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June Special Section

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A father’s impact Brought to you by - Village Park Senior Living Parenthood is composed of several challenges, triumphs, and responsibilities. Parents offer support and guidance for their children. From adolescent confidence to their views into adulthood, a child’s overall disposition in life is shaped by their parents. Although the presence of both parents is impactful, fathers specifically have a unique influence on their children. Fathers, grandfathers, and greatgrandfathers residing at Village Park Senior Living shared their advice on how future generations can navigate the challenges of fatherhood. 1. “Apply your marriage oath to your position as a father.” -Edward W. The vows you’ve made to your partner may also apply to the way you parent your children. Loving husband, father and grandfather, Edward says, “Take your marriage oath, take the better for worse, everything, and do the same thing as a father.” Throughout his life, Edward has seen the significance of simply talking to chil-

dren and taking the time to understand what is happening in their lives. This provides fathers the opportunity to step in and offer impactful advice or guidance. Just like marriage, Edward points out the best thing you can do for your children, saying, “Above everything else, love them.” 2. “Trust your children to do the right thing.” -Delos K. According to retired decorated veteran and devoted great-grandfather, Delos K., the most important skill you can teach your children is decision-making. Although it may be scary to put the responsibility of making the right choice in the hands of a child, it is imperative for children to learn how to make decisions that are in the best interest of themselves and others rather than ones made for instant gratification. Emotional development is one of the many advantages Delos identifies as significant of a father’s presence in a child’s life. “You’ve got to trust your children to be intelligent and do the right thing,” Delos explains.“Then reward them when they do.” 3. “Hang in there.” -Chuck M. Fellow father and grandfather, Chuck

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M., says his best advice to fathers is to simply “hang in there.” It can be tough being a father. Aside from guiding your children, you have to manage your job, your finances, your personal life, and it can take a toll on your health. All of these accumulated tasks are difficult and mistakes will happen. It is okay to ask for help. Although life can be hard, the rewards

of being a father are much greater than theobstacles before you. At Village Park Senior Living, we are beyond grateful for our expert fathers, grandfathers, and great-grandfathers. Share your experiences, legacies, and advice with our neighbors here at Village Park. Learn more about our communities and call (470)509-4557. We look forward to meeting you.

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Is your wallet prepared for nursing care? Brought to you by - Jay Looft, Medicare Insurance Broker, SeniorSource Medicare Solutions Many believe that Medicare insurance will pay for assisted living and nursing home care, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Medicare will provide coverage up to the first 100 days of Skilled Nursing Care, also referred to as Rehabilitation Care. Staying in a “Rehab” facility usually takes place after a surgery to help get you back on your feet. Rehab is not a long-term care situation. With average costs for full time care in a nursing home now reaching nearly $8,000 monthly (source: www.acl.gov), it is wise to plan ahead. You hope it won’t happen to you, but that is a risky bet. If you are of lower income, you may qualify for Georgia Medicaid; however, that typically requires a “spend down” of your assets. You could also self-pay, but if your long-term care needs last longer than average this could mean a sizable amount of your estate has been forked out to provide you care.

A better way to preserve what you have worked so hard for is by obtaining Long-Term Care Insurance. LTC Insurance comes at a cost, like most insurances do, but costs are lower if you purchase between the ages of 50 and 60 versus waiting until you are in your seventies. Long-Term Care Insurance companies will examine your health in order to qualify you for their insurance, so it’s better to get it while you are younger and healthier if possible. If you are 70 or older and in good health, it may still be possible to get approved for an affordable LTC plan. The Long-Term Care Insurance business has changed in recent years, with new policy designs and new companies entering into the business. At SeniorSource Medicare Solutions, we keep up to date with the latest news and changes in the Medicare and LongTerm Care Insurance industries. If you have thought about getting LTC Insurance for yourself or a loved one, please give us a call today! Call us at (770) 913-6464 or visit our website at www. SeniorSourceMedicare.com.

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Top 5 reasons to Live in a retirement community Brought to you by - Addington Place of Alpharetta Joining a vibrant senior living community can brighten up your lifestyle and help you enjoy the retirement life you dreamed of. And best of all? It’s more affordable than you may think. Discover just some of the reasons living in a senior living community can make retirement better:

Low-Maintenance Living

Let’s face it – the last thing you want to do in your retirement years is more work! Mowing the lawn, fixing the sink, doing laundry – that’s not exactly what you signed up for, is it? A senior living community can take the work out of retirement by providing all the maintenance you need and even doing the linens and housekeeping for you.

