Green Light, Red Light, Yellow Light Approach for Certified Senior Advisors

  

Clients should always have a written will expressing their intentions for inheritance. Ideally, a will should be prepared by an attorney, but some written document is essential in any case.

Always read labels on food products to determine ingredients and additives.  If unsure about a specific ingredient, look up information about that ingredient on a neutral source, such as Wikipedia.

Always ask your doctor about possible side effects of any medication prescribed for you.  In addition, check up through a reliable website source (e.g., U.S. government agency or major university research group) to gain additional information about interaction among different medications.

 

Consult the Social Security website (www.socialsecurity.gov) to get a reliable forecast of what your benefits from Social Security will be at retirement.

Comparison shop for financial products, such as mutual funds or insurance.

 

When facing tough decisions, try using the "Ben Franklin" method.  Sit down with a piece of paper divided into two sides and then write down all the reasons for, and against, the decision on two sides of the page.  Then put the paper aside and look at it again in a day or so, and, if necessary, revise it.

Never agree to be a client of an advisor or consultant without receiving clear and full disclosure from that advisor about how the advisor is compensated.

Never agree to be a client of an advisor or consultant without checking out the reputation of that person in ways that go beyond recommendation from a friend or relative.  Take time to check out reputation to make sure that the advisor or consultant is right for you.

Never send money to unknown parties promising financial returns or requesting help in an "emergency."  These are just a few of common scams that target seniors as victims.

Never believe claims or assertions simply because "I read it on the Internet."  Examine closely the sponsorship and reputation of any website that you visit for information.

Never believe claims for any medication or intervention that promises to "slow or reverse aging."  Biological science has never come up with any such intervention, despite ongoing research efforts to find such approaches.  It may be that success will come some day.  So far it hasn't happened.  Interventions that make false promises can pose a risk to health or money or both.

Advise people planning for a serious surgical procedure get a second opinion.  Advise clients contemplating a major financial move to get a second opinion.

Long-term care insurance can be a useful financial tool in planning.  But whether an insurance product is right for an individual depends on specific circumstances and the policy in question.

Be cautious in following financial advice given by famous TV personalities, even if these personalities appear on familiar or well-known channels (CBS, Public Broadcasting, etc.)

If a financial opportunity or a healthcare product seems "too good to be true," then it probably is too good to be true.  Look for hidden costs and risks when any offering looks "irresistible."

When making major decisions about money or medicine, give yourself a "waiting period" like 24 or 48 hours to consider factors that may have been overlooked.

When getting advice from people, friends or professionals, always find out if they've considered both sides of the question or problem at hand.  Always find out if they have any vested interest in how you make your decision.

Blog posting courtesy of Dr. Harry R. Moody, Ph.D.

Director of Academic Affairs, AARP

Hoarding Can Be a Serious Issue

Excerpts from June, 2013 Senior Spirit

Hoarding has become a serious enough problem that it is the topic of TV shows and news stories. Although prevalent across society, the act of collecting and keeping more possessions than you can use appears to be more common among seniors than other age groups. In a way, it makes sense; by the time you’ve reached your sixth decade, you’ve accumulated a lot of stuff.

Yet hoarding goes beyond not being able to let go of your old 78 or 45 records (even though you don’t have a record player anymore) or your notes from that college history class. People who are serious hoarders have a hard time controlling their behavior and can be a danger to themselves. For example, accumulated trash can impede movement and block doorways, lead to fires and attract insects or vermin. Further, important documents and bills can become lost in the clutter, which can lead to financial problems. On the whole, letting your possessions overtake your dwelling and life can lead to a poorer quality of life.

Warning Signs

 Here are some indications of hoarding:

• Accumulated piles of mail and unpaid bills
• Difficulty throwing things away
• Picking up free, unneeded or worthless items
• Extreme levels of disorganization and clutter, which intensifies over time with powerful emotional attachments to stuff Difficulty walking safely through your home
• Frustration trying to organize
• Difficulty managing activities of daily living
• Expired food in the refrigerator
• Jammed closets and drawers
• Compulsive shopping
• Difficulty deciding whether to discard items
• Expired medications in medicine cabinets
• Using the bathtub for storage
• Keeping papers and magazines on and under beds
• Storing magazines and shoes on steps 

Reasons for Hoarding
 
Experts say that seniors are prone to cluttering for various reasons, including anxiety, depression, fear of loss, not knowing how to get rid of possessions or wanting to hold onto memories. For many hoarders, specific items that no longer hold any intrinsic value, such as a beloved prom dress, still carry strong memories. Hoarders may fear that memories or the past will be lost without that tangible evidence. Seniors often fear what will happen if they give up trivial possessions. Some older adults have been known to save three generations of bank statements because they think they might need them someday.

Many hoarders feel like they are “rescuing” unwanted objects and animals, which gives them a sense of importance, purpose and responsibility. They convince themselves that no one else can take care of the animals, for example, as well as they can.

For a senior hoarder who has lost friends and family, possessions can become a companion, and thus, the more the better. Loneliness can lead to depression, which makes it difficult for seniors to get organized, and a hoarder can start believing that the host of a TV shopping show is a friend. Buying a lot of goods may give the hoarder a momentary high of getting a good deal, an action he or she has to repeat to continue that good feeling. At the same time, with cable TV, Internet and other technological avenues, it’s easier than ever to buy things. And many older adults still carry a Depression-era mindset of wanting to save items for a rainy day.

To read the full length of this article, click here. 

Have you helped someone get through the process of hoarding? We'd love to hear from you. Please share any tips you might have with us in the below comment box.


Content provided by the Society of Certified Senior Advisors
www.csa.us

Your Nose Knows: Dealing With Seasonal Allergies

A late spring quickly followed by summer in much of the country could mean a double whammy for those suffering from seasonal allergies, as both summer and spring pollen hit at the same time. Seniors may have a more difficult time than younger people for several reasons: Antihistamine medicine, which alleviates the effects of allergies can interfere with other drugs. Seniors often take multiple medications, and mixing them with antihistamines can cause potentially dangerous reactions, increase blood pressure and cause drowsiness and dizziness.

Also, as people age, their immune system’s defenses often become weaker, and conditions such as congestive heart failure and sleep apnea can intensify allergies and make a person ill. Before using an over-the-counter allergy medicine, talk to your physician or pharmacist.

Symptoms and Standard Treatments

How do you know you’re suffering from an allergy? Symptoms include a runny/stuffy nose; sore, itchy eyes/nose/throat; frequent sinus symptoms, frequent respiratory infections and laryngitis/hoarse voice.

