Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/933762
January 1 New Year's Day observed, Offices Closed January 7 Board of Trustees Meeting January 8 Executive Board Meeting January 11-14 IMATS LA January 23 Academy Award nominations announced January 27-29 ISSE hair show, Long Beach, CA January 27- Feb. 2 General IATSE Executive Board Meeting, Los Angeles, CA February 4 Board of Trustees Meeting February 12 Executive Board Meeting February 19 Presidents' Day holiday, Offices Closed February 24 Local 706 Guild Awards March 4 Academy Awards March 5 Board of Trustees Meeting March 12 Executive Board Meeting March 18 General Membership Meeting at Local 80 from 2 to 4 PM March 12 Good Friday observed, Offices Closed 2018 CALENDAR OF EVENTS pice care at her home. She had been diagnosed originally with six months to live, but the infection caused her to decline much more rapidly. Our family spent the rest of her time making her feel as comfortable as possible. She died from complications with her cancer on September 10, 2009. After her death, I was designated executor of her estate and successor trustee of her trust. The amount of work involved in handling the affairs while grieving was astronomical. In January 2010, I got in touch with MPI in regards to finishing the fil- ing of her retirement and they explained that because she was divorced and that my father shared a portion of her retirement that they needed to deal with him before my brother and I filed for her benefits. I explained that I had everything ready to go as they explained to me back in August and they stated that because she passed away, new rules applied and we needed to file for death benefits differently. This was beyond upsetting as this was not what I was told before when she was not doing well in the hospital and the representative assured us the ben- efits would not change. I explained I had taken every step as her power of attorney to do what was necessary so that no benefits would be lost. They continued to explain that they could not speak in detail until my father's benefits were completed and then they would be able to determine the rest. The process dragged on for years. During this time, we continued to pursue the benefits that my mother had earned. Eventually, MPI processed my mother's death benefits, but the Pension Annuity was left out. I didn't understand this because I was told that I could file the forms at any time and the retire- ment would be approved for the following month that the forms were filed. I had the forms filled out with a Ten Year Certain Annuity because she was terminally ill and it was the election that allowed the annuity to be passed on to beneficiaries post their death. The process again dragged on and finally, after years of attempting to work through these issues, they informed me that they were denying our claim for benefits and that we had no other choice but to appeal their decision to the Board. We have continued to challenge the plan's decision, but so far, have gotten no relief. I was misinformed by MPI and we felt it was necessary to take action because it was the right thing to do and because it is what my mother would do. We felt it was time for us to make our story public so that others did not find themselves in the same situation. As members of SAG-AFTRA, my brother and I understand how important it is to stick together as members of a union for positive change. We are standing up for our mother who battled for fair wages in her union, equal rights among make-up artists and hair stylists, and doing what we feel she would do if she was alive to fight for the benefits she worked so hard to earn. Please share this with other members of other unions who are participants and beneficiaries in the Motion Picture Industry Pension Plan because we do not want anyone else in the future to go through this again. This is our family's story, but it could be yours. GUILD NEWS