DENVER — Mirada Fine Art Gallery, which first opened in Indian Hills before relocating to downtown Denver in 2020, announced they will be closing its doors by the end of the year.
For the past 16 years, Mirada Fine Art Gallery has been a rather popular spot in Denver’s art scene. They won many awards in Colorado including American Arts Awards for Top Galleries in the United States for 2022, 2023 and 2024.
Richard Butler
“Mirada is a gallery that features contemporary art from across North America,” said owner Steve Sonnen. “We feature a number of Colorado artists, but in addition to that, we have artists from Canada and Mexico and pretty much all of North America.”
Sonnen called the decision to close “bittersweet,” noting that Mirada has always been a family-run operation. His sister, Jan Thompson, manages the gallery, and his wife handles bookkeeping. He said protecting the gallery’s atmosphere and its reputation played a major role in his decision not to sell.
“We’ve built this very distinctive look and feel,” he said. “It’s a little bit of a part of me, and a part of my sister and my wife. If you just sold it, you lose all control over what happens with the gallery. And it would really break my heart to see it go in a totally different direction.”
Sonnen said the plan to close has been in motion for years. When he moved Mirada downtown, he intentionally signed a five-year lease timed to end with his retirement.
Richard Butler
“We always had planned to go out at this time, and so it’s nice to be able to go out on our own terms,” he said.
The gallery will remain open through December 28, 2025. For the first time in its history, Mirada is offering rotating closeout sales featuring different artists each week.
“In the 16 years we’ve been in business, we’ve never done a sale,” Sonnen said. “But this is sort of an unusual situation.”
Sonnen and his wife plan to spend part of their retirement in the home they built in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. That is the place they fell in love with after honeymooning there decades ago. Still, he said leaving Mirada behind will bring its own mix of emotions.
“When we started the closeout sale, I don’t think it really kicked in until then,” he said. “We had so many clients call or email to say they were sad we were going out of business. It’s going to be weird not being surrounded by this artwork and these amazing clients and artists, but I’m excited about the next chapter.”
Sonnen said Mirada’s success belongs as much to its artists and supporters as it does to his family.
Mirada Fine Art Gallery
Owners Steve and Jenni Sonnen
“My goodbye message to both our artists and our clients would be that it was all them that did this,” he said. “We really appreciate their business and them supporting us. I think people got something out of the gallery, but we definitely got a lot back from them.”
Mirada Fine Art Gallery will continue its regular hours and events throughout the year as it prepares for its final day of operation.
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HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — I first walked through the doors of ABC13 in 1978 as an intern. My first time on the air was a mistake. I had gone out and shadowed a reporter and asked if I could ask some questions and get some information.
He said, “Sure,” and I came back and wrote up the story, got it edited, and handed it in. The producer put it on TV without anyone asking much of anything.
The news director was screaming down the hall at me when he saw my reporting on the air. He wasn’t happy, but he said the story wasn’t too bad, and he let me stick around.
I took a detour to law school and enjoyed a short stint practicing law, but the spark I felt each day at KTRK couldn’t be replicated. The light I felt wasn’t in a law office, it was telling stories – stories about the things that mattered to you and your families.
And now, a few short years later, that light still shines bright for the important work we do here each and every day.
It’s time to share that light in a different way, as I focus on my family and my next chapter. I’ll step away from the anchor desk and my time here at the end of January.
Being here at ABC13 is a path I have not walked alone. My wonderful partner in life, John, has been a rock for whom I am eternally grateful. He’s been through my ups and downs – spoke his mind the whole time – but been there nonetheless.
My father and mother, whose incredible love story is to be admired and cherished is an inspiration to love and perseverance.
And of course, my entire family who have been along for this wild ride that we call television news.
I’ve been fortunate enough to have a front-row seat to history in ways I never could have imagined. That bright-eyed, eager, curious intern never knew she would get to interview presidents and politicians and people who had more influence and sway than I sometimes realized.
I’ve had the privilege of telling your stories, the tragedies and triumphs, the stories that have shaped the very fabric of who we are here in Houston. The light that shines from me – to tell your stories, right the wrongs, and hold people accountable shines on here at ABC13.
There’s so much in our future, my friends, as Houston grows and we thrive together. I hope that I’ve been able to inspire you, as my friends, and I hope I’ve been able to inspire a young generation of journalists and storytellers that the world is not quite as big as it may seem. That sometimes, you do the work, you hand it in, and they just might put it on TV.
The bad news – you’re stuck with me a little longer here, so don’t call dibs on my desk just yet.
