1980 was a magical year, and not just because of the US Hockey Team's unbelievable win in the Lake Placid Olympics. As explained by Mark Iwry, Senior Advisor for the Treasury Department, it was also the beginning of the 401(k), a beginning the IRS had no small hand in (see, "Exclusive Interview: Treasury Senior Advisor Mark Iwry Explains the Early History of the 401(k) and Where We Might be Heading," FiduciaryNews.com, February 19, 2014). But this story begins a few months earlier.

A funny thing happened on the way to crew practice at the onset of sophomore year – I got lost. I walked up the worn steps of Lindsey-Chit only to find an empty room. I reached into the deep pockets of my green wind jacket for the note with the meeting info. My fingers found nothing but pieces of lint which promptly disintegrated at the touch. I hustled back to my dorm room and interrupted a tense meeting between the hockey team's current captain, its future captain and at least two others. The room went silent as I opened the door to several pairs of angry eyes.

"Say," the captain broke the silence, "would you like to be manager of the hockey team?"

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Christopher Carosa

Chris Carosa has been writing a weekly article and monthly column for BenefitsPRO online and BenefitsPRO Magazine since 2011 and is a nationally recognized award-winning writer, researcher and speaker. He’s written seven books, including From Cradle to Retire: The Child IRA; Hey! What’s My Number? – How to Increase the Odds You Will Retire in Comfort; A Pizza The Action: Everything I Ever Learned About Business I Learned By Working in a Pizza Stand at the Erie County Fair; and the widely acclaimed 401(k) Fiduciary Solutions. Carosa is also Chief Contributing Editor of the authoritative trade journal FiduciaryNews.com and publisher of the Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel, a weekly community newspaper he founded in 1989. Currently serving as President of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and with more than 1,000 articles published in various publications, he appears regularly in the national media. A “parallel” entrepreneur, he actively runs a handful of businesses, including a small boutique investment adviser, providing hands-on experience for his writing. A trained astrophysicist, he also holds an MBA and has been designated a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor. Share your thoughts and story ideas with him through Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/christophercarosa/)and Twitter (https://twitter.com/ChrisCarosa).