Eileen G.

My name  is Eileen G.I graduated from Orange Memorial School of Nursing in 1977(Later named for our generous benofactor Winifred B. Baldwin) I worked  for 27 years in three different areas as a Registered Nurse on a medical-surgicl floor, our pediatric unit,and the Employee Health Department.  I realized in my last year before the hospital was closed  (it was being absorbed by Saint Michaels Medical Center) that  I was processing the staff members that would eventually help to close our hospital that had been open over 100 years (my own husband was born in this hospital). I always knew I was vested in the pension plan and I knew it was placed by the founders of our hospital for all those vested employees and in one of our many meetings before final closing of the hospital we found that it had indeed been changed to this "church plan" and only half of the money was now left with 5 to 6 years remaining.My situation is that one of my children completed college and is working but I need to help her with student loans and medical insurance.  I have a son who has not yet completed college and he is also under our medical insurance. I have turned 55 and  I have applied to start collecting my pension now even by collecting now I will receive only one half of what I might have collected if I waited 10 more years, but  I have to take what I can now. I can't believe that my pension will not be here as promised to all the vested employees of The Hospital Center at Orange.