A note from ABC13: Please join us in celebrating Melanie as we look back at her unmatched career. After the holidays, we’re calling January “The Month of Mel” with special surprises for her each day.
I had originally planned to focus exclusively on that book but ended up on a related project on my own site, which involved asking more than a dozen financial advisors on both sides of the border what they think of the 4% Rule and the tweaks Bengen covers in his follow-up book. The survey was conducted via LinkedIn and Featured.com, which has long supplied content for my site. You can see the complete set of responses on my blog, but at over 5,000 words, it’s a tad long for the space normally assigned to this Retired Money column.
Here, I focus on the most insightful comments and add a few thoughts of my own. Let’s jump right in.
Trusts and estates expert Andrew Izrailo, Senior Corporate and Fiduciary Manager for Astra Trust, recaps the basic thrust of the original 4% Rule:
“The 4% Rule, created by CFP Bill Bengen in the 1990s, remains one of the most referenced retirement withdrawal guidelines. It suggests withdrawing 4% of your portfolio in the first year of retirement and adjusting that amount for inflation each year. The idea was to provide a sustainable income stream for at least 30 years without depleting your savings.”
Bengen’s new book “revisits this concept using updated data and broader asset allocations,” summarizes Izrailo, “He now argues the safe withdrawal rate could rise to around 4.7%, supported by stronger market performance and portfolio diversification beyond the original stock-bond mix.”
4% is just a starting point
Like many of the other retirement experts polled, Izraelo sees the 4% Rule as “a reliable starting point, but not a fixed rule.” The 4% guideline “offers structure for retirees who need clarity on how much to withdraw each year, but real-world conditions require flexibility.”
For American investors, Izrailo still begins with 4% as a baseline because “it remains simple and conservative. Then I evaluate three major factors before adjusting: market volatility, portfolio performance, and expected longevity.” For Canadian retirees, “I tend to start lower, around 3.5%, due to differences in taxation, mandatory RRIF withdrawal rules, and the impact of currency and inflation differences compared to U.S. portfolios.”
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Toronto-based wealth advisor Matthew Ardrey of TriDelta Financial was not part of the Featured roundup but agreed with the general view that while a helpful starting point, the 4% Rule is only a guideline. “When I meet with a client, I don’t rely on the 4% rule at all,” said Ardrey, who has worked with clients for more than 25 years. “I’ve learned that rules of thumb—like the 4% rule—pale in comparison to the clarity and confidence that come from a well-crafted” and personalized financial plan. Such a plan should reflect each person’s unique circumstances, priorities, and goals, allowing them to build the right decumulation strategy for their situation.
“I would never want a broad guideline to stand in the way of someone taking their dream retirement vacation or helping their children purchase their first home,” he says. “Instead, I focus on creating a detailed plan that shows exactly how those goals can be achieved. And of course, life isn’t linear. A strong plan is something we can revisit and adjust as life changes, providing updated guidance to help keep retirement on track.”
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After reading A Richer Retirement, tour operator Nassira Sennoune says Bengen succeeds in transforming “what was once seen as a strict withdrawal formula into a flexible approach that prioritizes experience, adaptability, and peace of mind … Bengen’s message is that Retirement should not revolve around fear or limitation. Instead, it should be about living fully within realistic financial boundaries. By adjusting withdrawals according to personal goals, market performance, and the natural flow of retirement years, retirees can enjoy their savings as a source of freedom rather than anxiety.”
Almost all the experts caution against taking a one-size-fits-all approach to the 4% Rule or its variants. Financial advisor and educator Winnie Sun, Executive Producer of ModernMom, has over 20 years working with clients. She starts with 4% as the baseline, then adjusts it based on actual client spending patterns and market conditions. “I had a couple last year who were terrified to spend more than their calculated 4%—even though their portfolio had grown 30%—and they were skipping vacations they’d dreamed about for decades. We bumped them to 5.5% for two years because the math worked and life is short: they finally took that trip to Italy. The biggest mistake I see isn’t about the percentage itself, it’s that people forget about tax efficiency in withdrawal sequencing.”
Oakville, Ontario-based insurance broker James Inwood says the 4% rule is “a decent guideline, but it’s not some magic number you can set and forget. I’ve watched people get into trouble because they didn’t account for medical bills, which are a real wild card here in Canada,” he shares. “I always tell people to build in a cash buffer and check in on that withdrawal rate every couple of years instead of just locking it in permanently.”
