THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2022 Page 17 ~ Legal Notice ~ Auto Aids That Make Driving Easier and Safer Dear Savvy Senior, Do you know of any car gadgets that can help older drivers? I drive a 12-year-old car and have arthritis in my neck, back and knees which limits my mobility making it more diffi cult to get in and out of the car and look over my shoulder to backup. Almost 80 Dear Almost, To help keep older drivers safe and extend their driving years, there are a number of inexpensive products you can purchase that can easily be added to your vehicle to help with many diff erent needs. Here are some popular auto aids to consider. Entry and Exit Aids For mobility challenged seniors who have a diffi cult time entering and exiting a vehicle – especially cars that are low to the ground or high vehicles such as SUV’s or pickup truck’s – there are a variety of support handles and special seat cushions that can help. Some examples include the Stander (stander.com) “HandyBar” ($40), which is a portable support grab bar that inserts into the U-shaped striker plate on the doorframe, and the “CarCaddie” ($20), a nylon support handle that buckles around the top of the door window frame. Stander also has an “Auto Swivel Seat Cushion” ($40), that rotates 360 degrees to help drivers and passengers pivot their body into and out of their vehicle. Rear Vision Improvements To help those with neck and back range of motion problems, which makes looking over the shoulder to back-up or merge into traffic difficult, there are special mirrors you can add as well as back-up cameras. To widen rear visibility and eliminate blind spots, Verivue Mirrors (verivuemirrors.com) offers the popular “Universal 12Inch Panoramic Rearview Mirror” ($13) that clips on to existing rearview mirrors, along with a variety of “Blind Spot Mirrors” ($5 for two), which are small convex mirrors that stick to the corner of the sideview mirrors. Another helpful device is the “Auto-vox CS-2 Wireless Backup Camera Kit” ($120, www.auto-vox.com). This comes with a night vision camera that attaches to the rear license plate, and a small monitor that mounts to the dash or windshield. When the vehicle is in reverse, it sends live images wirelessly to the monitor so you can see what’s behind you. Seat Belt Extenders For plus-sized people or those with mobility problems, there are seat belt extension products that can make buckling up a little easier. For example, Seat Belt Extender Pros (seatbeltextenderpros.com) off ers vehicle-specifi c “Seat Belt Extenders” ($13 to $26) that fi t into the seat belt buckle receiver to add a few inches of length, making them easier to fasten. They also sell a “Seat Belt Grabber Handle” ($8), which is a rubber extension handle that attaches to the seat belt strap to make it easier to reach. Gripping Devices If you have hand arthritis that makes gripping diffi cult or painful, consider the “SEG Direct Steering Wheel Cover” ($17) that fi ts over the steering wheel to make it larger, softer and easier to grip. And for help twisting open tight gas caps, the “Gas Cap & Oil Cap Opener by Gascapoff ” ($17) is a long-handled tool that works like a wrench to loosen and tighten gas caps. Many of these products can be found in your local auto supply stores or online at the manufacturer’s website or at Amazon. com. Just type the product name in the search bar to fi nd them. Professional Help If you need more assistance, consider contacting a driver rehabilitation specialist who are trained to evaluate elderly drivers and provide safety and driving equipment suggestions. In addition to the types of aids mentioned in this column, there’s also a range of adaptive driving equipment that can be professionally installed on a vehicle – like swing-out swivel seats, pedal extenders, hand controls and more – to help people with various disabilities. To locate a driver rehabilitation specialist in your area, visit ADED.net or MyAOTA.aota.org/ driver_search. Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior. org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book. THE PFANNENSTIEHL CASE PUBLIC HEARING Notice is hereby given in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 40A of the Massachusetts General Laws and Section 17. of the Revised Ordinances of the City of Revere that the Revere City Council will conduct a public hearing on Monday evening, October 24, 2022 at 6:00 P.M. in the City Councillor Joseph A. DelGrosso City Council Chamber, Revere City Hall, 281 Broadway, Revere, MA 02151 on the application of Mario Zepaj, 78 Mill Street, Middleton, MA 01949 requesting a special permit in accordance with Section 17.16.040 of the Revised Ordinances of the City of Revere to enable the appellant to raze the existing single-family structure and construct two townhouse dwellings on Lot 6, Pt. Lot 17, & Lot 14B at 355 Mountain Avenue, Revere, MA 02151. A copy of the aforementioned proposed plan and application (C-22-08) is public inspection in the Revere City Hall, Revere, Massachusetts, Monday through Thursday from 8:15 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. and Friday from 8:15 A.M. to 12:15 P.M. Attest: 10/07/2022 10/14/2022 T he Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) of Massachusetts unanimously overturned a lower court decision that had ordered the assets in an irrevocable discretionary trust created by the husband’s father to be split in a divorce proceeding. This was decided on August 8, 2016. This SJC decision upholds the use of trusts to shelter assets for future generations. Up until their separation, the couple depended on distributions from a trust created by the husband’s father for the husband’s benefi t as well as his siblings and their children. At the time of the divorce proceeding, the trust had assets of approximately $25million and there were 11 benefi ciaries. The Trial Court judge ruled against the husband and ordered 60% of the husband’s one eleventh trust share to be paid to his wife. The husband appealed to the Court of Appeals but lost in a split decision. The trust stated “the trustees shall pay to, or apply for the benefi t of, a class composed of any one or more of the Donor’s then living issue such amounts of income and principal as the Trustee, in its sole discretion, may deem advisable from time to time, whether in equal or unequal shares, to provide for the comfortable support, health, maintenance, welfare and education of each of the members of such class.” The trust also stated that distributions are within the sole discretion of the trustees as they may deem advisable from time to time and that they shall provide for the comfortable support, For Advertising with Results, callcall The Adv The Advocatocate Newspapers Newspapers at 781-286-8500 or Info@advocatenews.net health, maintenance, welfare and education of the benefi ciaries. This is known as the “ascertainable standard.” The trust also contained a spendthrift provision. “Neither the principal nor income of any trust created hereunder shall be subject to alienation, pledge, assignment or other anticipation by the person for whom the same is intended, nor to attachment, execution, garnishment or other seizure under any legal, equitable or other process.” The SJC found that since the Trustees have total discretion whether or not to make distributions on the husband’s behalf means that he has an uncertain “expectancy” for which, under Mass divorce law, a diff erent standard is applied to splitting assets among the two spouses. If you are genuinely concerned about the possibility of your child getting divorced in the future, or of being sued by a creditor, then such provisions in your trust could be inserted. You can even substitute the word “may” instead of “shall” on the part of Trustee distributions to off er even more protection. Joseph D. Cataldo is an Estate Planning/Elder Law Attorney, Certifi ed Public Accountant, Certifi ed Financial Planner, AICPA Personal Financial Specialist and holds a Master’s Degree in Taxation.
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