement! ... See MoreSee Less

5 days ago
Congratulations! Stay safe!

Congratulations! Stay safe!Sheriff Brad Cole would like to announce the promotion of Corporal Victor Rodriguez. If you see him around, please join us in congratulating Corporal Rodriguez on his promotion! ... See MoreSee Less

5 days ago
Thank you for 24 years of service! All the best in your retirement!

Thank you for 24 years of service! All the best in your retirement!Please join the Ozark Police Department in congratulating Sergeant Truman Isbell on his retirement after 24 years of service to the citizens of Ozark.

Sergeant Isbell began his service career as a Reserve Police Officer for the Ozark Police Department after graduating from the Drury College Police Academy in early 1999. In June 2000, Sergeant Isbell was hired as a full-time police officer and assigned to the Field Services Division as a patrol officer. Sergeant Isbell was promoted to the rank of Corporal and assumed the role of an Assistant Squad Supervisor in the Field Services Division. The Field Services Division (Uniformed Patrol) is where Sergeant Isbell served most of his career, even serving as Commander over the division for an extended period of time.

In 2020, Isbell was reassigned to the Support Services Division as the department's Training and Hiring Coordinator. In this role, he was responsible for all training curriculum utilized by the Ozark Police Department and overseeing the testing, hiring, and onboarding of all new police department staff. On January 7, 2023, Isbell was promoted to the rank of Sergeant and assigned to his last post as a Field Services Division squad supervisor. Sergeant Isbell also served as a Firearms Instructor, Bike Patrol Officer, Traffic Incident Management Instructor, and Field Training Officer during his career.

Please join us in congratulating Sergeant Truman Isbell on a career dedicated to service and providing exceptional public safety to our community. He will be greatly missed, but we are excited about this new chapter in his life. A retirement celebration will be held for Sergeant Isbell on Thursday, July 11, from 3:00 - 4:00pm at Ozark City Hall.
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1 week ago
Congratulations and thank you! Stay safe!

Congratulations and thank you! Stay safe!Congratulations to our newest class of Field Training Officers (FTO)! These FTO's were sworn in on July15, 2024 and are now assigned to districts throughout the city. Thank you for taking on such an important role in the training for our Future Chicago Police Officers. ... See MoreSee Less

1 week ago
Congratulations and thank you! Stay safe!

Congratulations and thank you! Stay safe!Congratulations to Dorchester County Sheriff's Office Sergeant Richie Hill for his heroic actions on September 19, 2023. Today, we proudly presented him with a plaque honoring his bravery and dedication. Sergeant Hill's quick thinking and courage exemplify the spirit of law enforcement. ... See MoreSee Less

1 week ago
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1 week ago

The Credit Union is honored to welcome the Springfield Public Schools Police Department (Missouri) into our field of membership. We look forward to serving the financial needs of you and your families. ... See MoreSee Less

2 weeks ago
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2 weeks ago
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2 weeks ago
Thank you for 35 years of service!! Enjoy your retirement and stay safe.Image attachmentImage attachment+2Image attachment

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2 weeks ago

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Economic Freedom

Arguably, the greatest freedom of all is the freedom of choice, the power to make your own decisions and command your own destiny.

Amongst all of the decisions that you can make in your life, your financial decisions typically have some of the largest impacts, positive or negative, on the quality of your life and the options that you will have available to you.

We recently faced an unprecedented convergence of economic challenges…depreciating home values, a plunging stock market, record levels of consumer debt, unemployment, a rise in inflation, high fuel prices, and restricted access to credit at the consumer and institutional levels.

While there are still issues and concerns that must be addressed, many economic indicators have fortunately stabilized.  Rest assured, however, that we will face further uncertainty and economic turmoil in years to come.

When challenges arise and economic uncertainty looms, virtually all of the volatility that is created in the financial marketplace is driven by two factors, fear and rampant speculation.

If you are somebody who is fearful and full of anxiety about your finances, do you also feel helpless and lost about what to do?  Can you imagine how great it would feel to be free of your fear and to experience peace of mind relative to your finances?

It is more important now than at any time in the last 75 years to make good financial decisions that will help you to achieve your own economic freedom and minimize any restrictions that will keep you from realizing your financial goals.

Make no mistake about it.  You can enjoy economic freedom no matter how much money you make and regardless of what your financial situation has been in the past.  You and your own actions will be the sole determinants of whether or not you achieve financial strength and soundness.   Conversely, if you do not set financial goals for yourself and get on the path that leads to the achievement of those goals, it will be your fault and your fault alone.

The peace of mind that comes with not having to worry about your finances during difficult times can be yours and the tools that will help you obtain it already exist.

