​New York is home to one of the four major championships in tennis: the United States Open. The tournament has undergone numerous changes since its inception in 1888. It has changed dates, venues, and surfaces multiple times. For decades, however, the US Open has been played at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows as the final major tournament of the season.

The US Open has pioneered a number of developments that have had significant impact on the sport. For example, the championship became the first major to utilize a tiebreaker in 1970. And in 1973, it became the first major to offer equal prize money for men and women. That said, the tournament's prestige is based largely on a long history of the sport's top players competing and winning at the event.

Before the Open Era, Richard Sears, William Larned, and Bill Tildenthe dominated the men's tournament. In 1968, American Arthur Ashe became the first US Open champion of the Open Era, though as an amateur, he was not entitled to the prize money. Ashe returned the following year as a professional and defended his title; the main court at the Billie Jean King facility has carried his name since 1997.

Shortly after the start of the Open Era, several American men established themselves as repeat champions at the US Open. Jimmy Connors appeared in five consecutive US Open finals between 1974 and 1978, winning three, then added two more in 1982 and 1983. New York native John McEnroe added three straight US Open titles between Connors's 1978 and 1982 victories.

Of course, legends from around the world enjoyed success in New York. While Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi picked up where Connors and McEnroe left off, multiple US Open titles went to Stefan Edberg, Ivan Lendl, and Patrick Rafter. More recently, Roger Federer won five consecutive US Open titles from 2004 to 2008. Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have also won multiple titles over the past decade.

Virginia Wade was the first women's champion at the US Open in the Open Era, defeating Billie Jean King 6-4, 6-2 in the final. Margaret Court proceeded to win five of the next seven events. King managed three titles before American Chris Evert began dominating the event. Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, and Monica Seles all enjoyed multiple wins at the event prior to the arrival of the Williams sisters, Venus and Serena.

Serena won the US Open title in 1999 and 2002, with older sister Venus winning in 2000 and 2001. The 2001 and 2002 finals featured both sisters. Serena ultimately added four more victories, including three straight beginning in 2012. No player has repeated as champion at the US Open on the women's tour since Serena's 2014 win, though she was a finalist in 2018 and 2019. Sloane Stephens defeated Madison Keys in an all-American 2017 final, while the 2021 final between Emma Raducanu and Leylah Fernandez was the first major final of the Open Era to feature two unseeded players. Raducanu became the first qualifier, male or female, to win a major championship.

​Employment or business often offers a cushion from worrying about a steady source of income and the ability to continue working or switch jobs. However, uncertainty often comes with retirement. The primary challenges retirees face include calculating the income required for day-to-day expenses, the duration of available resources, market volatility, inflation, and a kitty for the beneficiaries from the pension and social security funds. The bucket strategy offers one way to plan retirement.

The bucket strategy works for retirees who seek to overcome the fear of overbalancing in the market. The financial advisor divides the income sources into three categories: short-term, intermediate, and long-term. Each category serves a distinct purpose, primarily cash flow safety nets in different parts of the retiree's life.

The short-term or immediate bucket holds the retiree's cash, social security benefits, pensions, and liquid investments. The latter includes short-term certificates of deposits, treasury bills, and high-yield savings accounts. The bucket contains items that retirees can easily convert to cash to reduce risk and ensure easy access to hard cash when the retiree needs to. A typical short-term bucket holds enough resources to cover the retiree's two-year expenses. When it runs low, they can replenish with dividends and returns from investments and other buckets.

The intermediate bucket contains the income the retiree needs for three to seven years and aims to ensure stability and continual income. The intermediate bucket is considered a medium-risk strategy. Too low a risk can expose the assets to inflation and gradual depreciation. At the same time, too high a risk can expose the portfolio to losses and inability to meet expenses.

The bucket ideally contains certificates of deposits, real estate investment trusts, longer-term bonds, growth and income funds, convertible bonds, and preferred stocks. The returns in this bucket should replenish the short-term ones.

Lastly, the long-term bucket, with a growth potential of over ten years, contains a diversified portfolio of domestic and international investments. From the three buckets, the long-term option contains the highest-risk investments designed to beat inflation in the long run, which would not be feasible in the short term. In a short-term scenario, the investments often fluctuate, exposing the investor to possible losses. However, the long-term option, beyond the decade, offers higher chances of a gain.

Financial advisors recommend retirees load the long-term bucket with options like real estate investments, cryptocurrency, individual stocks, and hedge funds. Other additions include peer-peer lending, venture capital investing, and IPOs. The income generated from this bucket should replenish the intermediate bucket.

The bucket strategy protects the retiree from market volatility as the fluctuations do not affect the cash flow. Also, through the tiered strategy, the retiree can allow for growth through future investments without jeopardizing short-term needs.

However, to use the bucket strategy, the retiree must have sufficient assets to fund the three buckets. The financial advisor assists with gauging eligibility and funding the bucket ratios. The intermediate and long-term buckets take time, the latter over a decade, so the retiree should be ready to change their lifestyle, reduce spending, and re-align retirement expectations for the strategy to work.

