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The Mother’s Day gift of estate planning

For those of you thinking ahead, Mother’s Day is the 11th of May, 2025. Most of us send our mother flowers, good wishes and perhaps treat her to a nice meal. A more unique gift would be to help get her estate planning in order. There are many practical estate planning documents to consider. For mothers of all ages, Powers of Attorney can help at a time of crisis. Who will make decisions for your mom when she is unable? A Power of Attorney names an agent to make financial and healthcare decisions. These documents are particularly valuable if one or more of the children will be taking ...

Covenant Cafe celebrates Mardi Gras with colorful party

PHOTOS PROVIDED Participants in Covenant Cafe for March enjoyed a fun Mardi Gras celebration recently. The group got to put on colorful, sparkling and unique masks while taking part in a variety of activities. This included the traditional King Cake — with one participant finding the ...

Funeral planning considerations with Medicaid

Over the years I have had hundreds of conversations with clients and their loved ones about planning for their funeral, burial, cremation, celebration of life or other ways to dispose of their body when they are gone. Some clients are proactive and embrace this end-of-life planning as part of ...

Do you eat a meal in 20 minutes or less? It might be time to slow down

LONDON (AP) — You can have your cake and eat it too — just do it slowly. Experts tend to focus on the kinds of foods you can eat to improve your health. But the speed at which you devour your dinner matters just as much. There are risks with eating too fast — think stuck food and the ...

Covenant Cafe celebrates Valentine’s Day at latest session

PHOTOS PROVIDED Participants at Covenant Cafe recently celebrated Valentine’s Day at its February session. The group worked together to create Valentine’s cards to share with loved ones. Also at its session, the group heard a presentation from volunteer Pam Blesh about the certification ...

The end of Federal Estate Tax?

When I started practicing law 30 years ago, the Federal Estate Tax Exemption was $600,000, with a maximum tax rate of 55 percent. That meant that a deceased person could pay a maximum 55 percent Federal Estate Tax on the value of his estate in excess of the exemption amount. Today, the exemption has ballooned to $13.99 million with a maximum tax rate of 40 percent. With such a large exemption, the Federal Estate Tax affects very few individuals. The current administration in Washington has proposed to end the Federal Estate Tax. The Federal Estate Tax is a tax on the estates of the ...