the most vulnerable retirees struggle to survive

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http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_GREAT_RESET_RETIREMENT_PHOTO_ESSAY?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-12-29-00-53-50



In this Dec. 21, 2013 photo, Helen Hatchell wears a Christmas-themed pin that belonged to her mother at Village Crossroads, an affordable senior community in Nottingham, Md. Hatchell was forced to retire earlier than she had planned in order to care for her husband after he fell sick. She has also undergone a series of operations, but after moving into Village Crossroads unable to walk, she is perfectly mobile. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

It isn't the retirement George Warren dreamed of.

Confined to a wheelchair and living on disability payments after losing his job, Warren, 63, figures he would be homeless in old age if not for a senior housing program offered by Catholic Charities of Maryland.

"I had plans, but life had other plans for me," he says.

Warren worked for decades, starting with a "sophisticated lemonade stand" he opened with friends at age 9. He paid into Social Security as he meandered through a half-dozen jobs in telecommunications and networking. But he lost his last job in what he calls an age-related layoff. And his income on disability isn't enough to cover his expenses.

So Catholic Charities gave him a place to live at Village Crossroads near Baltimore, which receives funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

[KansDem]

1. "I had plans, but life had other plans for me"

So true...

How many of us can say the same thing?