Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, July 8, 2023

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Mountain Views-News Saturday, July 8, 2023 

CLEM & NINA BARTOLAI - 

SIERRA MADRE'S OLDER AMERICANS OF THE YEAR

SENIOR HAPPENINGS

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! …JULY Birthdays*

Nina Bartolai, Mary Lou Caldwell, Louise Neiby, Betty Hansen, Melinda 
Rogers , Christine Durfort, Shahrzad Azrani, Jeanne Borgedahl, Janet Cox, 
Dorothy Montgomery, Bess Pancoska, Janet Swanson, Barbara Watson, Pat 
Alcorn, Karma Bell, Alice Clark, and Betty Dos Remedios, Bonnie Diener

Jan Greteman, Linda Heller

 * To add your name to this distinguished list, please call the paper at 626.355.2737. YEAR 
of birth not required 


SENIOR CLUB Every Saturday at Noon Hart Park House

Open to all seniors 50+ Fun - Games - And More! Call Mark at 626-355-3951 

TEA AND TALK BOOK CLUB

Wednesday, 7/12 and 7/26 9:00 am Hart Park House

Tea and Talk, meets twice a month to discuss the fun, suspense, intrigue, love and so 
much more that each selection will have in store! Call Lawren 626-355-5278 for 

current selection and feel free to join at any time.

HULA AND POLYNESIAN DANCE

 BEGINNERS - Every Thursday 10-11:00 am

 INTERMEDIATE Every Friday 10-11:00 am

Bring a lei, your flower skirt or just your desire to dance! Hula in the Park is back and 
waiting for you to join in on all the fun! Memorial Park Covered Pavilion.

CHAIR YOGA

Every Monday and Wednesday 10-10:45 am

Please join us for some gentle stretching, yoga, balance exercise and overall relaxation 
with Paul. Classes are ongoing and held in the Memorial Park Covered Pavilion or the 
Hart Park House. 


OUT TO PASTOR 

A Weekly Religion Column by Rev. James Snyder


FAMILY MATTERS

 By Marc Garlett

HAVE GIGGLE, WILL LAUGH

HAVE A TRUST? HOW THE CORPORATE 

TRANSPARENCY ACT AFFECTS YOU.

I have many problems in 
my life. I have yet to recognize 
all of my problems, 
but I'm sure I will soon.

That's why it's so great to be married to 
someone like The Gracious Mistress of the 
Parsonage. There is no problem she cannot 
fix, and I have many examples to prove it.

There is one problem she hasn't been able 
to fix. That is, I laugh too much. At least, 
according to her.

If something happens or someone says 
something, I will start to giggle, and I know 
that in a short time, I will be laughing. I 
know how to laugh better than anybody I 
know. Just ask The Gracious Mistress of the 
Parsonage.

Through the years, I have tried to moderate 
it. I don't want to laugh at everything 
even though there is a giggle inside of me. 
Most people don't think everything is funny, 
while I, on the other side, can’t think of 
anything that isn’t funny.

Someone may tell me something or say 
something unwittingly, and I begin to 
giggle. I know when that starts I have no 
control over my giggle-itis. The only cure I 
have found for giggle-itis is laughter.

Someone may be telling a very serious story 
about their life, and I hear it wrong and 
think they are saying something altogether 
different, and it kicks in my giggle-itis.

It wouldn't be so bad if I could control it 
when it happens, but as history has proven, 
I cannot.

I do try to keep some things serious. I must 
confess, however, that changes from day to 
day. What is serious today may not be serious 
tomorrow, and I am the last one to 
know how to control that.

I've often discussed this with The Gracious 
Mistress of the Parsonage, and she has 
tried to counsel me in this area on how to 
control my laughter.

I try to explain to her that it is not so much 
the laughter as it is the giggle. If I could 
control my giggles, I wouldn't have any 
problem with laughter. She doesn't get it 
and laughs at me.

You must agree, there are many things in 
this world that are funny. And I do not believe 
we should overlook or ignore those 
situations.

Last week I was standing in line at the post 
office, and at the counter was a very nice 
older lady. She was paying for some postage 
and gave the cashier a $50 bill. Then the 
cashier, preparing to give her money back, 
said something strange. He said, "Mam, 
what denomination would you like?"

I hadn't heard that in a long time and 
was anxious to hear how the lady would 
respond.

She looked at the cashier with a very serious 
look and said, "Sir, I’m a Baptist, so give 
it to me in Baptist denomination."

Little did I know she was not joking, but I 
laughed at her, trying to conceal it.

The cashier stared at her, not knowing 
what to do. I'm not sure what money he 
gave her because I was laughing too much 
on the inside.

It's so hard for me to laugh on the inside 
and keep it from getting on the outside. 
What is inside eventually comes outside. I 
was laughing about that for the rest of the 
day. And still, when I think of it, I chuckle 
on the inside.

Just the other day, The Gracious Mistress of 
the Parsonage came and informed me that 
she would be gone for the day, thrift store 
shopping with her daughters. Looking at 
me, she seriously said, "Can you get your 
own lunch today while I'm gone?"

That tripped the giggle button inside for 
some reason, and my giggle-itis had kicked 
in.

Looking at her while giggling, I said, "Don't 
worry. I'll clean the refrigerator out by the 
time you get home."

Then I started laughing almost uncontrollably. 
She, on the other hand, looked at me 
with her infamous scowl and said, without 
laughing, "I don’t think so."

