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If you've used the word "softball" to mean something soft and easy, you probably haven't met Ruth Crowe. A softball coach for 18 years, Crowe has tackled nasty fans and ornery officials. Now, she's started her own business and is tackling her toughest opponent to date: retirement.
Crowe, 47, has hardly shirked tough assignments. She served for three years in the Army, eventually making the U.S. handball team. She left her position as assistant coach of the women's softball team at the University of Iowa to join the Los Angeles Police Department in 1991.
She left after a year that was marked by the Rodney King riots. "It was long enough to make me realize that it wasn't what I wanted to do," Crowe says.
She wasn't afraid to take risks as a softball coach, either. She was sanctioned by the Big 12 Conference after she complained to Texas A&M officials (and the news media) about rude fans. She raised eyebrows when she objected to the pregame prayer at Baylor University.
"I tend to be outspoken," she says.
Crowe's last coaching stint was as head coach for Iowa State University's softball team, a position she held for nine years. Her contract was not renewed in 2005.
"It was a real blow," she says.
Rather than look for a new coaching job, she decided to try her hand at running her own business. The company creates custom athletic awards and plaques.
"There aren't a lot of custom-designed sports awards," Crowe says.
She named her business, Buster's Design Team, after her Jack Russell terrier, who has since died.
The athletic awards start with a photo. Crowe incorporates the photo into the award, which can be framed or printed on tile or artists' canvas.
"The design work brings in great artistic elements," she says. "It's not a boring old photo in a frame."
Crowe has used her softball connections to attract much of her business, and most of her work
still flows from her contacts in college softball. But she has also made awards for other collegiate sports. And she's made a few inroads into corporate awards.
Right now, Buster's Design Team consists of Crowe, with a bit of companionship from Ripley, her current Jack Russell. "I do it piece by piece," she says.
Because this is her first year in the business, she's not making money at it yet.
Crowe has $225,000 in retirement savings, mainly with TIAA-CREF, the teacher's annuity and investment company based in New York. She also has about $19,000 of non-retirement money invested in Vanguard Growth Equity fund.
About 90% of her holdings are in stock mutual funds. "I'm a pretty aggressive investor," she says.
Crowe is single, with no children. She rents a house.
"Colorado real estate is expensive," she says, adding that she didn't want the added pressure of a big mortgage along with starting a business.
She doesn't carry balances on her credit cards, but she does have about $10,000 in debt from the business.
When she retires, Crowe would like to sell the business. "I've never had a lot of money, but I like to be comfortable," she says.
And she wants to travel. "I want to do the things I enjoy doing, and travel is a big part of that."
Crowe hopes her savings can grow enough for her to retire within 15 to 20 years. The catch: Because she's plowing money into her business, she won't be able to contribute more money to her retirement savings for the next two years or so.
"How will that affect my retirement goals?" she asks.
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