Page 23 - Sonoma County Gazette March 2018.indd

DEAR READERS: Do you have a legal question on your mind? If so, please email me at debra@newbylawo ce.com. Your name will remain con dential. This Q & A Legal Column is intended as a community service to discuss general legal principles and does not create an attorney-client relationship.
and we’re not alone in that. All around us are smiling people: Families, Millennials racking their bicycles, Seniors with their grandchildren. We all get settled to the announcement that we are about to leave the Santa Rosa Downtown station - Railroad Square. Next stop Rohnert Park. We are seated in the comfortable, clean and cheerful cabins chatting away as we glide into motion, gaining speed past Flying Goat and Carlisle Macy. The trains have an average speed of 40 miles per hour and can reach top speeds of 79 .
Last month we discussed the basic structure and workings of a Durable Power of Attorney (“DPOA”), prompted by a question from a reader who had di culty with a local bank when she tried to manage her Uncle’s nan- cial a airs. [Check out the February 2018 article at sonomacountygazette.com] Important stu .
The SMART staff is friendly, helpful and professional. When asked, Conductor Aranda, on shift during our travels south, tells us about his Federal government certified training, and the critical engineering and safety emphasis. SMART includes a focused curriculum on customer service.
We all tend to stall vital decisions—like how to manage our a airs as we age, what measures we want taken by medical personnel if we are sick, and even who or what will inherit the “fortunes” that we have accumulated when we leave this Earth. Oddly, there is still a “stigma” about preparing or even talking about the inevitable—our tendency to age and in some cases weaken. To ignore the inevitable is, well, simply short-sighted. Ignoring necessary action does not make the task disappear. Stalling will not freeze all momentum.
At Golf Course Drive, the train crosses under the freeway to the east, whizzing by landscape that isn’t visible on 101. The romance of travelling by train starts to kick in. Rocking gently and quietly through rolling hills – now a vibrant green – we gaze at the wetlands filled with egrets, seagulls, geese and ducks. The scenery on our run isn’t all bucolic. We pass junk yards and the back lots of autobody shops too, something for everyone.
It is this simple. We all are going to age, perhaps weaken, and eventually
die. That spectrum is unique to each of us. Some of us may be strong, able
and healthy up to the tender age of 93 when we die in our sleep, dreaming of climbing Mt. Everest. Others may develop an unshakeable illness, that renders us unable to make nancial or health care decisions. So look at it this way—our path is unique and customized for us, but we all end up on the same boat at the end. Wouldn’t you rather prepare and pack for the journey now, when you are able and clear-headed...or wait until you are on the boat, without the prover- bial life-vest?
The Other Side of Hwy 101 Relaxing on the SMART Train
By Jane Rogan
The time is 1:01 pm on a Friday. We board the train with childish excitement,
Enough lecturing. Let’s get down to business. Another “tool” you will want in your toolbox besides the DPOA is an Advance Health Care Directive. This document allows you to name another individual (think spouse, family mem- ber, trusted friend) to make health care decisions for you if you are unable. There are free forms all over the web. You do not need an attorney. If you are Kaiser member, ask next time you are on campus for a sample Health Care Directive. They will be “tickled pink” to give you a blank form. Yes, it may be awkward to complete, as you have to think about organ transplants, the degree and amount of life-saving measures you want the hospital or doctor(s) to take, and in essence your de nition of “life”.
Before we know it, we are pulling up to the Downtown San Rafael stop, where we deboard. We walk a few blocks to our lunch destination at Sol Food, a culturally authentic Puerto Rican restaurant with delicious food and fun atmosphere. After a digestive stroll around town, including a tour of the renovated Rafael Theater, it’s time to catch the train for home.
Now that you have your DPOA and Advance Care Directive in place, what’s next? A Will and a Trust (two separate legal documents) are absolutely vital, especially if you have children and/or real estate. If you procrastinate and do nothing, you actually still have an estate plan—it is just that you’ve delegated the distribution of everything you own to the State of California to distribute to your “statutory heirs”. In legalese, you have died “intestate”, meaning that your assets will be chewed up in attorney fees, ling fees, and court fees as the probate court reviews and distributes your assets to your family and relatives, some of whom, to be frank, you may not like. Plus, that special friend or neigh- bor who has been by your side all those years will inherit nothing.
The time is 3:59 pm. This time we decide to sit in the café area, and are joined by more commuters. They queue up for a Scrimshaw beer or a glass of La Crema Chardonnay, even hot chai tea. They push their seats back to a decent 25% recline, take a sip of their beverage and gossip about their day. A man deals cards to his elderly mother. The train is packed during this weekday commute time, but there is a seat for each rider. SMART first added a third car on to the two-car trains back in November. They did that after seeing the high volume
Why would anyone work so hard to gather and enjoy assets such as bank- ing accounts, pension accounts, real estate, vehicles, art, jewelry, hang-gliders, kayaks, or whatever “toys” you have collected over the years...only to have it slowly diluted in a drawn-out probate proceeding?
of bicycles during key commute times. The third car makes several runs (8) on the weekdays. SMART has received excellent feedback, and passengers began asking if a third car could be added on their trips. As a result, earlier this month, SMART added another third car to some of their more popular runs. That additional third car also makes several runs on weekdays (10).
Get Thee to a respectful and trustworthy estate planning attorney NOW. Ask your friends and neighbors who they trust. My favorite estate planning attor- neys (in no particular order) are Bridget MacKay in Petaluma (707-769-9975); Roberta Simi in Santa Rosa, (707-578-2350); and Brian Rondon in Santa Rosa (707-541-7250).
What is one of the highlights of riding the train? Conductor
Aranda tells us, “People love looking at the brake lights on 101.
SMART uses Clipper cards, the same payment system used by other Bay Area Transit providers. You can get an adult card at any SMART fare machine, online at www.ClipperCard.com, or at SMART’s main office. Discount Clipper cards are available for youth, seniors and passengers with disabilities. For more information about getting a Clipper card, SMART train schedules, stations and
more, go to SonomaMarinTrain.org or call SMART Customer Service at 511 or (415) 455-2000 from 7:00 am to 6:00 pm on weekdays.
As Benjamin Franklin quipped, “You may delay, but time will not, and lost time is never found again.”
I’ve never seen people so excited at 6:00 am or 5:00 pm.”
Debra A. Newby lives in West Sonoma County and has practiced law for 36 years. She is a member of the California, Texas and Sonoma County Bar Associations and current- ly maintains an active law o ce in Santa Rosa which emphasizes personal injury law (bicycle/motorcycle/motor vehicle accidents, dog bites, trip and falls, etc.) and expunge- ments (clearing criminal records). Debra can be reached via email (debra@newbylawof- ce.com), phone (707-526-7200), or fax (526-7202).
3/18 - www.sonomacountygazette.com - 23