Senior News May 27, 2009

Riches and Death at Mule Hoof Bend, By Tommy Trampp and Ed Kuehneman

Pictured:Grand View Mine overlooking Mule Hoof Bend on the Salt River: In 1914, asbestos was discovered in Gila County and the Chrysotile Mine was in operation in time for a WWI boom in asbestos. Guy Phillips worked at the Chrysotile claim in later years, and he and a partner spent their spare time prospecting farther north in the Salt River Canyon area. Their discoveries were all low-grade, and the partner sold out to Phillips, who soon found a promising site. The WWII boom in the asbestos industry brought riches to Phillips beyond his wildest dreams. He located and worked several profitable claims, and established a community nearby that some called Mule Hoof Camp. In 1962, Phillips was murdered at his home in the camp. The Sheriff suspected his wife, and she was tried twice but never convicted. Mystery surrounds his death to this day. Of the 46 producing asbestos mines in Arizona, 44 were in Gila County. (The other two were in the Grand Canyon.) Mining of asbestos ended in 1982. As with all mines, "Keep out!" You should not enter any mine or cave where dead air or cave-ins are a possibility.

The Elder Law Forum, Professor Michael Myers

Contemplating Divorce: "Medicaid Style." Marriage is expensive. It can be impoverishing; particularly when a spouse, at age 61, enters a nursing home for life. The financial drain can lead to divorce, "Medicaid Style." A call to the senior legal helpline probed the divorce option. "I still love her," said the husband, also 61. "At nearly $6,000 per month, her care will leave me virtually bankrupt within a couple of years. We still owe $120,000 on the house. I'm making $440- a- month car payments, and we have two kids in college. She says we should divorce, put her on Medicaid. "Should I? What happens if I do?" he asked. He earns about $95,000 a year. His wife hasn't worked since 1995 after suffering a stroke. If she applied for Medicaid they would first have to spend down their assets to qualify for long-term care assistance. Exempt assets include the home, $2,000 in assets, a reasonable burial fund, a car, jewelry and clothing. State law requires spouses to pay for each other's "necessaries"—e.g., housing, food, clothing, medical costs, and, as in this case, nursing home expenses. If they remain married he will be entitled to use community spouse anti-impoverishment protections. He can retain his earned income and, for 2009, non-exempt assets totaling as much as $109,560 (or as little as $21,912), depending upon the state. Their home will remain exempt as long as he lives there; however, their home will be subject to Medicaid's recovery provisions upon his death or in the event he leaves their home. Their jointly-owned investments would be subject to the $2,000 asset spend-down for her share. Any transfer of her share of assets to him would be a "transfer of property for less than fair market value" and subject to a penalty period. The caller is four years from retirement and Medicare eligibility. He had planned to withdraw a lump sum from his retirement fund to pay off the mortgage. "This has ruined our plan to leave the house, or at least its value, to our daughter, a single mother who will need a home to raise our two grandchildren," he said. The 2009 divorce rate, comparing the number of marriages to the number of divorces, is 60%, yielding hundreds of thousands of dissolved marital contracts. Baby boomers find less disgrace in divorce. Divorce, "Medicaid Style," is expected to increase. (Pro bono legal information and advice is available to persons 55 and older through the USD Senior Legal Helpline, 1-800-747-1895; mmyers@usd.edu. Opinions solely those of the author and not the University of South Dakota)

Globe Slot Machines: Case In Limbo

FEBRUARY 1970. No action has yet been taken in the Gila County Superior Court at Globe on a case involving slot machines alleged to have been in the Globe Elks Lodge. Visiting Judge, Ruskin Lines of Safford, said last November that he would rule by mid-December on the appeal of a Globe Justice Court decision permitting suppression of evidence in gambling charges filed against four persons. The appeal was filed by Gila County Attorney Harold Beelar after Globe Justice of the Peace Clyde Shute granted a motion in October to suppress evidence in the court cases filed against four persons who were at the Lodge at the time state agents entered. The gambling charges were filed after state liquor control agents said they confiscated 15 slot machines in a raid July 12 at the Elks Club here. In November, Judge Lines, after hearing arguments in the case, gave attorneys on both sides 15 days in which to file briefs in the matter. However, a check of court files here this month indicated that neither defense attorney Don Premeau nor prosecutor Beelar have yet to file their court briefs which is nearly two months late. When asked about this, Deputy County Attorney Frank Tippett said that the defense attorney must file his brief first. Issues in the case are whether or not the liquor control agents, who testified that they used an Elks Club card from Wickenburg for admission to the Globe Elks Lodge made an illegal entry and whether they needed a search warrant to seize the slot machines. Premeau, in arguing for the four defendants, claimed testimony in the Globe Justice Court showed the liquor agents had advance information there were slot machines inside the establishment but did not make an attempt to obtain a search warrant. The defense attorney went on to say it was a planned raid despite the agents' contention the visit was for a routine inspection. Beelar contended in court the state agents entered the Elks Lodge to check for violations and to inspect the premises and not to seize the slot machines, and therefore they were not required to have a search warrant

