Mr. Adamson states that "the foundation has absolutely nothing to do with the retirement fund. The foundation cannot provide any money for the retirement fund at all, period". He then goes on to say that after a TMRS representative attended their board meeting, the city eliminated the cost of living adjustment at the request of fund trusees following a presentation from TMRS. Sounds like the foundation DOES have something to do with the retirement fund. The hospital was owned by the city of Kilgore and the city council should take care of all its retirees, especially when it can afford to provide health insurance for city retirees. Not many places provide that these days. Hospital retirees would just like the city council to do the right thing and reinstate the COLA for them. The hospital was sold in 2003 and until a short time ago the city provided COLA for hospital retirees. Sounds like they stopped it after a recommendation from the foundation, which, by the way, "has absolutely nothing to do with the retirement fund".

Sounds to me like everything was even at the time of the sale of the hospital until just recently. What in the world made the foundation decide to make a decision like that to take aware the retirement benefits of the Laird employees... and what was the city council thinking to allow a certain group of employees to be treated differently!!?!?!

What??? Someone changed my retirement benefits from Laird and did not tell me??? I plan to begain drawing my retirement next year and now I find out that I don't have what I thought I would!!! This is UNFAIR!! Kudos to the retirees who spoke up!!!

I just read the story about the retirement and I agree completely that the Laird employees have been singled out and treated unfairly. Because the hospital no longer exists, it was easy to forget those employees and make changes that affected only that group of city employees. While cutting this group, no one seems to have noticed that the city began a program to provide medical insurance to city retirees. This is a very expensive proposition and yet Kilgore could afford this, but not afford a cost of living adjustment for some retirees. If the council decides to do things like that, what will be next. Will my retirement be different from the water guys or the city hall staff??? All employees should be treated the same. I think the city council should reconsider and change back to all retirees having the same benefits. The Laird folks just want the same as other city employees!!

We appreciate the foundation's position, however, this situation should have been addressed and finalized when Roy H. Laird Memorial Hospital was originally sold by the City of Kilgore to Community Hospital Corporation in 2003. Since the name was just changed to Laird Memorial Hospital, many people do not remember that the hospital actually changed ownership at that time. Any changes to hospital retirees' TMRS benefits are the sole responsibility of the city council. Hypothetically speaking, if the City of Kilgore had been privatized and turned over to a management company, as was the case with the hospital, we feel sure that retirement arrangements for present and future of City of Kilgore retirees would have been made at the time. Retirees of city owned Roy H. Laird Memorial Hospital deserve the same consideration as City of Kilgore employees.