Over-the-counter allergy treatments are designed to alleviate symptoms. The most common ones are:

• Antihistamines
• Decongestants
• Nasal spray decongestants (which should not be used for more than three days)
• Cromolyn sodium nasal spray
• Eye drops
• Nasal irrigation

If over-the-counter remedies don’t help, your doctor may recommend a prescription medication:

• Corticosteroid nasal sprays
• Leukotriene receptor antagonists (LTRAs) such as Singulair
• Atrovent (ipratropium bromide) nasal spray
• Allergy shots

To read the full length of this article, including the causes of allergies and measures you can take during allergy season, visit the June Senior Spirit newsletter. 


Article provided by the Society of Certified Senior Advisors
www.csa.us

Meet CSA Spotlight, Liz Gramm

Where Passion to do the Right Thing Meets Opportunity

I have been with the Society of Certified Senior Advisors® for over four years now, and since I have been here a couple of things have become apparent to me. First, there is a growing need for compassionate people to enter the field of aging. Second, the level of care needed for our seniors today has grown exponentially and it will continue to do so for the next 10-15 years. In effect, there is a great opportunity for your future as a professional in the senior field.

I began volunteering with seniors when I was just 13. I worked in our small town Assisted and Independent living communities first as a school elective, and when that ended I continued on my own. I would do dishes, set up dining, play the piano and visit with the senior residents three to four times a week. I come from a small family and by the time I was two, I only had one grandfather who was still with us. He died when I was 12, and though we rarely got to see one another, it was a loss for me since our family was already so small. Volunteering gave me a chance to do what I would later find to be my life passion. I was able to learn about people! I learned history first-hand from the residents; I learned about love, war, a simpler time and of course, loss. Unlike many people who do not wish to listen to stories of a time not too long ago (but longer than we can remember) I just wanted to learn about these experiences. Being in a small town where most people drove pickups and worked on ranches, I ached for other world experiences and my volunteer time was a way for me to learn about different places, people and ideals.

I left my small town when I was 17 for an education opportunity in Germany but not long after I returned, I was recruited into an insurance company that focuses on solutions for retirement. Before long, I was learning the ins and outs of Medicare, Long Term Care Insurance, End of Life planning and the myriad of insurance and financial solutions available for seniors. I was passionate about serving ethically; it was so important to me that when my head hit the pillow at the end of the day that I had worked hard and maintained a clear conscience.

One day, I met with a 74 year old retired Marine. His wife had just died and she did all of the paperwork in the household. I offered to do a review of his policies with him and see what he had in place. After hours of review, I was able to determine that three separate brokerage houses had sold him identical Cancer policies for he and his wife. He had SIX policies for which he paid premiums for two decades. The catch with Cancer policies is that you qualify for one with the company. You cannot have three policies and expect each to pay out, but no one told him that….until I got there. We called the companies, and confirmed that all six policies were active and only one would pay out in the case of him needing cancer treatment. We cancelled the three on his wife and cancelled two of his to save him hundreds of dollars a month. Then, all 6 feet of him crumpled in his chair and he began to sob. He was devastated that by trying to do the right thing, he had been taken advantage of. How could someone, something, or some company simply take money from a senior for products or services that are never going to be delivered? I immediately wished I had never offered to perform the review. That night, as I struggled to fall asleep in the face of injustice, I realized that there is a great need for people like me. People who care. People who want to find solutions and help seniors to thrive in their retirement, regardless of the level of life we believe they are living. Ultimately, it led me here.

I am blessed to be part of a human community. A community where we are all joined and can impact one another in beautiful ways. I believe seniors are our angels, our societal lynchpin; they have experienced the growth of our country and might be able to bring us back to the roots we came from. There is a need for professionals to take interest in seniors. There is an opportunity for all of us to make this positive impact in their lives, but there is an equal opportunity for all of us to find something rewarding and long-lasting into which we can pour our heart and soul.

Throughout the years I have seen the ugliest mistreatment of seniors. I want to stand with my fellow CSAs to send a message, “We are not going to allow financial, emotional, or physical abuse to be prevalent in the lives of our senior clients.” We must work hard to protect what they have worked so hard to earn and to forge for future generations. We MUST take care of our national economy, and these individuals are the only ones with any real money. Not the banks, not the stock market, but seniors. They have a great deal of wealth that needs to be managed by ethical professionals. You are being called to serve and you have an amazing opportunity to thrive if you are doing it right.

Hold yourself accountable to the highest possible standard of ethics. Align your goals with the best interest of seniors and go make a difference! There is so much to be learned from our senior clients. If we just listen and learn from their hard work and determination, we too can make this country a better place for future generations. We must not forget what they sacrificed to afford us this opportunity to serve them.

Bless you all on your journey, and thank you for allowing me to serve you and your senior business.

Liz Gramm, CSA ®
Certified Senior Advisor / National Account Manager
Society of Certified Senior Advisors®

Understanding Advance Health Care Directives

We all need to plan for the future. Thoughtfully creating a set of advance health care directives can be one of the most important and rewarding things we can do for ourselves, at any adult age.

Understanding the different kinds and goals of these directives; and having a general knowledge of and ability to discuss the various considerations we might address in the process adds value to any senior advisor and helps the advisor’s client.

Together with Jane Barton, MTS, MASM, CSA , Cardinal Life, LLC, President (Healthcare), I will have the opportunity to discuss these matters with attendees in a breakout session of the 2013 CSA Conference in Orlando (August 7-9, 2013).

We will primarily deal with living wills, health care surrogate designations and durable powers of attorney. A living will expresses your wishes about the kinds and extent of medical treatment you would like in certain specified circumstances, e.g. whether you are in an end stage condition, terminally ill or in a persistent vegetative state.

A health care surrogate designation names who you want to make health and medical decisions on your behalf if you cannot speak for yourself; and provides guidance to the surrogate about what is important to you and how you might have decided for yourself given the opportunity.

A durable power of attorney is a power of attorney that generally remains effective even after you become incapacitated. It is a grant of rights and powers to someone you designate to act for you in business, financial and even health matters. It also provides guidance to your agent or attorney in fact (the surrogate named by you in the power) about what is important to you in these matters so they can best accomplish your overall wishes.

A power of attorney differs from a trust to a large extent in that a trustee (the person administering the trust) has authority to deal only with assets that have been transferred to the trust. While a trustee’s actions must be consistent with the purposes of a trust, the trustee has distinct obligations to the trust beneficiaries and may not necessarily be guided by what he/she thinks you might have done in any given circumstance. There are multitudes of trust types, purposes and issues attendant to trust administration. While the use of powers of attorney is not without necessary regulation and issues, they are sometimes viewed as a less expensive method of planning.