When I was researching information for this article and trying to determine how best to summarize the steps you need to take to achieve personal economic freedom, I realized that we had already discussed the ten most important things that you can do to realize your life’s goals and to best prepare for uncertain and challenging economic times.  Because of this, much of what I will highlight in this article will be a summary or a reference to information in previous articles.

If you have been following along and have taken the steps that we have previously outlined, this will be a great time to check your work and fine-tune your plan if necessary.  If you have not taken the steps that you should have to prepare for what you may currently be facing or will possibly face sometime in the future, it is not too late to take the sting out of your current situation and better prepare for the next time.

 

1.   Create a Plan

Begin by honestly assessing your financial situation and determine what you have been doing and what you have not been doing.  Figure out what you know and what you don’t know and then devise a plan that builds on your strengths and addresses your weaknesses.  As an example, if you have not been as organized as you should have been and as a result have not balanced your checkbook regularly, make sure that part of your plan includes a regular review and balancing of your checkbook.  Then,  commit to that plan.  A successful financial plan must contain realistic, attainable action steps as well as measurements and checkpoints to ensure you stay on track.

 

2.   Develop and Follow a Budget

Clearly define your income and your expenses.  For the purposes of your budget, your income is not your gross salary, it is your actual take home pay. For this exercise to be of value, being specific and precise is a must especially as it relates to your expenses.  The more detailed that you can be about your exact expenses, the more confident  you will be about your numbers and what you will have left to save.  Once you have developed a budget, follow it.  It will take discipline on your part, but the reward is great, namely that you will be taking a big step toward commanding your own financial destiny.

 

3.   Become Credit Wise

The single biggest factor in determining your ability to borrow money and qualify for the best borrowing rates is your credit rating, specifically your credit score as reported by the three main credit bureaus.  The credit rating system is notoriously difficult to understand and susceptible to errors and inaccuracies so you will be way ahead of the game if you take the time to understand your credit report, the components of your credit score, and what you can do to ensure that your rating is as accurate and as strong as possible.

 

4.   Perform Credit CPR

To the extent that you identify inaccuracies or legitimate weaknesses in your financial standing, perform the necessary tasks to take corrective action.  In this case, CPR can be defined as strong Communication with relevant parties, sound Planning, and a commitment to Resolve any and all matters.

 

5.   Set Your Financial Priorities

Now that you have taken the steps that form the foundation of your future financial strength and your in-depth financial knowledge, it is time to determine exactly what your priorities should be.  If you have more debt than you are comfortable with, then the first order of business should be to pay off that debt or bring it down to a more reasonable level.  If your debt and expenses are in order, your priority should be to maximize your savings.

 

6.   Establish Goals and Incentives

Once your plan is in place and your priorities are in order, the next step is to establish your goals and the rewards you will reap when those goals are achieved.  As is the case with each of these steps, the goals that you set will be personal to you and will only be helpful if they are meaningful to you and attainable.  Setting the incentives is just as important because they will play a key role in your level of motivation to achieve your goals.

 

7.   Create Reinforcing Habits

Particularly when it comes to saving, but certainly in every aspect of your own financial management, you will benefit from making habits out of the actions you are taking and repeating.  Your plan is in place and it is based on accurate information.  You have set your priorities and established your goals.  The best way to reinforce this behavior is to make it second nature.

 

8.   Build Wealth

When you have realized the importance of saving, the next logical step is to go out and actually build wealth and there remains only two legitimate ways to do it.  You must either obtain ownership of something (i.e., real estate, stock, business, etc.) and/or build passive income; that is income that you generate that is not directly reliant on your labor or task completion (i.e., interest, dividends, appreciation).

 

9.   Insulate Yourself From Recessions

There are several things that you can do to lessen the impact a downturn in the economy can have on your finances in terms of preemptive measures and preparation.  If you have not completed the previous steps then these measures will be a lot less effective.  Once you have prepared for these times, you have essentially completed your path to economic freedom and you will find a peace of mind relative to your personal financial situation that will be both inspiring and liberating.

 

10. Trust Your Instincts and Stay Curious

At this point, you have completed all of the steps and have clearly learned how to make good, sound financial decisions.  You are following your own path and realizing power and command that previously seemed unreachable. You have all of your financial matters in order.  Enjoy the benefits of your commitment to this process by sticking with the decisions and choices that you have made, but do not rest on what you have already accomplished.  Stay curious, keep asking questions and answering your own challenges, and remain open-minded so that you are able to make adjustments to your plans and objectives as necessary.

So, follow these steps and keep the faith. Your Economic Freedom is at hand.

And, don’t forget, members of the Credit Union enjoy free and confidential Credit Counseling and Financial Planning through our Financial Planning and Education Center. We are here to assist you every step of the way.

Scott Arney
Chief Executive Officer
Chicago Patrolmen’s Federal Credit Union

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