Recently one of my senior class members, Shirley, shared with me that her husband had passed away in early spring. In addition to the stress of dealing with her loss, she was having to deal with loads of unexpected paper work. Her husband’s employer was wrongfully claiming that she was not entitled to her husband’s pension. As if that wasn’t enough, she was also involved in troublesome communications with their insurance company.
She did her best to turn things around, but she was left feeling helpless to “the powers that be.” The financial support that she needed to survive and that was rightfully hers was being withheld. It seemed that they were not going to cooperate with her at this most difficult and vulnerable time in her life. How inappropriate it all was. My heart went out to her.
Wanting to do something to help, I provided her with the contact info for Marin County’s free legal aid service for seniors. (Thanks to my sister Debbie, the queen of resources, for sharing that info with me.) Shirley immediately made an appointment with this legal aid office, but she ended up not needing to keep it. Her previous efforts had paid off after all, as she was recently informed that the issues had been resolved. She would be receiving what was due to her. Kudos to Shirley for her perseverance and determination! She’s an inspiration for sure. I’m just sorry that she had to go through all of that additional turmoil at such a traumatic time in her life.
Life throws curve balls sometimes for sure. Fortunately, one of the perks for being a senior is that many U.S. counties 
provide free legal aid to people over 60. I have included the info below for the Marin County office since that is where most of my Youthful Hearts newsletter subscribers and class members live. For those of you who don’t live in Marin, you’ll find this info on the internet and at your local library. You never know when you might need to use this helpful service!
Legal Aid of Marin
Legal advice and representation drop in clinic; hot line for seniors 60 and over:
- Phone: (415) 492-0230 ext #308
- Location: 30 North San Pedro St, Ste 220, San Rafael, CA 94903
- Website: http://www.legalaidmarin.org
- Email: nmurphy@legalaidmarin.org
Also, for Margaret Todd Senior Center members, on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month from 11am -1pm, free legal services are available to seniors. Call 415-899-8290 to schedule an appointment.