Effective preparation and use of these documents enables you to protect your right to self–determination and to maintain control of how you are treated by health care providers and others despite your (future) incapacity, i.e. if you can no longer speak or act for yourself. In the event of future incapacity without these documents, it is possible that a court will ultimately name a guardian to act and make decisions for you. The judicial determination of who will be designated as guardian and what decisions the guardian makes can adversely impact family relationships and deplete assets.

Thorough advance consideration of these issues encourages people to think about what is important to them, how they want to be treated and what they want to leave behind. It is an opportunity for the advisor to become knowledgeable about what may be important but not considered without assistance; and to participate in a network of care and information providers such as accountants, lawyers, institutional and home health care providers, clergy and spiritual advisors that might be able to help clients in making important decisions.

By adequate planning and preparation, you have an opportunity to let family, friends and loved ones know your philosophy and preferences. This general topic is often referred to as incapacity planning. This does not sound like a very attractive topic to some elders who might fear the loss of personal control or the expense of planning. However, the advisor should be able to clearly communicate how planning allows the client to actually take and maintain control of how they and their property are to be treated in the event they can no longer speak for themselves. This helps not only to maintain personal integrity; but also to preserve family harmony.

Blog posting provided by George H. Aslanian, Jr., Esq.

(954) 779-3611

george@aslanianlaw.com
www.BrowardSenior.com

George is speaking at the 2013 CSA Conference in Orlando, Florida, August 8th and 9th, 2013. Visit his session descriptions below:

Advance Directives – Cross Disciplinary Networking Opportunities
How to Address Common Business Challenges

8 Steps to Break Out of Your Comfort Zone

Life begins at the end of your comfort zone. – by Neale Donald Walsch

I have to admit it. I am one who likes the familiarity of my comfort zone. After all, its called a “comfort zone” for a reason – it’s comfortable there. However, it can also be a deceptive trap that turns “living” into mere “existence.”

Comfort zones are full of routine; you know – the same-old, same-old. Comfort zones develop slowly – almost imperceptibly. Soon, the air in the comfort zone gets stale, the “flow” of life begins to stagnate, and personal growth comes to a gradual halt. In some cases, personal growth can even shift into reverse.

So, if you’re stuck in a comfort zone, ignore that inner voice that vibrates within every fiber of your being saying, “Stop! Danger beyond this point!” Try these eight “steps” to start really living and moving forward again:

1. Step inward. Reconnect with your spiritual side of life in whatever way you find fulfilling. Go back to your place of worship if you’ve been away for a while. Learn how to meditate and practice it every day whether that be before you start your day or at its end. Your spiritual life is there waiting to be developed into a spiritual muscle that will serve you and others in times of need and, of course, in times of thanksgiving.

2. Step forward. Volunteer to help your favorite charity or cause. There are many nonprofit organizations that rely heavily on volunteer support to provide badly needed services. Find that new job you dream of and quit the one you hate. Move from survival to significance.

3. Step more. Get physical and feel stronger. Make it a point to get that 30 minutes of exercise a day, five days a week – even if it’s in 10-minute increments. Move! Feel your body come alive in its movement. Dance! Feel the grace and exquisite motion that your body is capable of. Stretch like a cat and wake your body up from head to toe.

4. Step outward. ”The best way to make a friend is to be a friend.” – anonymous. Be a friend! Do things together and for each other. Go places and share memories. Learn about the variety of personalities and the ones you “click” with and those you don’t. As for the ones you don’t, Abraham Lincoln said, “Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?”

5. Step outside. That’s right. Open your door and go outside. Smell the fragrances in the air. Close your eyes and listen to the sounds of nature. Fill your lungs with fresh air and use your outside voice. See the colors of nature from brilliant sunrises and sunsets to the deep purples and greens of the forest. Wonder at the nighttime sky. Awaken your senses in the world outside. It awaits just outside your door.

6. Step deeper. Listen to your feelings. Share them with a trusted friend or relative. Life has its ups and downs and having someone to share them with helps us work through the emotions that are involved. Talk to a professional if you’ve been feeling down. Emotions can not be ignored any more than a pain in your chest.

7. Step upward. Stretch that intellectual muscle by learning something new. Take a class at your local college or through community education, usually connected with the school system. Read! Find a mentor who can teach you something new.

8. Step gracefully. Let your innate creativity flow out of your calling. Paint beautiful paintings, write inspirational words, dance the dance of your life. Enjoy the talents of others. Remember healthy family traditions and values and teach them to your children. Venture into the cultures of others different from you. Enjoy their food, learn about their values and traditions. Appreciate the diversity in life and celebrate it in all its glory.

If you try any of these eight steps to break out of your comfort zone, you are awakening the eight dimensions of wellness in your life and becoming refined by age.™ Go on. Get out of that puddle of a comfort zone and into the fast flowing river of life and wellness


Blog posting courtesy of Kathy Sporre, CSA
Certified Senior Advisor

View original blog post and follow Kathy!

6 Tips to Improve Communication with Your Doctor

1. Use the Explain Back/Teach Back method. After the doctor tells you about your disease, explain back to the doctor what was you think he or she said. This will allow you to check to see if you understood the information correctly and for the doctor to clarify anything you got wrong.

2. When the doctor or nurse gives you instructions to follow when you go home, repeat back or explain back what he or she just said. Again, this way you will be able to make sure you got it right. 

3. Ask the doctor or nurse to write the information down for you or you can write it down yourself. Have the person check to make sure you wrote everything down correctly.

4. Bring a tape recorder or use your cell phone to record the instructions and information about your disease.

5. Bring a helpful loved one with you. A second set of ears can help you remember the details that were discussed.  If your support person can’t be there in person, he or she can call in and listen through a speaker phone in the office or hospital.  By using a speaker phone, the support person can also provide additional information and can ask any other questions that might be important.

6. If you have questions when you get home, call and have the person explain it to you again or make a follow up appointment to talk it through again.

Are there any tips you find useful when communicating with your doctor, not mentioned above? We'd love your feedback! 

 

Have a kind and respectful day.

_______________________________________________________________
Viki is a clinical bioethicist, educator and hospice volunteer. Her award winning book, “The Caregiver’s Path to Compassionate Decision Making: Making Choices for Those Who Can't,” guides families and professionals through the difficult process of making decisions for those who have lost capacity.

Viki@KindEthics.com

 

Meet Our CSA Spotlight, Erika Walker

Like many other professionals, I have had a career that has taken some exciting pathways. After many years of math teaching, directing an Asian capital market research institute and developing international business programs, in 2002 I found myself in the field of aging as Director of the SAGE Institute under the division of geriatrics in a large hospital system.

