The INDEPENDENT, August 15, 2012
Protect elders from financial abuse
by Chris Thomas,
Oregon News Service
PORTLAND, Ore. – The son
of an Oregon woman bilked out
of $90,000 has advice for other
grown children concerned about
their aging parents: Get in-
volved sooner rather than later.
At his mother’s house, John
Fread of Portland noticed a
credit card statement with a
balance of $20,000. Scammers
had charged almost five times
that much on several accounts.
The Oregon attorney general’s
office investigated and helped
shut down the New York-based
company that promised to in-
clude her in a “Who’s Who”
book, but Fread says the or-
deal took a terrible toll – not
only on his mother’s finances,
but on her health, “We are hav-
ing to really offer emotional
support that we never expect-
ed. My mom – you know, tough
old girl – is now very vulnera-
ble, and her confidence is
gone. These people really
robbed what should have been
the last great part of her life.
They took that away from her.”
Fread advises grown chil-
dren to get to know their par-
ents’ neighbors, and check out
any new people with whom
they seem to be friendly. Look
at their incoming mail and
caller ID for hints of scams and
solicitations. Don’t worry about
seeming nosy, he says; he
wishes he had been.
In the past year, the Oregon
Department of Human Ser-
vices reported 672 cases of fi-
nancial exploitation.
Lower-income seniors can
get assistance from the Oregon
Money Management Program,
sponsored by Easter Seals and
AARP. Trained volunteers visit
with older people to help pay
bills, get financial records in or-
der and just lend a hand in
money matters. State coordi-
nator Carol Cookson says it’s a
good alternative when families
don’t want to jeopardize a par-
ent’s sense of independence,
“A child supervising a parent,
that’s a very hard role reversal
for a lot of people. But when a
volunteer who’s a friend comes
in to help, it’s a very different
scenario. The help is more eas-
ily accepted by the client in that
situation.”
Fread says collection agen-
cies still are hounding them
about the credit card debt,
even though they’ve been in-
formed of the scam. He hopes
other families can avoid the or-
deal by having conversations
that may be uncomfortable –
but necessary, “You know,
‘Mom, Dad, things are a little
different in your generation
than my generation. Here are
some things that we need to
talk about because I’ve seen it
happening. It’s in the news,’ for
example. It’s so much easier to
sit down and have the tough
conversation proactively, than
try to scramble and reactively
try to fix something.”
Cookson says the program
always is in need of volunteers
as well as nonprofit groups that
can sponsor the service in
more towns across the state.
Other sources of information
are the state’s Long-Term Care
Power of the People
By W. Marc Farmer, General Manager,
West Oregon Electric Cooperative
Member Meeting
Information
There are a couple of
key points that I need to
make, in this article, re-
garding the upcoming
member meeting to dis-
cuss a rate change. First is
the date of the meeting. It’s been brought to our
attention that there is a scheduling conflict in the
community of Vernonia with the open house for
the new school building on the evening of the
21st of August. When we set the date for the
member meeting we were unaware of any con-
flict and set that meeting, as in past practice, pri-
or to our regularly scheduled Board Meeting,
which is the 3rd Tuesday of every month. We’ve
always combined the meetings in an effort to
save time and money. Our August meeting just
happened to fall on the same evening as the
school open house. We want to make sure our
Vernonia members are able to attend the mem-
ber meeting, so we will hold a second meeting in
Vernonia on Tuesday, August 28th, in the
WOEC building at 6:00 p.m. This will provide an
opportunity for members in the community to at-
tend both the school event and our WOEC
member meeting.
The second point is to provide the reason be-
hind the rate meeting and how it came about.
Going into 2012 we did not have a rate increase
planned or anticipated. We knew we would be
receiving a substantial rate increase in our pow-
er rates in October of 2013 from BPA and would
have to pass that one through when it comes.
Our 2012 budget was set, approved, and we
were moving forward with that plan in mind.
Ombudsman and Department
of Human Services. AARP also
has fraud prevention tips online
at aarp.org.
Regulated forest closure proclamation
A Regulated Closure for the
Northwest Oregon Forest Pro-
tection District was announced
on August 8. It is in effect for all
lands protected by the North-
west Oregon Forest Protection
District and all lands within
one-eighth mile thereof.
Under this Regulated Clo-
sure, entry to all forestland is
unlawful unless those entering
comply with the following re-
strictions:
1. Smoking is prohibited
while traveling, except in
closed vehicles on improved
roads.
2. Open fires are prohibited,
including campfires, charcoal
fires, cooking fires and warm-
ing fires, except at designated
locations. Use of wood burning
devices, used in conjunction
with temporary dwellings, in-
cluding tents and trailers, is
prohibited. Portable cooking
stoves using liquefied or bot-
tled fuels are allowed.
3. Non-industrial use of
chain saws is prohibited, ex-
cept as waived by the Forester.
4. Use of motor vehicles, in-
cluding motorcycles and all ter-
rain vehicles, is prohibited, ex-
cept on improved roads and
designated areas.
5. Possession of the follow-
ing fire fighting equipment is re-
quired while traveling, except
on state highways, county
roads and driveways: one
shovel and one gallon of water
Page 13
or one operational 2-1⁄2 pound
or larger fire extinguisher.
6. Use of fireworks is prohib-
ited.
7. Use of exploding targets
is prohibited.
8. Cutting, grinding and
welding of metal is prohibited.
The State Forester or an au-
thorized representative may, in
writing, approve a modification
or waiver of these require-
ments.
These restrictions shall re-
main in effect until replaced,
suspended, or terminated by
an additional proclamation of
the State Forester or an author-
ized representative.
Then came the fourth FEMA event in five-and-a-
half years, with the snow storm early this year.
This event cost the Co-op over $700,000. Be-
cause only one of the four counties we incurred
damages in was declared a FEMA event, we
were reimbursed only about a third of the ex-
penses we incurred. The budget we approved
was so lean, there was no way to absorb the
cost and still continue to cover our normal costs.
Our reserve account had been decimated by the
other three FEMA events without sufficient time
and resources to rebuild it. We also have been
absorbing so much of the past three rate in-
creases from BPA, in an effort to keep rates as
low as possible, that we have not kept ahead of
cost increases. At our strategic planning meet-
ing in June 2012, it became very apparent that
we had no options left but to do an emergency
change in our rates to cover the cost from the
storm event, and the board directed me to move
forward with a rate increase.
There is still some public perception that the
increase has something to do with the new
building. I want to assure you that the building
has nothing to do with this rate increase, it is
driven by the high costs of the snow storm event
earlier this year. The building is what I have said
it is – $3 per meter per month for the next 30
years to build the building. Some have the per-
ception that the facility charge on our bill state-
ment means facility as in the “new” building. The
name of the charge means “all” of the facilities
we have, including all lines, substations, equip-
ment, transformers, etc… throughout the entire
system. To clarify this name, starting with the
September bills, we will be changing the name
on the statement to “base” charge.
We look forward to seeing you at one of our
member meetings to discuss the proposed rate
changes.