Consolidation of Expenses

Do you know what else didn’t go away with retirement? The stack of bills waiting every month to be paid. Electricity, water, trash, car maintenance, property taxes, groceries, home repairs – the list goes on and on. And it can vary from month to month … which can be a big problem when your income doesn’t. Senior living com-

munities can simplify expenses – one known amount that covers everything from delicious dining in on-site restaurants to complimentary transportation to appointments or excursions.

Activities and a Vibrant Social Life

A great senior living community provides more than just exceptional care. It provides opportunities! To make new friends, to discover new hobbies and to stay engaged with existing ones. From happy hours to Sunday brunches, sports games on a TV in the common area to billiards tables and fitness centers, senior living communities provide access to all the entertainment you need – all under one roof. Plus, with friends living just next door or down the hall, it’s easy to maintain an active, engaging social life. Delicious Dining – Restaurant-Style or Room Service If you love to cook, don’t worry! Most senior living community apartments come equipped with a kitchen or kitchenette. But even if it’s your favorite hobby, there’s a good chance you don’t want to do it every day – much less three times a day. Senior living communities offer easy access to delicious dining, from the comfort of homestyle cooking to amazing dishes worthy of a five-star restaurant. When your meals look beautiful, taste as

good as they look and are healthy and nutritious? Now that’s retirement worth having.

Safety, Security and Personal Service

How wonderful is it to know that if you need extra help, the caring and professional staff you already know are there for you? With 24-hour staffing and security, you can feel safe and confident that whatever happens, someone is only seconds away, ready and happy to help. If this sounds like something you want to be a part of your future, discover more about Addington Place of Alpharetta. With our vibrant assisted living and compassionate memory care, we’re more than a community. We’re a home – and you can feel it from the minute you walk in the door. Give us a call at 678-990-7825 to schedule a personalized tour. Addington Place of Alpharetta a Senior Lifestyle community EHO, ADA, Pet Friendly Assisted Living | Memory Care | ALC000209 762 N. Main St. Alpharetta, GA 30009

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Music FESTIVAL Thursday, June 30 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. 762 N. Main St. Alpharetta, GA 30009 We love music at Addington Place of Alpharetta, and we’re celebrating a symphony of sound with a music festival featuring a variety of musicians and styles! Join us for the friendship, the fun and the memories. We look forward to getting to know you. Light refreshments will be served.

RSVP to 678-990-7825. For the safety and well-being of all residents and guests, all recommended safety precautions will be taken. Please call to inquire about our safety measures for this event. Assisted Living | Memory Care | ALC000209 762 N . Main St. | Alpharetta, GA 30009 W W W. SENIORLIFEST YLE .COM

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Can a skin biopsy diagnose neurologic disease? Brought to you by - Brent Taylor, MD Don’t worry. This is not an invitation to invest in Theranos 2.0, and Elizabeth Holmes is not the ghost writer behind this article. Testing for at least one disease by a simple relatively non-invasive method (in this case a skin biopsy) is real. ADASIL stands for “Cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy.” In layman’s terms, this name means that CADASIL is a disease of the brain in which bad arteries cause strokes. Autosomal dominant means that you need a single bad copy of a gene to develop disease. CADASIL is the most common known hereditary disease responsible for strokes; and about 4 out of every 100,000 people are thought to be affected. A gene called Notch 3 is mutated in CADASIL. Notch 3 encodes a protein that builds up in smooth muscle cells in diseased individuals. Muscle cells then become enlarged. Arteries contain these muscle cells, so arterial function worsens. Blood flow to parts of the brain diminishes, and individuals suffer strokes. The tragedy of CADASIL is its young age of onset with an average age of 46 and usual range of 30 to 70. Affected individuals often first develop migraines, mood disorders or dementia before developing classic stroke-like symptoms. One feature that makes CADASIL unique is that smooth muscle cells are affected both in the skin and the brain,