At first, the learning curve was tremendous! Those who have moved from one industry to another understand how each has its own language, opportunities and challenges, not to mention acronyms! I quickly learned the strengths and weaknesses across the aging service “continuum of care” as I was charged under a Duke Endowment grant to analyze and identify best practices.

Personally visiting and exploring operations at 200 senior services across the southeast and analyzing national best practices helped me to truly understand the complexity of the industry. Conducting aging service focus groups to identify weaknesses/gaps at the same time brought that depth of experience to a whole new level. Working with an advisory board of experts, we developed criteria for analyzing best practices, evaluated contenders and presented the top “cross-industry” services at a conference in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2004. The success of this program led to the development of aging service network teams who worked to partner and replicate best practices leading to new services including transportation, community case management and geriatric services.

My director experiences helped me to “see the light”! Having witnessed the waste of duplication of efforts, silos of services, inefficient use of funds and energy, as well as lack of understanding of successful business practices, it became clear to me that it was time to break down the barriers and work with communities and aging-focused businesses to help them develop win-win situations through partnership and strategic planning.

In other words, it was time to put the customers first by working together across the aging industry (for-profits, non-profits, government, education) to eliminate silos and truly create cutting edge successful, sustainable (dare I say profitable!) services.

In 2008 SAGE WAVE Consulting was born, and its accomplishments include providing consulting and strategic/business planning for city-wide, county-wide and national aging service providers; conducting a system-wide needs assessment for a hospital system; replicating national aging industry best practices; presenting at national conferences; and serving as a keynote speaker and business academy faculty member.

What makes SAGE WAVE Consulting unique? We understand the strengths and weaknesses across the aging industry and know the best practices. In addition, we keep up-to-date on the most recent research and services. The combination of this knowledge, our strategic planning expertise and our ability to facilitate successful partnerships helps us stand out. In addition, we can help you educate your clients and staff on what the aging industry is all about through training and seminars.

However, should you need more in-depth training, I strongly recommend enrolling to receive a CSA Certification. As a consultant working with businesses across the aging industry, I find being a CSA an invaluable tool for me to truly understand the customer’s needs and help my clients develop a stronger understanding of who their customers are.

In addition, the CSA curriculum covers a broad spectrum of aging industries helping anyone working in a specific industry to better understand the services “across the continuum.” So many aging credentials are industry or job-specific. The CSA certification provides its recipients with a “bigger picture”; helping them to enhance their services while connecting them with a network of industry-wide providers.

As a moderator and presenter at the upcoming 2013 CSA Conference: “Building Knowledge and Empowering Networks” (August 8-9, 2013, in Orlando), I am confident this event will help the small business person remain up-to-date on aging issues and trends, build a stronger client base, network across the industry and work towards business success.

The future is bright for those committed to strengthening the aging industry! I look forward to the continued growth of SAGE WAVE Consulting in facilitating the development of best practices.

Come join me in Orlando! I welcome the opportunity to share our stories.

Erika T. Walker, MBA, MEd, CSA
President, SAGE WAVE Consulting, LLC
www.sagewave.net
etwalker2@charter.net

Secure your seat at the 2013 CSA Conference

Register Before Space Runs Out!

The CSA Conference is coming soon and registration will close when space runs out! Make sure you are one of the hundreds of professionals benefitting from the educational and networking opportunities at the 2013 CSA Conference. This year's conference boasts industry leaders such as Dr. Harry R. Moody, Director of Academic Affairs with AARP and Glenn Mitchell, Ph.D., Director of the Claude Pepper Data Center.

Make sure that you are present at this year's conference August 7th, 8th and 9th for sessions such as the Affordable Care Act, Recognizing and Preventing Financial Abuse, and the Booming Dynamics of Aging: Meeting the Challenges of the Emerging Senior Majority. Don't forget group pricing is available - bring your colleagues and save on an event no professional would want to miss.

Register Now at www.csa.us/CSAconference and secure your room at the luxurious Buena Vista Palace Hotel and Spa before the special room rates end on July 8th.



Service to Seniors Nominations

Don't forget - at the conference, SCSA will recognize the outstanding achievements of three members who are helping to improve the lives of seniors through their volunteer efforts. We are currently searching for our 2013 Service to Seniors award nominees in three different categories; CSA Trailblazer, CSA Community Citizen and CSA Samaritan. To nominate yourself or another CSA, please fill out and submit the nomination form.

To learn more about this awards program, please visit www.csa.us/csaconference/awards.asp.

Deadline for entries is May 30, 2013.


Have you already made your reservations to attend? GREAT! Share with others why attending the Annual CSA Conference is so important to you!


Blog posting provided by the Society of Certified Senior Advisors
www.csa.us

Second Chance to Live

Blog posting courtesy of Viki Kind

For those of you who are working with seniors who are struggling to overcome the challenges that aging brings, I would encourage you to share the Second Chance to Live website with them. http://secondchancetolive.org/

Craig J. Phillips MRC, BA is a brain injury survivor and who has rebuilt his life into a life of purpose and passion. I love reading his beautifully written articles. They are so touching, inspiring and full of hope. He writes for all of us who have had to start again and rebuild our lives.


If the seniors you are working with can’t do the internet or can no longer read, you could print them out and share them with their families who could read them to the senior. The families of the seniors might also benefit from some of the articles as well because they remind us that even though someone has a physical or cognitive challenge, that person still matters and can make a difference in the world. His articles and videos have a universal message telling us that we are not alone, that we can rise up from adversity, and that we all have a purpose in this world. I hope you enjoy Craig’s writings and you tube channel.

___________________________________________________________________________
Viki is a clinical bioethicist, educator and hospice volunteer. Her award winning book, “The Caregiver’s Path to Compassionate Decision Making: Making Choices for Those Who Can't,” guides families and professionals through the difficult process of making decisions for those who have lost capacity.

Viki@KindEthics.com

2013 CSA Conference Interview with Dr. Harry R. Moody, Director of Academic Affairs, AARP

The Society of Certified Senior Advisors invites you to attend the Annual 2013 CSA Conference: Building Knowledge and Empowering Networks to Benefit Seniors. This event is being held August 8-9, 2013, in Orlando, FL.

Join us for two full days of networking and conference sessions, where you will gain the latest insights from top industry leaders, including Harry (Rick) Moody, AARP; Ryan Wilson, AARP; Client Niemeyer, AL Securities Commission; The Honorable Dorcas Hardy and more! 

In the interview below, Dr. Harry (Rick) Moody, Director of Acadmeic Affairs for AARP in Washington D.C., shares his thoughts on the importance of attending the upcoming CSA Conference. Dr. Moody will be presenting at the CSA Conference on the topics, Ethical Dilemma's of Aging and Senior Advisors: Navigators For Life.