Also, while the financial advisor helps draft and advise on the bucket strategy for the retiree, the latter holds responsibility for asset allocation. The allocation refers to an investment strategy for dividing one's portfolio, like cash, and real estate, for diversity to balance the risks and rewards of each asset class.

​A member of Merrill Lynch’s investment management team in Ithaca, New York, Keefe Gorman is also a member of Rotary International. With 1.4 million Rotarians worldwide, the organization Keefe Gorman belongs to plays an important role in eradicating malaria, a disease that kills a child under five every minute.

Rotary’s experience fighting another serious disease, polio, energizes its anti-malaria campaigns. The organization takes advantage of the administrative infrastructure already in place to address polio to reach out to health workers combating malaria in Africa and Asia. Its technique of mobilizing the citizenry to take preventive measures and report cases has become known as the Rotary model. Moreover, media messages to reduce misinformation about polio have also proven effective for other illnesses. In addition, Rotary’s polio fighters know exactly which public and health officials to contact for malaria control.

Data analysis methods are also transferable. Information from Rotary-supported health workers has enabled the creation of an international database that has multiple applications. Thanks to these and other efforts, malaria has been virtually wiped out in Sri Lanka and is on the way out in Timor-Leste. Victories like these offer hope that illnesses such as polio and malaria will one day be a thing of the past.

​Keefe Gorman began his financial career with Merrill Lynch Wealth Management in 1987. In addition to supporting Merrill Lynch as a managing director and wealth management advisor, Keefe Gorman serves as a member of the Skaneateles Lake Association.

The Skaneateles Lake Association (SLA) Inc., was established in 1969 with the goal of maintaining clear, pure water at Skaneateles Lake in Skaneateles, New York, as well as the surrounding watershed. The organization pursues this objective in several ways, chiefly through the promotion of “lake-friendly living.”

Aspects of lake-friendly living can be boiled down to three basic categories. To start, people must understand the processes and impact of water runoff. The water cycle is a complex web that is easily influenced by human activities. People who use harmful chemicals on their lawns, for example, risk the runoff moving to nearby lakes, which both threatens the natural environment and potentially contaminates local sources of drinking water.

Second, individuals living near lakes like Lake Skaneateles should know that even “safe” chemical products can disturb the natural world. If fertilizers are not properly used and maintained, the runoff can result in excess algae growth in surrounding bodies of water, along with additional aquatic plant growth. The result is a seriously degraded aquatic environment, which can quickly spread to surrounding land environments.

Finally, individuals must come to accept the fact that they can enjoy a beautiful lawn without the use of dangerous products. Individuals can take the Lake Friendly Land Care pledge at skaneateleslake.org. The website provides yard signs that detail the oath and promote care for local lakes.

​A Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and wealth advisor with Merrill Lynch, Keefe Gorman was listed in Barron's magazine's Top 100 Advisors for 2005. Away from his work at Merrill Lynch, Keefe Gorman enjoys snow skiing, wakeboarding, mountain biking, hiking, and playing lacrosse in his spare time.

Lacrosse, known as America's first sport, is a fast-paced sport requiring athletes to perform high-intensity actions such as running, catching, and shooting balls. Much like soccer, lacrosse matches, particularly men's, create an environment conducive to various injuries, with hip flexor strains, concussions, and hand and wrist fractures being the most common.

Coaches and athletes can use specific techniques to reduce the likelihood of a player suffering one of these common lacrosse injuries during practice or on game day. For example, religiously observing preseason training is an effective method for athletes to maintain peak physical condition, ensuring that their bodies will quickly adjust to the rigors of lacrosse season.

This training can include lacrosse-specific programs such as neuromuscular training, plyometrics, and conditioning. Training sessions should begin with adequate warm-up stretching and hydration, with the workout intensity gradually increasing over time. However, training should be done in moderation, because excessive play can result in overuse injuries and burnout. As a result, players should take regular days off at set times each week and offseason holidays of a month or longer.

Furthermore, shoulder injuries such as dislocations and subluxations to the glenohumeral joint, which is incredibly unstable due to its high mobility, can be prevented by strengthening the shoulder complex. Players can achieve this by performing seated press-ups, bird dogs, and ball wall exercises.

​Keefe Gorman is a financial advisor and managing director of Merrill Lynch in Ithaca, New York. He is an alumnus of St Lawrence University, where he studied economics and Spanish. At Merrill Lynch, Keefe Gorman’s primary practice areas are retirement income advice, investment asset allocation strategies, and liability management. When he’s not working, he likes to read and spend time with his family.

Here are three family-centered novels that have been published since 1950.

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

Published in 2017, Pachinko is an epic story that spans several generations. At the center is Sunja, a Korean woman living in Japan in the early 20th century, and her family. Having grown up poor but proud in Korea, she moves to Japan at the offer of marriage from a young pastor to escape the shame of getting pregnant at the age of 17. The story follows the lives of Sunja and her new family as an impoverished Korean minority in Japan.

