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Mountain Views-News Saturday, June 1, 2024 

 Mountain Views NewsSaturday, June 1, 2024


FREE ASSISTED LIVING PLACEMENT SERVICE

 

 Discover the perfect assisted living community with 
Safe Path for Seniors. Our compassionate advisors 
specialize in assisting individuals with unique needs. 
Benefit from our extensive network and affordable 
options. Plus, we offer personalized tours to help you 
explore each community firsthand. Call (626) 999-
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assistance.

SENIOR HAPPENINGS

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! …JUNE BIRTHDAYS*

Joanne Thrane, Nellie Haynes, Dorothy McKay, Diane Hatfield, Georgette 
Dunlay, Elizabeth Shula Donna Doss, Mary Carney, Carol Handley, Marilyn 
McKernan, Pat Fujiwara, John Shier, Beth Smith-Kellock, Ann Disbrow, 
Joan Ellison, Anne Montgomery, Trini Ornelas, Martha Spriggs, Pat Starkey, 
Kathleen Coyne, Suzanne Decker, Jacque Persing, Jeanne Peterson, Roxana 
Dominguez, Carolyn Lanyi, Claire McLean and Grace Sanders .

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


WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF 
LIFE INSURANCE?

1. Term Life Insurance: Provides coverage for a 
specified term, such as 10, 20, or 30 years. If the 
policyholder dies during the term, the death benefit 
is paid to the beneficiaries. It is usually the most 
affordable type of life insurance. The death benefit 
proceeds are tax-free.

2. Whole Life Insurance: A type of permanent 
life insurance that provides coverage for the 
policyholder's entire life, as long as premiums are 
paid. It includes a savings component called cash 
value that grows over time.

3. Universal Life Insurance: Another type of 
permanent life insurance with more flexibility 
than whole life. Policyholders can adjust their 
premiums and death benefits. It also has a cash 
value component that earns interest.

4. Variable Life Insurance: A permanent policy 
where the cash value can be invested in a variety 
of separate accounts, similar to mutual funds. The 
value can fluctuate based on the performance of the 
investments.

5. Variable Universal Life Insurance: Combines the 
flexible premiums and death benefits of universal 
life insurance with the investment options of 
variable life insurance.

6. Indexed Universal Life Insurance: Similar to 
universal life, but the cash value growth is tied to 
the performance of a stock market index, such 
as the S&P 500. This can offer the potential for 
higher returns compared to traditional universal 
life insurance. This type of policy guarantees a zero 
floor or no loss. 

7. Final Expense Insurance: A type of whole life 
insurance with a smaller death benefit, typically 
designed to cover funeral and burial expenses. It is 
often easier to qualify for and can be a good option 
for older individuals. These policies can be pricey, 
be sure to sit with a financial professional who can 
shop around for options for you. 

8. Group Life Insurance: Offered by an employer or 
another large-scale entity, such as an association. 
It provides coverage to a group of people under a 
single contract. Coverage is often limited and may 
not be portable if the individual leaves the group or 
employer.

Each type of life insurance has its advantages and 
disadvantages, depending on individual needs, 
financial goals, and circumstances. 

If you’d like more information about any of these policies 
reach out to Life Insurance Broker, Gilda Moshir at gilda@
askgildamoshir.com or 818-807-6060. Gilda is a broker 
and represents 50+ A rated companies. 


LONG-TERM CARE BENEFITS FOR VETERANS AND SURVIVING 
SPOUSES


Dear Savvy Senior:

I understand that the Veterans Administration has a 
benefit that can help veterans and spouses with long-
term care costs. We recently had to move my elderly 
father into an assisted living memory care facility, and my mother will probably need care too in 
the near future. What can you tell me? Searching for Aid 

Dear Searching:

The Veterans Administration (VA) does indeed have an underutilized benefit that can help 
wartime veterans and their surviving spouses pay for a variety of long-term care costs.

This benefit, called “Aid and Attendance,” is a special pension that’s paid on top of existing VA 
pensions for eligible veterans and surviving spouses. In 2024, it pays a maximum of $2,727 a 
month to married veterans; $2,300 a month to single veterans; or $1,478 a month to a surviving 
spouse. The money is tax free, and can be used to pay for assisted living, memory care, nursing 
home or in-home care services.

Currently, around 156,000 veterans and survivors are receiving the Aid and Attendance benefit, 
but many thousands more are eligible who either don’t know about it or don’t think they qualify.

Eligibility Requirements

To qualify, your dad must have served at least 90 days of active military service with at least 
one day of service during a period of war, and not have been discharged dishonorably. Single 
surviving spouses of wartime vets are eligible if their marriage ended due to death.

In addition, your dad will also have to meet certain thresholds for medical and financial need 
to be eligible.

To qualify medically he must be either disabled, or over the age of 65 and need help performing 
basic everyday living tasks such as eating, bathing, dressing or going to the bathroom. Being 
blind or in a nursing home due to disability or receiving Social Security Disability or SSI also 
qualifies him. Single surviving spouses have no age restrictions, but they must require help with 
basic everyday living tasks to be eligible.

To qualify financially your parents “net worth,” which includes assets and annual income 
combined, must be below $155,356 in 2024.

To calculate this, add up your parent’s assets, which includes their personal property (like 
investments, real estate, etc.) excluding their primary home and vehicles. And tally up their 
income over the past year (including Social Security, pensions, interest income from investments, 
annuities, etc.), minus any out-of-pocket medical expenses, prescription drugs, insurance 
premiums and long-term care costs over that same period of time.