Don't miss this exceptional opportunity to expand your knowledge in areas designed to help your business succeed. Visit the CSA Conference website at www.csa.us/CSAConference. For registration and pricing, click here!

Blog posting provided by the Society of Certified Senior Advisors

www.csa.us

Annual Updates on Medicare - an SCSA Educational Webinar

The Society of Certified Senior Advisors announces our April Educational Webinar, Annual Updates on Medicare. Please join Nancy Dykeman, owner of Long-Term Care Planning Consultants, LLC, founder/principal of LTCares, and SCSA faculty member, as she presents this monthly educational webinar on Thursday, April 25, 2012 at 12:00 PM MST.

Want to know more about the differences among Medicare Parts A, B, C and D? Have questions about the differences between open enrollment, annual enrollment and special enrollment? Curious about the new 2013 Medicare changes to premiums, deductibles, and co-payments? Then we encourage you to attend this presentation!

And the best part? Certified Senior Advisors will have access to the entire webinar package so they can use it to educate their own clients. The package will include:

• a PowerPoint note-taking booklet
• a handout on Medicare 2013 premiums and limits
• a handout illustrating the case study and how it applies to the different Medicare parts
• a handout on additional resources for seniors
• a full speaking script
• and the actual PowerPoint slides

Nancy Dykeman is the owner of Long-Term Care Planning Consultants, LLC and founder/principal of LTCares, an education and planning company. Nancy provides education to professionals, individuals and business groups on planning for Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, Senior Housing, Final Planning and Long-term Care. She is a licensed insurance producer.

She is recognized nationally as a premier educator in the LTCi field, serving as a core instructor for The Corporation for Long-Term Care Certification, and is Chairman of CLTC Board of Standards. She is a faculty member of the Society of Certified Senior Advisors, and a consultant for LTC Connection.

As a speaker and lead presenter, she and her team of top presenters represent the nation’s large-group LTCi carriers, conducting onsite informational meetings across the country. She and her team positively impact LTCi group benefits participation.

Nancy's experience in planning began more than 30 years ago as co-owner of her family-owned funeral services company and pre-planning specialist. After becoming a licensed nursing home administrator, she operated large retirement communities, assisted living facilities and nursing homes. She was a caregiver for her mother for 20 years, her father for five years, and most recently, her husband, who has severe degenerative back problems. Nancy’s goal is to help families prepare for aging issues.

Nancy was selected as a national presenter for The Women’s Project for Long-Term Care, providing education on this women’s issue. She is a community leader on Lady’s Island, South Carolina where she, her husband and daughter’s family reside.

Visit www.ltc-planning-consultants.com

Register for this event now!

Date: Thursday, April 25th, 2012
Time: 11:00am (PST); 12:00 Noon (MST); 1:00pm (CST); 2:00pm (EST)
Cost: Free for members; $49.00 members of the public

Blog posting brought to you by Society of Certified Senior Advisors®
www.csa.us

Easy Ways to Stay on Top of Tax Season

Once again, it’s that time of the year. No, I’m not talking about Easter. And yes, Valentine’s Day has passed. April 15 is approaching us all. It’s tax season. By now, most of you have received W-2s, 1099s and other things that relate to tax. While the tax laws may seem to change all the time, here are some tips that can help you prepare for tax season that don’t need to change all the time.

1.) Gather and Organize Your Receipts: Those charitable contributions can add up. Your business expenses can add up, too. Develop a habit of putting your business receipts in a section of your wallet or purse until you get back to the office. Then, you can easily make notes about each expense and place the receipts in the appropriate file.

2.) Make a List of Your Income Sources: Instead of waiting for all those W-2s, make a list of your income sources. You can then check off each source as you receive the appropriate form.

3.) Find a Tax Professional: Everyone should seriously consider hiring a tax professional. While everyone might not need to hire someone to prepare his or her tax return, consider the complexity of the tax codes (state and federal). A tax professional will help you with organization and answer your tax questions.

4.) Keep Copies of Your Tax Returns: The Internal Revenue Code requires every taxpayer to keep a copy of his or her tax return. Having a copy will also come in handy should you ever come under audit.

5.) Make a Contribution to an IRA: We all know that saving for retirement is important, so don’t procrastinate. Make those contributions. Not only will you be saving for your future, you just may be able to take a deduction.

For other important tax tips, visit the Society of Certified Senior Advisors recent educational webinar, American Taxpayer Relief Act (ATRA).



Blog posting courtesy of Victoria S. Byerly

Victoria S. Byerly
Parr Byerly, PLLC
www.parrbyerly.com
(360) 357-3036

Meet Our CSA Spotlight, Sheila LaCour

I am sentimental about seniors, and stirred up about the times. As I write this, I rekindle moments of past journeys, which I hold dear. Down winding roads and on paths crossed, I reflect upon the similarities of seniors regardless of any circumstance or situation, and I realize it all comes full circle. The Alpha and the Omega; the beginning and the end. Our seniors, those who led before us, they incite intriguing notions of life in me and make me hope that the future generations will embrace their legacy also.

Why?

They are the first generation, the Alpha. They lead the gene pool of experiences—a culmination of wonderful and extraordinary results. Through global catastrophes, health and emotional challenges, and an array of other maladies, our senior warriors have weathered the storm. Their cups have surely “runneth” over.

As each new generation comes forth, we must be diligent to empty our cups and not just sip from them. We must not just let the cup (our lives) stand still, becoming stagnant and moldy. We must look to those before us as examples of how we should live. We need to finish what we have started, share the knowledge so that more gifts can come to us and in turn we will pass it on to generations to come. Our cups will empty and fill up many times in life but, as we age some of us will need help lifting the teapot or with bringing the cup up to our mouths to sip.

Our seniors were not meant to be sitting in homes, convalescing feebly. They were meant to thrive and pass down their wisdom to the next generation. We live in an imperfect world where we make mistakes over and over, due to a lack of knowledge and communication. Both knowledge and communication are two of the most important survival and growth factors of our times; by grace alone are we able to get up and move on. Faith and our strength to endure carry us through. Seniors are faced with unexpected changes in many areas of their lives, and we can offer a new perspective with regard to sharing information, caring by doing, keeping the “Core” well maintained, basic awareness about nutrition, exercise and a positive atmosphere that creates love and understanding for one another.

Our seniors should be respected for their years of hard work, and for paving a path for a better life for us. Their efforts and courage have contributed to our continued existence, and the grand lives we enjoy today.