Broader asset allocation
Bengen is now recommending a broader asset diversification to add in small percentages of international equities and small-cap stocks in addition to his historic investment portfolio of 50% U.S. large-cap stocks and 50% intermediate bonds, says attorney Lisa Cummings. “He claims with this broader diversification the safe withdrawal rate could now be up to 4.7% under the best-case scenario, 4.15% worst case.”
Today’s retirees have to deal with both rising inflation and longer lifespans, she adds, so she advises clients to have a two-year cash cushion in case of prolonged negative markets, and otherwise maintain a flexible annual withdrawal range ranging between 3.5 and 4.5%.
David Fritch, a CPA with 40 years of experience serving small business owners, stopped treating the 4% Rule as gospel once he noticed their retirement income rarely came from just traditional investment portfolios. “Most had business sale proceeds, real estate holdings, and irregular cash flows that made the 4% rule almost irrelevant.”
He also realized the sequence of withdrawals and which vehicles created the withdrawals were more important than mere annual percentages. “Forget the percentage and work backward from your actual monthly expenses, then layer in guaranteed income sources (Social Security, pensions, annuities) before touching portfolio money. Most of my retired clients ended up withdrawing 2–3% because they structured things right on the front end.”
Late-career income fluctuations can change calculations
Digital marketer Fred Z. Poritsky says late-career income career changes can radically affect retirement withdrawal math. The 4% rule assumes you’re done earning but “if you’re keeping one foot in the working world (consulting, part-time, passion projects that earn), you can probably push 5–6% in those active years since you’re adding income streams.”
One thing nearly the entire workforce has in common is the desire to retire. While there are undoubtedly outliers like Warren Buffett, who is finally retiring at the ripe age of 95, many professionals look forward to the day they can kick back and enjoy the fruits of their labor.
The average retirement age in the U.S. is 65 for men and 63 for women, according to the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College. But Gen Z has their sights set on an earlier retirement age, a Manulife John Hancock report released Tuesday shows.
Gen Z believes the ideal retirement age is 59, far lower than other generational cohorts: Millennials believe 61 is ideal, Gen X targets age 64 for retirement, and baby boomers say their ideal retirement age is 67, according to the report.
Results are based on a survey of more than 2,500 Manulife John Hancock Retirement plan participants and American retirees, run from May 9 through June 2. Even the retirement planning firm called this trend “eye-opening” in its report.
But just wanting to retire by a certain age doesn’t match reality. The report also illustrates the disconnect between the expected length of retirement and worker readiness. In other words, workers may want to retire earlier, but there’s a good chance they’re not financially prepared to do so.
“Our research over the past decade shows that Americans continue to feel the pressure of rising costs and competing financial priorities, which has impacted their confidence in their retirement planning,” Wayne Park, CEO of Manulife John Hancock, said in a statement.
That said, the study shows while Gen Z may want to retire in their 50s, they understand that may not happen. The report shows Gen Z expects to retire eight years later than they’d hope, at age 67, while millennials, Gen X, and baby boomers all expect 69 as their retirement age.
Why Americans can’t afford to retire early
Americans struggle to close the gap between the retirement age they want and when they actually do for several reasons.
The first is Americans aren’t saving enough. An October report from retirement planning firm TIAA shows nearly two-thirds of Americans say the dream of retiring between the typical ages of 65 and 70 is “unattainable,” with many planning to work until they physically can’t anymore.
“Americans clearly want peace of mind in retirement, but the reality is that too many people either aren’t saving enough or aren’t confident in their ability to plan,” Kourtney Gibson, CEO of Retirement Solutions at TIAA, said in a statement.
TIAA’s study shows 20% of Americans aren’t saving enough for retirement at all. And another recent TD Bankreport shows one-third of Americans aren’t setting aside money aside for retirement.
People nearing retirement age also face their own set of challenges, including premature Social Security claims: If you retire at the earliest possible age (62), this could result in up to 30% lower monthly benefits compared to waiting—ultimately reducing long-term income security. The TD Bank report also showed more than half of Americans don’t participate in retirement savings plans at work, making them fall further behind.
The case for working longer
Some of the world’s most successful businesspeople have worked well past the average retirement age. The most prominent example, of course, is Buffett, who will retire at the end of this year at age 95.
In his recent letter to shareholders, Buffett said he didn’t really start feeling old until recently, crediting “Lady Luck” for his long and prosperous career.
“I was late in becoming old—its onset materially varies—but once it appears, it is not to be denied,” he said. “To my surprise, I generally feel good. Though I move slowly and read with increasing difficulty, I am at the office five days a week where I work with wonderful people. Occasionally, I get a useful idea or am approached with an offer we might not otherwise have received.”