so a skin biopsy can be used for diagnosis. A regular skin biopsy with a traditional stain called PAS can sometimes show the build-up of a material within the muscle of blood vessels. And a skin biopsy sent for special testing by electronic microscopy will reliably exhibit a granular material that is proof of the disease. It is important to note that the work-up of neurologic and psychiatric diseases is best performed by a neurologist or a psychiatrist, and, in general, a dermatologist would not perform a skin biopsy for CADASIL testing just because a patient with migraines, mood disorders, strokes or early dementia comes into clinic. In general, a neurologist or psychiatrist would refer a patient in whom CADASIL is suspected to a dermatologist specifically for a skin biopsy as part of the patient’s work-up. And as the cost of genetic testing decreases, direct sequencing of the patient’s Notch 3 gene may come down in cost so much that patients in the future may receive genetic testing instead of skin biopsies to diagnose this condition. After that deep dive into a very science-heavy disease, congratulations are in order! You are now one of the few people who can explain how a skin biopsy can sometimes explain why someone has had a stroke. We hope that you found this article interesting. If you or a loved one has a skin care need, please consider Premier Dermatology and Mohs Surgery of Atlanta.

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Alpharetta’s best gets even better this summer Brought to you by - Inspired Living at Alpharetta “Being a part of the Alpharetta community for the past five years has been an absolute blessing”, stated Lindsey Hacker, President of Inspired Living. “We have been able to help so many families discover the benefits of senior living and have watched lives changed. We truly have the best jobs supporting seniors and providing a warm environment in which they can thrive.” Inspired Living at Alpharetta has been a staple in the Alpharetta community for past five years providing Assisted Living and Memory Care support services to those families looking for a better way of living in their senior years. The community features studio suites, one- and two-bedroom apartment homes complete with tile floors, rich wood cabinets, granite countertops, kitchenettes, and great storage. Along with spacious apartment homes, the community also offer residents wonderful amenities including formal and casual dining rooms, fitness center, wellness center with available therapy services, Falcon’s pool hall, game room, card room, movie theater

Renting may be better than selling Brought to you by - Michelle Wilson, Wilson Legal, PC I had a client come into the office this week. His parents were 91 and 94 years of age. They were still living independently, mostly. Their kids and one other caregiver came in almost every day to help. We talked about the Medicaid EDWP Program – Elderly & Disabled Waiver Program – which provides caregivers in the home and could supplement the assistance they were receiving privately. We also talked about skilled nursing care since Dad had fallen recently and the children thought it would be only a matter of time until he fell again and wouldn’t be able to live safely in an independent setting. Their son asked if they could simply sell the home. Houses are excluded as a resource when you apply for Medicaid. The problem with houses is that, when you sell a house, you no longer have an excluded asset. You have a big pile of money. That big pile of money is countable. Considering Mom and Dad’s age, we don’t have the option of giving away property to an asset protection trust, for example, because they would likely need help within five years. As an alternative, I suggested renting their

home if they moved to assisted living or later to skilled nursing care. Rental income would provide additional cash to pay for care privately and allow Mom and Dad to qualify with the house still being counted as an excluded asset. I know a few great property managers who can help if kids don’t want to mess with tenants. We can help you create a team of professionals to support you. “What if your income is over the Medicaid limit with the rental income?”, their son asked. WILSON You can use a special bank account that allows you to have more income than Medicaid allows so long as Medicaid is the beneficiary of income remaining at your death. At Wilson Legal, we look at your situation or your parents’ situation – financial, health, family and where they want to live. Sometimes it’s better to rent than to sell. Our Eldercare Roadmap Strategy Session is designed to find the best options for your situation. How will you (or your parents) live your best life? Michelle Wilson, Attorney (770) 205-7861 Wilson-legal.com

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Living: Continued from Page 8 and salon. Every resident that comes to live at Inspired Living at Alpharetta partners with the team to complete a full life assessment in which they discuss everything from care to lifestyle preferences, so together, they can develop a personalized life plan. Each resident has an individual story to tell, and Inspired Living is here to listen and build a life within their community that delivers respect, comfort, care and happiness. Inspired Living has the great honor in caring for Moms and Dads. They feel it is their moral obligation to do everything in their power to remove obstacles and provide thoughtful solutions that have lasting impact in people’s lives. The team has been fully vetted and collectively shares decades of knowledge and experience they bring to all aspects of senior living. Inspired Livings greatest assets are their people. The dedicated sons and daughters, and, mothers and fathers, that have chosen to be a part of this “inspired” journey and give back compassion, comfort, and peace to their residents every day. The community welcomes you to schedule a tour and it would be their pleasure to provide you a complimentary lunch for two with a wine pairing. They also have outstanding summer specials on select apartment homes so if you have been considering a move to senior living, now is the best time to do it. To you schedule your tour and lunch, please call 770.629.8431. For more information on our community, please visit www.inspiredliving.care.

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