If we all join together for the betterment of our seniors, and we do not stifle but reassure and nurture them with unconditional love, we might learn valuable things that could be passed on to the next generations. Our young ones have much to learn. This fast age has left out the most essential and basic principles of life: communication, understanding, courtesy and respect. But with a bit of encouragement, our youth can work with seniors to make a difference and to become a new generation of movement and change. Our seniors have laid the foundation, now we must continue to pass on their wisdom.

After working with seniors for over sixteen years, I found myself a statistic of the unemployed. At my previous job, I spoke to patients and families, providing information and resources among many other tasks. One morning while pursuing work online, I clicked on a page, then another and eventually the CSA website appeared. Now, what you don’t know is that my morning prayer was to be able to use my gifts to help people or at least someone. When we search inside, each one of us has a gift. With courage and humility the light of understanding will shine bright. The more I read about the CSA designation and identified with their principles (which mirrored my own), the more my excitement grew. So, we chose each other! I would like to commend the extraordinary people that created all CSA study material and resources.

Sheila LaCour, CSA
Certified Senior Advisor

Free Tools to Share with the Family Caregiver You Are Helping

Blog posting courtesy of Viki Kind

I have recently developed some support tools for seniors and their families that I would like to share with you. If you would like to email me at kindethics@gmail.com, I would be happy to forward all of the following tools to you. Please write CSA tools in the subject line so I will know what you are requesting.

Crisis Decision Making Worksheet: Unfortunately, so many of our clients are struggling to make decisions during a crisis. As we know, this is not the optimal time or way to make quality decisions. My Crisis Planning Worksheet for Urgent Decision Making can be used as a dialogue starter for seniors who have resisted considering that a health crisis might happen to them or for when you are helping the senior’s family to navigate the difficult decisions. http://kindethics.com/2013/02/2938/

Helping Caregivers to Ask for and Accept Help: In this two-part resource, I include a 4-Step Process for getting caregivers to ask for and accept help as well as a worksheet that can be used to help them implement their new plan. Many support groups are using this tool to help caregivers to create an action plan to avoid burnout. The 4-Step Process can be found at http://kindethics.com/2012/01/getting-caregivers-to-ask-for-help-vikis-four-step-process but you will need to email me for the worksheet.

Evaluating Risk while Respecting the Person in Our Care: In this 5-part packet of tools, I will give you a bioethical structure and framework to help you balance respecting and protecting seniors. These tools can be used in dialogue with the senior, with the senior and family together, or with the family who is now responsible for their loved one. This resource is not on my website but I will send it to you when I get your request for these documents.

___________________________________________________________________


Viki is a clinical bioethicist, educator and hospice volunteer. Her award winning book, “The Caregiver’s Path to Compassionate Decision Making: Making Choices for Those Who Can't,” guides families and professionals through the difficult process of making decisions for those who have lost capacity.

Viki@KindEthics.com




   

Announcing the 2013 Service to Seniors Awards Program

Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of committed, compassionate Certified Senior Advisors make a difference in the lives of seniors every day - but their stories often go untold!

The Society of Certified Senior Advisors®  believes it is important to recognize the outstanding achievements of our members who are helping to improve the lives of seniors through their volunteering efforts.

We are currently searching for our 2013 Service to Seniors award nominees. Chances are good that you are either one of these highly-motivated volunteers or that you may know a CSA who is. We invite CSAs to share their experiences and successes by entering the 2013 Service to Seniors awards program in one of the following categories:

• CSA Trailblazer: recognizes a CSA who has created a successful new program that helps seniors.
• CSA Community: honors a CSA who has gone above and beyond to share their know-how with a senior-related organization or community cause that improves the life of seniors.
• CSA Samaritan: recognizes a CSA who has done an exemplary job of meeting the needs of a senior on a one-to-one basis.

Winners will be honored at the 2013 CSA Conference being held August 8-9, 2013 in Orlando, FL. The winner of each category will receive a $500 donation to the senior organization of their choice, plus free registration to the 2013 CSA Conference (hotel and travel not included).

To submit a nomination, please visit http://www.csa.us/CSAConference/2013NominationForm.pdf.

Deadline for entries is April 15, 2013.

The Service to Seniors Awards program is open to Certified Senior Advisors only.

If you volunteer your time with seniors, we'd love to hear from you! Share your stories with us below!


Blog posting provided by Society of Certified Senior Advisors
www.csa.us

Serving an Aging Population: Experts Convene for Two Days of Learning and Networking

For professionals whose work centers on serving seniors, the growing aging population offers many new business opportunities. At the CSA Conference taking place in Orlando, FL from August 7th-9th, 2013 financial professionals, home caregivers, nurses, gerontologists and others who work to address the specific needs of older people will have the opportunity to enhance their knowledge and boost their business.

The conference will cover multidisciplinary topics organized into four main tracks: Finance, Research and Lifestyle, Healthcare and Public Policy, and a program that addresses issues of interest to all senior specialists, including a condensed version of the top aging industry reports of 2013, how to position your business for growth using the home care industry as an example, and the effects of the 2010 Affordable Care Act in 2013.

Speakers include Harry R. Moody (Rick), Director of Academic Affairs, AARP, Ryan Wilson, Senior Strategic Policy Advisor, AARP, Clint Niemeyer from the Alabama Securities Commission and Glenn (Mitch) Mitchell from the Claude Pepper Center at Florida State University.

The opening keynote address will be from Dorcas Hardy of D.R. Hardy and Associates, who served under President Ronald Reagan as Assistant Secretary of Human Development Services, and later chaired the Policy Committee of the 2005 White House Conference on Aging.

The CSA Conference will also feature sessions on:

• Regulatory approaches to senior safety
• Financial planning
• Ethical dilemmas in aging
• Common business challenges

“We know that an integrated approach to senior care is the most effective way of assisting people as they grow older” says Harry R. Moody (Rick), AARP’s Director of Academic Affairs.

“The CSA conference is a unique opportunity to meet experts from sectors as diverse as financial planning and home care giving. This will be the place to learn and share insights on how changes in our society as a result of a growing aging population will affect you and your business. The conference will help professionals understand how to remain up-to-date on aging issues and trends, build a stronger client base and work towards business success” he continues.

For existing CSAs, the conference offers the opportunity to gain Continuing Education (CE) credits that count towards the requirements for recertification, with a session tracker being provided to help document attendance.

CSA Conference attendees can expect to expand their resources and networks, while enhancing their service to seniors.

For more information, including the full conference program, please go to http://www.csa.us/csaconference/.


Original content provided via Society of Certified Senior Advisors, February 12, 2013, Press Release

Baby Boomers, Seniors and the Long Term Care Challenge

The Society of Certified Senior Advisors announces February's Educational Webinar, Baby Boomers, Seniors and the Long Term Care Challenge, presented by Bob Semro, Health Policy Analyst for the Bell Policy Center in Denver, CO. This event is being held on Thursday, February 21, 2013 at 11:00 AM (PST); 2:00 PM (EST).