When the time comes, RRSP, or registered retirement savings plan accounts, are converted to RRIF, or registered retirement income fund accounts, a change that needs to be made by the end of the year that you turn 71.
Shifting your portfolio for RRIF withdrawals
You can hold the same investments in a RRIF as you hold in an RRSP, but you won’t be able to continue making fresh contributions like you did before the conversion. Rather, the opposite will be the case. You are required to withdraw amounts based on your age every year, with the percentage rising as you get older. “It’s designed to be depleted throughout your lifetime. So I find that’s challenging for a lot of people,” Andrade says.
Part of the shift in retirement can be a change in the composition of your portfolio. Andrade said she typically takes a “bucketing” approach for clients when building a RRIF portfolio, with a portion set aside in something with no or very little risk that can be used for withdrawals. That way, if the overall market takes a downturn, clients aren’t forced to sell investments at a loss because they need the cash.
Planning withdrawals to protect retirement income
Andrade says having the available cash is important when you are depending on your investments to pay for your retirement. “I want to make sure the money is there when I need it and if the market performs poorly or there’s a downturn, you still have time to recover,” she says.
Withdrawals from an RRIF are considered taxable income. So even though the money may have come from capital gains or dividend income inside the RRIF, when you withdraw it, it’s taxed as income, making the planning of the withdrawals important.
There is no maximum to your RRIF withdrawals in any given year, but you may incur a significant tax hit if the amount is large and pushes you into a higher tax bracket. If a big withdrawal pushes your income high enough, you could also face clawbacks to your OAS.
Tailor your retirement plan to your needs
Just because you are taking the money out of a RRIF account doesn’t mean you have to spend it. If you don’t need the money and have the contribution room, you can take the money and deposit it into a TFSA where it will grow, sheltered from tax.
Sandra Abdool, a regional financial planning consultant at RBC, says having money outside of your RRIF can help you avoid making big withdrawals and facing a large tax hit if you suddenly find yourself with a pricey home repair or needing to make big-ticket purchase like a new vehicle.
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“How you weave this is very much specific to each client. It’s really going to depend on what are your sources, how much income do you need, what is your current tax bracket, and what is the tax bracket projected to be by the time you get to 71,” she says.
Abdool says you should be having conversations with your financial adviser well before retirement to ensure you are ready when the time comes. “By putting a plan in place, you’re going to be prepared knowing that the income you’re looking for will be there and you’ll have the peace of mind knowing how things are going to unfold in the future,” she said.
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THIS actress was Shah Rukh Khan’s ‘mother-in-law’ and Juhi Chawla’s…, but still she could never…
This actress was recognized for strong maternal roles in Hindi films. However, tired of monotonous roles, she exited acting in 2006 after a 26-year career.
Maya Alagh, a celebrated actress in Indian cinema, is recognized for her powerful representations of motherly characters in both film and television. From portraying Amrita Singh’s mother in Aaina (1993) to Aishwarya Rai’s mother in Umrao Jaan (2006), her roles made an impact, but her career concluded way too silently.
Maya Alagh started her acting career in 1980, and throughout the 26 years, she established a profession characterized by powerful, emotional performances, mostly as a mother. Her character in Aaina, as the mother of Amrita Singh and Juhi Chawla, was especially unforgettable. Her portrayal of a powerless mother while her daughter flees from home struck a chord with viewers.
In Guddu (1995), she played the role of Shah Rukh Khan’s mother-in-law, a performance that received critical praise.
A Remarkable Career, But Overlooked
Although she collaborated with prominent figures like Shah Rukh Khan, Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn, Hrithik Roshan, and Aishwarya Rai, Maya Alagh never attained the broad acclaim her skills warranted.
Her body of work consists of more than 25 films and 10 television series, but her name has slipped from public awareness.
An Unexpected Exit From The Limelight
Maya Alagh withdrew from acting following the debut of Umrao Jaan in 2006. While no formal explanation was provided, she allegedly became weary of being given monotonous roles.
This signified a sudden conclusion to a fruitful and emotionally profound career that lasted over twenty-five years.
A Tradition Of Impactful Displays
While she may no longer grace screens, Maya Alagh’s legacy endures through the memorable roles she brought to life. Her portrayals of mothers, strong, emotional, and deeply human, remain some of the most heartfelt in Hindi cinema. Though now largely forgotten by the mainstream, her contribution to Indian film and television remains significant.
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