Lake County Gazette

Former state school employee Therese Kopec, who retired in June 2016, saved $24,837 toward a pension over 7 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Kopec would collect as much as $604,936, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Lake County Gazette.

The projection assumes Kopec received $12,715 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 2 years of retirement, Kopec will have already received $25,811 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.