This webinar will focus on the institutional challenges facing baby boomers and seniors over the next two decades with regard to long term care. As many as 70 percent of people over the age of 65 will need some form of long term care at some point in their lives. The growth in this population between now and the year 2030 will also place unprecedented fiscal and institutional strain on programs like Medicare and Medicaid and the long term care services infrastructure.

Most baby boomers and many seniors do not realize that only Medicaid serves as the federal and state safety net program for long term care recipients when they no longer have the resources to pay for high cost long term care supports and services. Even fewer baby boomers and seniors are aware of the options they have open to them, how costly some of those services are and the demands that they can place on personal savings. And many baby-boomers are not financially prepared.

Long term care insurance has only penetrated as little as 10 percent of their target population and as of 2011, 10 of the top 20 carriers no longer offer that coverage. Unfortunately, the major long term care provision in the Affordable Care Act, the “CLASS” provision, was found to be financially unsustainable over time and has since been repealed from the law.

This webinar will identify and highlight some of the long term care issues that America’s baby boomers and seniors may face in the future. Topics will include:

• The demographic challenge facing the United States

• The fiscal impact of baby-boomers leaving the workforce on state and feral budgets

• The financial insecurity of American Seniors and baby boomers and the reasons behind that insecurity

• Long term care and the 65+ population

• National long term care financing

     - The cost of informal long term care

     - What Medicare pays for

     - Medicaid eligibility and what Medicaid pays for

• Long term care options, their costs, and how those costs are growing

• The impact on of the baby boomers and seniors on state and federal budgets

• Possible policy options for state governments

Bob Semro is a Denver native and worked in the private sector for more than 25 years. He is a graduate of the University of Denver, with a degree in political science. Bob was a project manager for a home-centered pilot health care program for persons with disabilities and served as a Policy Analyst for the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative (CCHI). He is currently the Health Policy Analyst for the Bell Policy Center, a non-profit think tank in Denver, Colorado.

Bob has served on the policy and advocacy committee for the Colorado Alzheimer's Association, the Chronic Care Collaborative and the Colorado Gerontological Society. He was selected as a member of the Vulnerable Populations Task Force for the Colorado Blue Ribbon Commission on Health Care Reform (208 Commission) and the Home Health Care Advisory Committee for the Colorado Department of Health and Environment. He currently serves on the Health Plan Advisory Workgroup for the Colorado Health Benefits Exchange and the All Payer Claims Database Advisory Committee and Data Release and Review Committee.

Date: Thursday, February 21, 2013

Time: 11:00AM (PST); 12:00Noon (MST); 1:00PM (CST); 2:00PM (EST)

Cost: Free for Members; $49.00 Public

Register Now!


SCSA provides educational webinars for our members on a monthly basis. To see a full list of past presentations, please visit www.csa.us/EducationalWebinars. If you are non-member interested in viewing any of these presentations, please contact us at info@csa.us.

The Seven Dimensions of Wellness

Do you lead a balanced life? To become truly refined by age,™ living a balanced life is absolutely essential.

The International Council on Active Aging® (ICAA) has identified seven dimensions of wellness to take into consideration when evaluating whether or not your life is balanced. These dimensions are:

1.  Physical Wellness: Stay active! As little as 10 minutes of exercise three times a day, five days a week can meet the guidelines.

2.  Intellectual Wellness: Keep your brain active! Learn a new activity, solve puzzles online or in books, play brain games available online, or games like chess.

3.  Social Wellness: Stay connected! Volunteer in the community, take classes, visit with friends, join online social networks.

4.  Vocational Wellness: If you’re not working, volunteer to help others, get involved in an avocation.

5.  Spiritual Wellness: Connect to your spirit in ways that are meaningful to you; whether that’s through your place of worship, prayer or meditation.

6.  Environmental Wellness: Go green! Include nature in your life, plant a garden, visit local parks and walking trails. And make sure the indoor environment you live and work in is healthy.

7.  Emotional Wellness: Engage in mindfulness activities such as yoga and t’ai chi; talk with your doctor or a counselor if you’re feeling low.

I have served as a champion for the ICAA’s “Changing the Way We Age”® Campaign since 2011, and have been spreading the word about the seven dimensions of wellness and more. It’s great to have a list to use when I take stock of the balance (or lack of) in my life. It makes it easier for me to see where my strengths and weaknesses are, and to develop a plan to re-balance my life.

We will all go through periods where the balance of our lives gets out of whack. An illness, a surgery, a death are some things that can create imbalance in our lives. Remember, these are just periods of time that we will heal from in most instances. When they do pass, recognize that fact, then get back on track and use this handy list to see what area(s) of wellness you need to beef up in order to regain a healthy balance in your life.

We must stay intentional about how we age to be refined by age™ instead of overwhelmed by it. There is little about life that is a cake walk; including aging. Being prepared and having a plan to age well gives our lives purpose at all stages and reminds us to live intentionally, instead of mindlessly. We can be much more in control of our lives than we imagine.

Genetics only plays a small part (10%) in how we age, according to Dan Buettner. Buettner studied the Blue Zones, a term he coined for areas on earth where people live the longest. The rest (90%) is up to the intentional actions we take – our lifestyle choices – to attain wellness in mind, body and spirit.

Blog posting courtesy of Kathy Sporre, CSA
Certified Senior Advisor

View original blog post and follow Kathy!

Meet our CSA Spotlight, John "Skip" D. Frenzel

The question I get asked the most now is, "So how did you get into the senior business?" Good question, especially if you know where I came from. Ten years ago, I was living the glamorous life of an international airline pilot flying the heavy iron to all parts of the globe for a ton of money. That was my passion, my dream. I worked hard for it, sacrificing everything to live the dream. And I did it; I "went to the show," as they say in baseball. But it ended when my body started changing. I medically retired early.

Along with the change in my health and my job status, many other transitions were changing my established life. One such change got me into the senior market. A sudden long-term health event happened to someone I loved. My widowed mother, living in the house in Pennsylvania that I grew up in since I was 1 year old, got up to go to the bathroom one night, fell, and spent the night on the floor until my aunt found her the next morning. That started the procedure of selling the house and contents and moving her to an assisted living facility where she lived until she died from complications of a stroke three years later.


I was supposed to be knowledgeable about these things since I had all this "training." But I was a deer in the headlights. I didn't know what I didn't know. Thank God I did have help from family and friends. The smartest thing I did was help her fill out an estate planning form that listed her assets, belongings, legal instruments, etc., so that it wasn't an Easter egg hunt for me to find everything. Yet, it was a learning experience. I realized I didn't know it all and that I wanted to help others like me that had this unexpected, sudden change thrust on them. I would learn what I could and pass it on to others who didn't know what they didn't know.