I could not stop laughing as she walked out 
the front door. Several hours later, I was 
still laughing, and went and looked in the 
refrigerator to see how much work I had on 
hand.

When I opened the refrigerator door, I immediately 
stopped laughing. There at the 
front was a bowl of broccoli. I know she did 
that on purpose, and it cured my giggle-itis 
for a moment. I had to devise a plan for that 
broccoli to make me laugh and her scowl. 
Now the giggle-itis is beginning to turn on.

I think a bowl of Apple Fritters would be 
an excellent replacement. This is one of 
the few items that will make the Gracious 
Mistress of the Parsonage scowl. To see that 
scowl will be worth all I can offer at this 
time.

Just the thought of that began a giggle inside 
of me. Thinking more of this it developed 
into laughter. I just can’t wait to get 
even.

While I was laughing, I thought of one my 
favorite Bible verses. “All the days of the 
afflicted are evil: but he that is of a merry 
heart hath a continual feast” (Proverbs 
15:15.

When I think of broccoli I have evil feelings, 
but the Apple Fritter thought brings a 
lot of merriment to me.

Then I remembered Proverbs 17:22. “A 
merry heart doeth good like a medicine: 
but a broken spirit drieth the bones.”

Get ready for a new twist in the legal and business world. You may already 
be familiar with the upcoming Corporate Transparency Act, set to kick in 
next year. If you aren’t, it’s time to get in the know because it could impact 
you, and if it does, you’ll need support. Starting January 1, 2024, every small business will be 
mandated to submit an annual report revealing the names of its major owners. Now, here's where 
things get even more offputting. If you happen to have a Trust that holds partial or full ownership 
in a business, that business might be required to disclose private details about your trust, including 
the name of your Trustee or beneficiaries, in your annual corporate report to the government.

What Is the Purpose of the Corporate Transparency Act and What Does It Require?

Enacted in 2020 and set to take effect on January 1, 2024, the Corporate Transparency Act aims to 
tackle money laundering and terrorism financing schemes involving "shell" corporations—companies 
which exist merely on paper and don't engage in actual business or trade (like “Vamonos 
Pest” in Breaking Bad).

Under the Act, small companies will now have to disclose the names of any owners who hold 25% 
or more ownership in the company, as well as any individuals who exercise significant control 
over the company's activities. The goal is to identify and expose shell corporations involved in 
money laundering, as this tends to occur within small businesses rather than large corporations.

To comply with the requirements, businesses must submit an annual report to the Financial 
Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) containing the following details about each owner or 
controller:

 Business name

 Current business address

 State in which the business was formed and its Entity Identification Number (EIN)

 Owner/controller’s name, birth date, and address

 Photocopy of a government-issued photo ID (such as a driver’s license or passport) of 
every direct or indirect owner or controller of the company

Failing to file an annual report could result in serious repercussions, from paying a fine of $500 
for every day the report is late up to imprisonment for two years.

Does My Trust Need to Be Disclosed?

Since a Trust can – and often should – own a business or a share of a business, Trusts are also 
involved in the Corporate Transparency Act, but under more limited circumstances.

So how do you know if your Trust information will need to be disclosed?

Let’s break it down…

The new rule applies to any company that is created by filing a formation document with the 
Secretary of State or a similar office, such as corporations and limited liability companies (LLCs).

Non-profits, publicly traded companies, and regulated companies like banks and investment advisors 
are exempt from the rule. Large companies are also exempt if they have 20 or more full-
time employees in the US and generate $5 million in sales. So, if your trust owns a share of any of 
these types of companies, it does not need to be reported.

If you have an LLC or corporation you created but aren’t actively using to run a business, that 
company is exempt from reporting due to its inactivity, so your Trust would not be reported in 
that instance, either.

But if your Trust owns a share of a small, for-profit company, (like a small family business or local 
investment) the beneficial owner of the Trust will need to be reported to the Financial Crimes 
Enforcement Network.

The beneficial owner is the person or people who benefit from the Trust or have the power to 
make major decisions about the Trust assets. Depending on how your Trust is written, this is usually 
the Trustee, but it can also be the beneficiaries of your Trust. 

Does the Corporate Transparency Act Affect My Trust’s Asset Protection?

One of the best things about creating a Trust is that it provides you and your family with an extra 
level of privacy and provides asset protection from divorce or lawsuits for your Trust’s beneficiaries 
after you’re gone.

Thankfully, having a Trust that owns a business or a share of a business doesn’t take away from 
the Trust’s ability to provide asset protection to your heirs.

And while the new Corporate Transparency Act rule reduces some of the privacy benefits that 
come with owning assets in a Trust, the names of your Trust, trustees, and beneficiaries are not 
supposed to be made public and are only to be used by the government for the specific purpose 
of investigating financial crimes. 

Because of this, Trusts should remain an excellent tool for providing privacy, avoiding probate, 
and setting up your family with a lifetime of asset protection and financial security.

To your health, wealth, and family legacy,


Marc Garlett, Esq.

Cali Law Family Legacy Matters

www.caliLaw.com

626.355.4000

This material was created for educational and informational purposes only and is 
not intended as ERISA, tax, legal, or investment advice. If you are seeking legal or 
other advice specific to your needs, such advice services must be obtained on your 
own, separate from this educational material.

Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com