Recently I caught up with longtime actuary and ACOPA member Daveyne Totten, who agreed to answer a few questions about herself.
Q: Where are you from? And where do you live?
A: I was born in Vermont, but grew up in Fayetteville, NY (east of Syracuse). After working in the New York City metropolitan area for about 10 years, I moved back to Fayetteville, NY (purely coincidentally) in 1989 to work for Actuarial Pension Analysts, Inc. In 1993, I made a deal with APA to telecommute from Middlebury, VT, where I still live. Kudos to my bosses Don and Joanne Shepard (who have since become friends) for taking a chance on what was a pretty unconventional arrangement at the time.
Q: Did you start out in the “big plan” world?
A: I started out in the field working for Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Company in Newark, NJ, where I was randomly placed in the pension department based on a reference from the job I had immediately before that. I was not at all familiar with actuarial science when I took that job, but I quickly became interested in it, and decided early on that I wanted to become an actuary.
When that department closed 3 years later, I was plunged into the small plan consulting world, which was probably the best thing that could have happened for my career.
Q: How did you become a FAS 88 expert? And why are there no FAS 88 resources?
A: Even though the plans I’ve worked on over the years would not be classified as large plans, they were mostly mid-sized plans, many of which were subject to the financial accounting standards. When FAS 87/88 became effective, I had to study up quickly in order to do my job.
When the standards were codified in 2009, I spent quite a bit of time cross-referencing where the old FAS 35/87/88/132R/158 provisions were located in the new codification, as well as how to access the new codification online, and eventually wrote an article in 2011 for The ASPPA Journal on that subject. I actually learned something new when reviewing the FAS 88 codification in 2017 for my articles on the subject for ACOPA Monthly, proving that you actually can teach an old dog new tricks.
I’m not aware of any good resources other than sessions at actuarial conferences and articles written on the subject. The codification is clunky at best, and a book or manual covering all of the pension-related codification would be great reference to have.
Q: Any outstanding actuarial experiences?
A: Other than just keeping my nose to the grindstone, I have done a little volunteer work for ASPPA/ACOPA over the years. I was on an ASPPA subcommittee relating to continuing education requirements many years ago. I was also responsible for coordinating/soliciting actuarial articles for The ASPPA Journal for several years, and have written articles for that publication, as well as for ACOPA Monthly. I have also been the president of the Vermont Enrolled Actuaries club for almost as long as I’ve lived here, although we haven’t met for many years now – our numbers were small to begin with, and have dwindled even further in recent years as people have retired.
Q: I was wondering why I don’t see you in as many conferences recently – where are you getting your credits? Also, I haven’t seen you on Google Groups recently; where have you been?
A: The reason I haven’t been too visible for the past few years is that I had a cerebral hemorrhage (burst aneurysm) early in 2017. I recovered quickly – my doctors tell me I’m one of their best success stories – but I still experience lingering fatigue.
Because of that, I have only gone to one conference during the current CE cycle, and that was the ASPPA regional conference in Philadelphia this past spring. I decided to drive there, rather than fly to Chicago for the ACOPA conference (which is where I usually go), so that I could combine the trip with visits to a few friends in the NYC area who I hadn’t seen in a while. I’ve gotten the rest of my credits from webcasts. I’m hoping to get to the ACOPA conference at least once during the next cycle.
Q: Any plans for retirement?
A: I’m semi-retired at this point. After the cerebral hemorrhage, I decided that maybe the universe was trying to tell me something. Since then, I have carried a much smaller case load. Working less hours keeps me in the game, but offers more time for a personal life. My mom, who moved back to Vermont after my dad died in 1984, is 92 and living in a continuing care facility here in Middlebury. I’ve been glad to have more time to spend with her. Also, all but one of my kids/step-kids, and all of my grandchildren, live within 20 minutes of here, which keeps me hopping at times. At some point, I plan to get back to my photography, which has been a life-long interest, but for now, the lingering fatigue keeps me from pursuing it full-throttle.
Q: Any words to the wise for the young ACOPA members out there?
A: Only that it has been a great career for me – continuously changing laws and regulations keeps it both interesting and challenging, and you can make a decent living. The only drawback is that it can be stressful at times, and often involves long hours. But if you’re not afraid of hard work and thinking on your feet, it’s definitely worth pursuing.
Bonus Question: What is the origin of the name Daveyne? (And please confirm the pronunciation.) Ever meet another Daveyne?
A: When my dad was in the Navy, he was away at sea a lot, and my mom lived across the hall from a woman whose husband was also in the Navy and away a lot. Her name was Daveyne, and they spent a lot of time together. Though my mom lost touch with her, she always remembers her fondly and loved the name. I’ve never met another Daveyne, although there are a few out there, mostly spelled differently, though. The pronunciation is "Dave-een" – just a feminine form of David, like Geraldine is a feminine form of Gerald.
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