There is an overwhelming amount of "stuff" to know in the senior market. There was too much. With reckless abandon, I took all my disciplines of real estate, financial planning, long-term care and life, and knitted them into a fabric of useful information. I looked at my mistakes, my experiences and my history and realized that I needed a plan. How could I help others? The first place I looked was at Realtors®. Without any formal training or guidance, they work with seniors on a daily basis, helping them downsize, move and go through life changes. Nobody was helping them either; I know, I was one of them. They didn't know what they didn't know either. They usually don't have the resources or knowledge to help seniors beyond the normal real estate activities. However, the senior market is much more than just real estate. It encompasses retirement, estate planning, long-term care, insurance, portfolio management, the psychology of aging, life changes, physical challenges and so much more. Where do Realtors get the training for this?

I decided this is where I could do the most good. I already had the only Realtor designation for working with and having advanced knowledge of seniors: the Senior Real Estate Specialist® (SRES®), but I wanted to do more with the designation. I wanted to teach the course to other Realtors. With my background in financial planning and long-term care, I could bring more resources to the designation than the basic course offered. But I had trouble breaking into the inner circle; it took two years to qualify and become an SRES® instructor, and many of the other instructors did not share information with me. Even though I was one of them, I was still an outsider and many regarded me as their competition.

Teaching the class just showed me how much material there is to share. It can't be done in the two days using the curriculum the SRES course provides. While this is a real estate course, it contains very little real estate; rather, it highlights the senior business. So while the other instructors are experts and experienced in real estate, many teaching a bunch of other real estate courses, the SRES class is the only one I teach and am qualified for. The others know real estate, while I know the senior market, so we approach the class from different angles. This allows me to do more than the normal content of the course; I "super size" it. This course is the start for agents to learn how to work with seniors and gives each agent a bit more knowledge on how to help their clients. But if that weren't enough, I have developed a class called "What SRES® Didn't Teach You: How Far Down the Rabbit Hole Do You Want to Go?" The name says it all.

Beside teaching the SRES® class and "Down the Rabbit Hole," I also have a beginners class for Realtors to introduce them to the senior market, called "The Alchemy of the Senior Market: Turning Lead into Gold."

Finally, my local real estate board has sought me out to assist them with the formation of a Senior Resource Center. I am helping to develop a program and resource center so that seniors can find the answers to things that they need. Since they don't know what they don't know, it will be useful to the public and will be staffed with SRES® Realtors from the board.

I would also like to do more work on affordable housing for seniors. This is a very complex and challenging subject in our area. And I want to work with planning cities of the future. This involves bringing people from the suburbs back into the cities and relying less on automobiles. This means returning to multiuse residential/retail buildings like from the 1940s and 1950s, using many new ideas to help us live better, including walkable neighborhoods with local shopping, local villages within the city, green technologies and more.

But my bread and butter is helping the Realtors to assist their senior clients and the children of these clients in areas other than real estate. I do this with a team of professionals who are experts in their various fields. Through them, the Realtor can provide services in areas that he or she can’t do, don’t want to do or aren’t licensed to do. Together, we form an integrated team that can solve most any senior-related problem. The main things that I provide are planning and education to the Realtors and their clients.

I use a variety of options to educate my Realtor clients, including seminars and workshops, a cache of materials, articles, books, PowerPoint presentations, a library of TV shows and industry handouts on topics of interest in the senior market. I provide each new Realtor client with an Agent Resource Kit. I regularly update the blog on my website and routinely send out eblasts that keep Realtors informed of the latest news that affects them. I alert them to seminars, fairs, open houses, meetings or other senior events in our area. I teach how to correctly deal with seniors and their issues, how to assist caregivers and how to gain access to the senior market. Since relationship building is the cornerstone to working with seniors, I help the Realtors provide information and resources to their clients to earn their trust and confidence. The Realtors can provide these services without being an expert on these areas themselves. I provide as much or as little service as the Realtor wants.

Besides the real estate work, I have interests in other areas of the senior business. Here are a few:

I am on the Advisory Council to the Council on Aging representing the City of Campbell, Calif. We review, implement and monitor programs that affect seniors in our county.

I am on the Senior Ministries Committee at the Los Altos United Methodist Church. We plan senior activities, events and services for seniors in the church. I am in charge of the Professional Services section, creating educational programs, seminars, lectures, workshops and presentations dealing with senior topics. Actually, I have started a program called "We don't know what we don't know." Does that sound familiar?

Also, I host twice a month Senior Chat meetings dealing with a variety of senior issues. I select topics, find speakers and host the meetings.

I have been a volunteer for the Silicon Valley Village since its inception, trying to establish a Village in the Santa Clara County area to help people age in place in their own homes by offering services and programs. I help seek other volunteers, committee members and leaders to launch this project.

I serve as a volunteer with the Silicon Valley Financial Planning Association (SVFPA), serving on the Program Committee planning, organizing and hosting regular monthly meetings of SVFPA. I also volunteer as a team member for Brown Bag Meetings, which are smaller, monthly lunchtime meetings dealing with non-mainstream financial planning topics. Team members find topics and presenters for these meetings, organize and host the meetings.

I also serve on several advocacy groups including AGEnts for Change, Aging Services Collaborative and the Senior Agenda to the county Area Plan, working with areas that are new or changing our senior programs.

But one of my greatest achievements and useful designations is the Certified Senior Advisor®. This course brought all of the above together into one comprehensive package which gave me the missing pieces to link all of my disciplines and knowledge together. It is not an easy course to pass, but the value of having it not only benefits the designee but all of his or her clients. This brings the polish to the rough topics that I sort of knew but needed a little more depth of knowledge. And just having it gives me the unspoken recognition of master of my trade. I am proud to have gotten the CSA and share it with my fellow cohorts. The combination of being a CSA, CFP®, Realtor and long-term care expert puts me in a position of authority and expertise when it comes to senior work.

Lastly, I am an enthusiastic member of our local Senior Roundtable and of LinkedIn. I will gladly link with others working in the field if invited.


John "Skip" D. Frenzel, CSA, CFP®, CLTC, CMFC
Long Term Care Specialist
Agape Long Term Care
CA License #0B33867
www.AgapeLongTermCare.com
info@AgapeLTC.com











John D. Frenzel-REALTOR®
GRI, CRS, SRES®, GHS™
Agape Real Estate
CA License #590513
www.AgapeRealEstate.info
RE@AgapeLTC.com

Check out the full issue of January's Senior Spirit, click here!