Web Link - Ohio Association of Senior Centers

The Ohio Association of Senior Centers exists to support and enhance the ability of Ohio's senior center network to effectively serve older adults by providing 1) education, mentoring, and training to senior center and aging network staff; 2) professional senior center staff certification; 3) development of new funding resources; and 4) information on legislative issues and organized advocacy efforts on behalf of older Ohioans.

Click here for OASC Member Senior Centers.

Coping With The Sudden Death of an Elderly Parent

Lucy Whelchel works with businesses, professionals, and agencies to prepare for the demographic shift to an aging America. In her article "Coping With the Sudden Death of an Elderly Parent", she reminds us that even when we don't plan ahead, there are resources for spouses or family members in crisis.

Ms. Whelchel reccomends calling or visiting the website of the National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers. Members of this organization ore knowlegeable about aging, as well as the services and programs available to families. Care managers often create plans of action aimed at meeting the specific needs of that person, and may help on a daily basis to help with daily activities or to find appropriate housing.

Second, the Area Agency on Aging is a reccomended resource. The Agency for your community can be found by visiting the Eldercare Locator Website. This can link to services such as "Meals on Wheels, senior centers, home nursing and personal care, respite care for caregivers, homemmaking and chore services, adult day care, senior victims advocate programs, injury prevention and protection programs, information on Medicare, Medicaid, Medigap and Long Term Care Insurances, Alzheimer's Disease and other dementias servicses, transportation, senior employment services, long term care ombudsman programs, and health promotion and disease prevention."

Finally, Ms. Whelchel points out that those that are 85 and older will increase by 56% from 2010 to 2030, and the number of persons from 65 to 84 will increase by 81% from 1010 to 2030. The important piece to take out of this article is to realize that planning for these changes and the aging of your family and loved ones can ensure that all live a full, healthy life.

Squidoo Lens - Elder Law

Check out my Squidoo Lens on Elder Law. It has many links and is generally a portal I've created for you to access information related to issues you may be facing. Please sign the guestbook and leave a suggestion so that I may make it better!

Thank you!

Where Can I Check Out My Financial Adviser?

Visit the Securities and Exchange Commission website to make sure that your financial adviser (or a potential advisor that you're interviewing) is on the "straight and narrow".

You can download the adviser's "form ADV" to find out if he or she has ever been disciplined by the SEC or another ageny, what type of misconduct was found, and the resolution. There is also information on the adviser's education and business. For Ohio-specific information, visit the Ohio Department of Commerce - Securities Division.

Be aware, however, that I am told only advisers that manage more than $25 million in assets must register with the S.E.C. This means that many advisers may not show up on this webpage, which does not necessarily mean that adviser is "good" or "bad".

I've had the good fortune of creating some good working relationships with advisers with many varied backgrounds. I find that they are often a valuable, even indispensable, part of creating the best plans for my clients. For more information about retirement planning with your IRA or 401(k), feel free to contact me today.

The "Senior Sandwich"

The "Senior Sandwich" generation refers to persons over 60 years old and who face costs related to 1) college tuition for thier kids, 2) retirement for themselves, and 3) at-home or nursing home care for thier parents, all at once.

The fact that nearly 50% of people in thier 60's today have at least one parent still living is a far cry from the near 10% at the beginning of last century. This means that these families are facing concerns and problems that no generation before them have had to face. The bottom line can be a crushing financial burden.

Jean Chatzky of Money Magazine suggests in "Just When You Thought It Was Safe to Retire" that if you're already in your 60's you might plan to work a little longer, live a little leaner, and encourage your kids to study hard and qualify for merit aid. She goes on to sugges that if you are planning ahead in your 40's or 50's you're in a better spot, especially if you focus on the following:

1) Fit kids into your budget. When you make projections about your annual spending in your retirement years, be sure to plan for the possibility that one of your kids moves back home! This can increase food, utilities, and other costs.

2) Ask your parents hard questions. Understanding what sort of assets your parents have, and what type of lifestyle they wish to live is important. Ask them the following: How expensive a lifestyle do they want to live for the rest of thier life? Where do they want to live, and in what kind of home? What sort of health-care and lifesaving measures do they want to have taken, if needed? Who do they want to put legally in charge of carrying out all of these wishes?

3) Consider insurance. Long term care is very expensive. Buying long term care insurance may bring a great deal of financial secuirty, and personal comfort.

4) Look out for No.1. Too often those in the "sandwich generation" put thier own needs last. If you ruin yourself financially (by neglecting your own needs) at this point to take care of those around you, you'll only be setting up your children to face these difficulties later.

If you are a card-carrying member of the "sandwich generation" and you'd like to learn more about how to help implement a plan to make sure you and your family members are taken care of personally, legally, and financially, feel free to contact an elder law lawyer for assistance.

Look Closer, See Me

I am told that this poem was found with the belongings of an elderly woman who died in the geriatric ward of a hospital near Dundee, Scotland. It is a powerful piece that should remind us all that a failing mind or body does not change who we are. I hope it helps you in some way.

If you can share a story, or any way that this poem affects your life, please leave a comment or contact Golowin Legal.

Look Closer, See Me

What do you see nurses, what do you see?
Are you thinking when you are looking at me— A crabby old woman, not very wise,
Uncertain of habit, with far-away eyes.
Who dribbles her food and makes no reply,
When you say in a loud voice—"I do wish you'd try."
Who unresisting or not, lets you do as you will,
With bathing and feeding the long day to fill.
Is that what you are thinking—is that what you see?
Then open your eyes, nurse, you're not looking at me.
I'll tell you who I am as I sit here so still;
As I do at your bidding, as I eat at your will,
I'm a small child of ten with a father and mother,
Brothers and sister, who love one another.
A young girl of sixteen with wings on her feet,
Dreaming that soon now a lover she'll meet;
A bride soon at twenty—my heart gives a leap,
Remembering the vows that I promised to keep;
At twenty-five now I have young of my own,
Who need me to build a secure, happy home;
A woman of thirty, my young now grow fast,
Bound to each other with ties that should last;
At forty, my young sons have grown and are gone,
But my man's beside me to see I don't mourn.
At fifty, once more babies play round my knee.
Again we know children, my loved one and me.
Dark days are upon me, my husband is dead.
I look at the future, I shutter with dread,
For my young are all rearing young of their own,
And I think of the years and the love that I've known.
I'm an old woman now and nature is cruel—
'Tis’ her jest to make old age look like a fool.
The body it crumbles, grace and vigor depart,
There is now a stone where I once had a heart;
But inside this old carcass a young girl still dwells,
And now and again my battered heart swells.
I remember the joys, I remember the pain,
And I'm loving and living life over again.
I think of the years all too few—gone too fast,
And accept the stark fact that nothing can last.
So open your eyes, nurses, open and see
Not a crabby old woman, look closer see me!

Courtesy of the Peninsula Hospital Center, Far Rockaway,
New York, and Greater New Hospital Association.

Golowin Legal is your source for elder law, estate planning, probate and asset protection.

How Can I Save On My Energy Bill?

Visit the Department of Energy for money saving tips to learn how to keep dollar bills from slipping away (under the door, through the windows, and down the drain).

This site features an "energy audit" and other tools which show you how to do things such as check insulation, plumbing, or even to compare gas mileage in different models of cars.

Another section of this site educates on which tax credits are available for energy-conscious consumers. For example, installing a central air conditioning system can give you a $300 tax credit!