With Your Family in Mind

“Education is simply the soul of a society as it passes from one generation to another.” – G. K. Chesterson

In a pair of studies that looked at parental support for higher education for their children, it was discovered that (1) 29 percent of divorced parents assisted their children in college versus 88 percent of intact families (Wallerstein and Lewis, (1988)); and (2) divorced parents provided 42 percent of college costs versus 77 percent for intact families (Journal of Family Issues).  Couple that information with the fact that individuals with college educations earn significantly more over their lives than those with high school diplomas only.

Most seniors want to remain at home as long as possible, but with family often spread out all over the country, it isn’t always easy to do so.  “Senior cohousing,” a new concept, allows older Americans to age at home in a supportive community.

Senior cohousing consists of a group of houses or condos that are individually owned by seniors and are clustered around a common area.

More than $170 billion is available in aid to help pay for college yet most families have no clue where to find it and I do.  The first step in applying for over 90 percent of this money is filing your federal financial aid application, known as the FAFSA.

What’s FAFSA?  It stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

The decision to get started with a divorce is a very big one to make.  When initially consulting with an attorney, this issue is one of the first you will have to grapple with.  Some clients come in for a consultation so that they can know what their rights are in the event one of the spouses files for divorce some time in the future.  Other clients know for certain that there is no choice but to proceed with a divorce and they want to get started right away.  Even if there is no doubt that divorce is the only way to proceed, it does not make the process any easier.

Every child deserves to have a safe, loving and permanent home.  Children’s Bureau needs foster families who will care specifically for infants and toddlers during the reunification process with their parents.  There are also 114,000 children currently in foster care who are unable to return to their families of origin. 

Hard to believe that summer is almost gone, but before we know it school will be here and our club will be in full mode with all of our up and coming event’s.

Don’t forget to mark your calendars for the annual “Day for Kids” which takes place on September 22, at Newhall Park, from noon until 5 p.m.  For those of you who have never had the opportunity to take part in this day, please make a point of coming out this year. 

It takes a village… This saying came thundering home on a personal level recently, and I wanted to share my experience.  We had a death in the family in May, and my mother came from out of town to attend. 

The rate of relapse after a stint in rehab is overwhelming.  Many relapse within days, most within 30 days.  Heroin addicts in particular not only relapse but often O.D. due to a lowered tolerance to the drug while in rehab and then they get out and use the same amount they used before, causing an overdose.

“I’m sure I have unfinished business in many of my relationships, but why bring it up?  I’d rather just let sleeping dogs lie.”  Many people feel this way when it comes to loss, emotional wounds and unresolved grief events from the past.  The past is over and done with, says the brain.  Move on and keep going.

As adults we look at the things our kids do (and don’t do) and just have to shake our heads.  If you’ve got a kid between 14 and 25 you’re frustrated, I’m sure of that.  Remember back when you thought having a new baby was difficult!  What a laugh!  Keeping a teen or young adult on track is exhausting!  If you don’t stay on them constantly they will forget, neglect, ignore and incomplete everything.  And then they look at you as you’re blowing your top and say, “I don’t know why you’re so upset.  It’s (ready for it...?) no big deal!”  Aaagghh!  So then you have to keep yourself from building a time machine and going back in time to give them up for adoption!

After practicing family law for over 15 years, there are topics that are regularly addressed in a first consultation, such as finances, child custody, support issues, property matters, domestic violence matters, and division of assets, but the number one question I receive is, “Should I stay for the sake of the children?”

I love those little letters that children write to God.  Like Norma age seven wrote:  “Dear God, did you mean for the giraffe to look like that or was it an accident?”  Joyce (six years) wrote, “Dear God, thanks for the baby brother, but what I asked for was a puppy.”  Larry, eight years, wrote, “Dear God, maybe Cain and Able would not kill each other so much if they had their own rooms.  It works with my brother.” 

Who will get our property when we’re done with it?  By means of careful estate planning, we can provide for our loved ones and insure that our wishes will be carried out.

Estate planning includes enumeration and evaluation of assets, cash flow management, analysis of tax consequences of gifts and bequests and preparation of legal documents to minimize taxes, expenses and inconvenience for our beneficiaries.

When filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy, a debtor must disclose all interests in any assets, including assets that have not yet been received, but which the debtor is entitled to receive.  Assets that are often overlooked by debtors include:

Zonta’s 28th annual Celebrity Tribute will present “Fabulous Follies in the Zonta Lounge Featuring Shelly Hann” on Friday, November 2 at the Odyssey Restaurant in Granada Hills.  Honoree, Shelly Hann, has been a dedicated volunteer in our community for the past 20 years.  Thirty sponsor packets have been prepared and are being delivered to companies and individuals for an opportunity to attend and support this fabulous event. 

Gardening has many health and therapeutic benefits for older people, especially when you create an edible garden.  September marks the beginning of the fall planting season for those of us living in warm climates!

There’s no end to great questions about the voiceover business that readers of The Magazine of Santa Clarita send in.

Q:  I’ve been thinking about joining one of the Pay-To-Play voiceover websites, like Voices.com or Voice123.  Do you think they’re worthwhile?  --Sandy G., Newhall, California

With the beginning of August comes the conclusion of summer and the transition from vacation to a brand new school year.  Seizing the opportunity for your family to travel together before your kids are back in class, you begin to look into nearby weekend getaways and short trips just to get out of the house.