The VA also has a three-year lookback to determine if your parents transferred any assets to 
ensure they would qualify for benefits. If so, they may be subject to a penalty period of up to 5 
years.

How to Apply

To apply for Aid and Attendance, you’ll need to fill out VA Form 21-2680 and mail it to the 
Pension Management Center (PMC) for your dad’s state. You’ll need to have your dad’s doctor 
fill out the examination information section. Or you can also apply in person at a VA regional 
office near your parents.

For more information or to download application forms see VA.gov/pension/aid-attendance-
housebound. You can also call the VA at 800–827–1000 if you have questions.

If you need some help, you can appoint a Veteran Service Officer (VSO), a VA-accredited 
attorney or claims agent to represent your dad. See VA.gov/ogc/apps/accreditation/index.asp to 
locate someone.

If your dad is eligible, it can take months for his application to be processed, so be patient.

You should also know that if your dad’s Aid and Attendance application is approved, the VA will 
send a lump sum retroactive payment covering the time from the day you filed the application 
until the day it was approved. Then your dad receives monthly payments going forward.

Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is 
a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.


OUT TO PASTOR 

A Weekly Religion Column by Rev. James Snyder

WHAT IT I DO HAVE A BRAIN?

After about a month on a health hiatus, things started returning to 
normal, and then I had a doctor’s visit scheduled for a checkup.

I don’t know why they call us patients because I’m not very patient with these 
doctors.

At my visit, the doctor thoroughly examined me but couldn’t find anything wrong, 
and then I saw him standing there scratching his chin. Then he said, “I wonder if 
maybe you had a mini stroke?”

These doctors sometimes over think.

He looked at me a little bit and then said, “I think maybe you did have a mini stroke 
and we need to take some more examinations to check it out. I’ll schedule you for 
an MRI next week. I want to see if maybe there is any brain damage.”

I certainly wasn’t ready for that kind of thing. After all, do I have a brain?

Quite often, The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage would tell me when I screwed 
something up, “Do you have a brain or what?”

I’ve been married long enough to realize that there are many things that you don’t 
respond to, and this was one. If I would answer, I would screw things up a lot worse 
than what it is. Controlling my tongue is the greatest challenge I have in life.

She will also tell me when I don’t get things done precisely on schedule, “Where is 
your brain today?”

A few weeks ago, I was trying to fix something, and nothing was going right. Then, 
the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage walked in and casually told me, “If only you 
had a brain.” She laughed and then left.

Our relationship works so well because there is nothing I can’t break, and there is 
nothing she can’t fix. So, between the two of us, everything is working out right.

If I had a brain, it might not work out as it does now. If I had a brain, I would think 
things through, and I don’t believe it would come out that well.

But now that the doctor wants to check my brain to see what condition it’s in and if 
I had a mini-stroke. This brings me to a new crossroads in life.

What if, for example, the doctor finds I have a brain and has the proof? How would 
that set with The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage?

If they find my brain, I’ll definitely keep any pictures they might have.

Then, when The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage says, “If you only had a brain.” 
I could pull out the picture of my brain, show it to her, and say, “Oh, my dear, here 
is a picture of my brain.” What’s she going to say then?

Of course, the other side is, if they do not find my brain and have evidence to show 
that I don’t have a brain, I’m going to be in severe trouble. Or am I?

There is the idea that if you don’t have a brain, you’re not responsible for what 
you do. I have to explore that idea. When The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage 
catches me up in something I’m doing wrong, I could always respond by saying, 
“Well, my dear, I don’t have a brain, so I’m not responsible. Here’s my evidence.”

I don’t know if that will work, but it might be worth trying.

The worst side of this scenario is that if the doctor does find my brain, and he has 
evidence that I do have a brain, then, the worst days of my life begin. No matter 
what I do, it is my responsibility now. After all, I do have a brain.

Not having a brain can be an advantage. And then, having a brain can be an 
advantage. The thing is to understand the difference between having no brain and 
having a brain. I’m not sure how that’s going to turn out.

I was sitting in my easy chair drinking coffee when The Gracious Mistress of the 
Parsonage came in and sat down.

She asked me, “Are you ready for your MRI tomorrow?”

I was quiet for a moment, and then, looking at her, I said, “What if they find out that 
I do not have a brain?”

Without skipping a beat, she said, “Well, if that happens nothing will change. You’ll 
be the same person you’ve always been.”

Staring at her, she suddenly broke into hysterical laughter.

It took her a while to calm down, and when she did, she explained her laughter.

“As long as I’ve known you, you have worked quite well without using your brain. 
I’m sure that will continue for a long time yet to come.”

I’m not sure when, but one of these days, I will use my brain and surprise her. I’m 
not sure how she will handle that shock, and I’m not sure how I will do it. I’m just 
going to have to wait for the results of the MRI.

As I was waiting for my doctor’s appointment, I thought of Bible verses in James 
1:19-20, “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to 
speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.”

My father always told me, “Listen and think before you speak.” This has been the 
great challenge of my life. My tongue does not seem to be attached to my brain for 
some reason.

Dr. James L. Snyder lives in Ocala, FL with the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage. 
Telephone 1-352-216-3025, e-mail jamessnyder51@gmail.com, website www.
jamessnyderministries.com


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