White Teeth by Zadie Smith

Set in England in the 20th century, the novel follows the lives and histories of two families, the Joneses, an English - Jamaican family, and the Iqbals, a Bangladeshi family living in Willesden, London. It treats themes of racism, classism, and how the events of the past come to be of urgent importance in the future.

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

This book is an epic story that spans a hundred years in the lives of seven generations of the Buendia family. It is also a historical fiction, as it details the turbulent history of Latin Americans.

​A wealth management advisor and founder of the Gorman Group at Merrill Lynch, Keefe Gorman helps individuals and companies accumulate and distribute wealth. His clients include business executives, college professors, administrators, and entrepreneurs. In addition to his work at Merrill Lynch, Keefe Gorman is passionate about community involvement. He is a Rotary International member and supporter and volunteer at Foodnet Meals on Wheels.

Foodnet Meals on Wheels provides meals and nutritional services to older adults and other individuals in need in Tompkins County. The organization's primary mission is to eradicate hunger in the community and ensure that supportive services are readily available. In addition to delivering hot meals, the agency also has a registered dietitian on board for nutrition assessment, meal planning, and education on nutrition.

The organization has a list of qualifying criteria to be eligible for home-delivered meals. These include being over 60 years old and homebound due to accident, frailness, or disease, as well as lacking knowledge, skills, and facilities such as a fridge and cooking stove and being unable to cook for oneself or safely prepare meals.

Spouses and non-elderly individuals with disabilities living in non-institutional households with an elderly person who receives meals also qualify for Foodnet’s services if it's in the best interest of the elderly person. People under 60 who are homebound due to accidents and illness or who lack of family support can also receive the meals if purchased under the Foodnet program.

​Keefe Gorman of Merrill Lynch is a finance industry expert hailed as one of the top 50 brokers in the United States. Outside of Merrill Lynch, Keefe Gorman enjoys wakeboarding.

As with most sports, wakeboarding carries of risk of injury. According to Active and Safe Central, 25 percent of all injuries sustained while wakeboarding are lacerations, 11 percent are concussions, 10 percent are ankle sprains, and 5 percent go to leg fractures and shoulder dislocations each.

ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) tears are the most common category of injuries and make up 31 percent. They usually occur when the wakeboarder jumps or falls. Treatment usually involves surgery or physiotherapy.

To avoid injuries like these, wakeboarders benefit from taking a course at a reputable school. The course helps participants familiarise themselves with proper techniques and safety rules. Practicing balance training exercises also reduces the risk of lower body injuries by up to 50 percent. Wakeboarders should also learn how to assess weather conditions before heading out. It allows them to stay vigilant about low and high tide times.

Keefe Gorman, a multi-award-winning wealth management advisor, holds Certified Special Needs Advisor (CSNA), Certified Financial Planner (CFP), and Certified Financial Manager (CFM) designations. He leverages these credentials in performing his responsibilities as a managing director at the Ithaca, New York office of Merrill Lynch. In addition to his professional undertakings at Merrill Lynch, Keefe Gorman is deeply involved in various charitable causes. He is a frequent donor to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS).

LLS is the world’s leading non-profit organization that seeks to find a cure for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease, and myeloma, through groundbreaking research and innovative approaches. LLS also advocates for changes that address the burden of blood-cancer patients and their families through its Office of Public Policy.

LLS has praised passage of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. This significant legislation allows Medicare to negotiate the prices of prescription drugs. Patients can save up to $800 per year through Medicare’s negotiated prices. Under the Act, Medicare will negotiate prices for 100 drugs over the next 10 years, and pharmaceutical companies are required to rebate back price increases that are higher than the inflation rate.

Out-of-pocket Medicare Part D costs for medicines wil be capped at $2,000 annually by 2025. This provision ensures that blood-cancer patients will no longer face the hard decision to choose between pursuing treatment and paying for their living expenses. Over 40 percent of patients enrolled in the Medicare program reportedly abandon their cancer treatments when they spend over $2,000 on a single drug prescription.

​A wealth management advisor in Ithaca, New York, Keefe Gorman serves as a managing director of investments with Merrill Lynch. When he isn’t working, Keefe Gorman is an avid outdoor sports enthusiast who considers mountain biking to be one of his favorite activities.

The top mountain biking path in the Ithaca area, according to the independent authority Trailforks, is the Black Diamond Trail. Beginning within Ithaca city limits, this trail stretches nearly 8.5 miles along the shore of Cayuga Lake to reach Taughannock Falls, a 215-foot waterfall in Ulysses, New York.

Composed of stone-dust gravel, the Black Diamond Trail is relatively easy to bike for people of all skill levels. As they ride, bikers travel through a forest environment full of maple, oak, hickory, and hemlock trees in dozens of adjacent ravines.

A “rails to trails” project, the Black Diamond Trail is built over a section of passenger train track formerly operated by the Lehigh Valley Railroad. In fact, the track transported the Black Diamond Express, Lehigh Valley’s flagship luxury passenger line that ran from Buffalo to New York City.