Nick's Family in Recent Years

For many years, Nick Rayes had a store in Miami, AZ. Nick was flexible, and people bought furniture on all kinds of payment plans. "I wasn’t a good money maker, but I got along," he says. He raised four kids in a little house behind Chalo's in Globe. In 1951, Nick bought some land out in Ice House Canyon, but he was never able to build out there. Kids are expensive! Sons Louis and Doug at ASU got $100 a month from Army ROTC, but daughter Emily needed help with medical school. Today Emily is an MD in Kentucky, Louis is a nuclear engineer, and Doug is a Maricopa Superior Court Judge. "Baby" Neil was a fireman up a ladder, spraying when the Old Dominion Hotel burned. Today he's a Fire Captain in Phoenix. The oldest of Nick's 5 grandchildren, Captain Nick Rayes (good name), graduated from West Point, and is in his second tour in Iraq, Going back a bit: In 1975, Nick's wife Lois died suddenly of a stroke, "a catastrophe for the whole family." A couple of years later, Nick began dating Betty Beneteau, a cheerful business manager/secretary for Miami's Chamber and YMCA. They dated for years and finally married in 1983. In 1995, they "chased away the snakes and the jackrabbits" from the plot in Ice House Canyon, and had a house built that was over twice the size of the one in which Nick raised his four children. Nick misses the neighbors, but it's nice, and Betty likes to feed the quail. In 2000, daughter Dr. Emily noticed Nick wasn't walking right. Barrow's Neurological found hydrocephelus and put in a shunt that took care of it just fine. It paid off, in the long run, to have a doctor in the family!

Your Input is Needed on US 60 Superior to Globe

Location/Design Concept Report & Environmental Impact Statement. 1. Tuesday, June 2, 2009 - Best Western Gold Canyon Inn & Suites 8333 E. Sunrise Sky Drive, Gold Canyon, AZ 2. Wednesday, June 3, 2009 - Globe High School, Auditorium W 501 E. Ash Street, Globe, AZ 3. Thursday, June 4, 2009 - Superior Jr/Sr High School, Multi-purpose Room, 100 Mary Drive, Superior, AZ. Each public meeting will be from 5:30 to 7:30 pm with a project overview presentation at 6:00 pm. Residents, businesses, and others interested in the future of US 60 are invited to attend an Open House for the US 60 Location/Design Concept Report & Environmental Impact Statement The Arizona Department ofTransportation (ADOT), in coordination with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), has initiated a study to identify alternatives that would improve traffic flow and safety on US 60 from Milepost (MP) 222.6 (west of Superior) to MP 258.0 (east of Globe). The alternative, such as constructing additional lanes and consolidating access points in the study area, will be evaluated for potential environmental, social, and economic impacts. The purpose of the meetings is to gather public input on issues, concerns, and opportunities to be considered during the study. At each public meeting, a project overview presentation will be made at 6:00 pm. The comments received from this meeting will be used to help identify critical issues to be addressed in the development and evaluations of the alternatives. Study team members will be present to answer your questions and address your concerns. Map displays will be available for viewing. For additional technical and project information or to submit comments in writing, please contact Tazeen Ahmed c/o Kathy or Priscilla at 1-888-472-1930; fax to (850) 885-0311; mail ADOT, 110 S. Church Avenue, Suite 3350, Tucson, AZ 85701-7617; or e-mail Kathy@kaneenpr.com. Written comments should be submitted by July 6, 2009. Comment forms will be available at the Open House and can be downloaded from the Web site www.adotenvironmental.comjpublic_meeting_notices.asp. Americans with Disabilities Act: Persons with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation, such as a sign language interpreter, by contacting Kathy or Priscilla at 1-888-472-1930, fax to (520) 885-0311, or e-mail atKathy@ kaneenpr.com. Requests should be made as early as possible to allow time to arrange the accommodation. This document is available in alternate formats by contacting Kathy or Priscilla. For Additional Meeting Information, Please Contact Kathy or Priscilla at 1-888-472-1930, or Fax to (520) 885-0311, or E-mail at Kathy@kaneenpr.com,

Habitat House Gets Another Weeding, By Pearl Nancarrow

The Habitat for Humanity house at 608 Sycamore has been undergoing some repair and renovation. When it is finished, it will be ready for a new family. Meanwhile, the recent rains have caused more weeds to grow in the yard. June Hamelin, and her neighbor, Donnie Ferrell have been staying on top of the job. Donald Ferrell is a good neighbor, volunteering on Memorial Day at the Habitat House. June Hamelin knows how to use a weed eater too!

New Local Job Corps Center Nearly Complete, by Ted Lake

September 1965. The second of six Job Corps training centers planned for Arizona is nearing completion 14 miles east of Globe on the San Carlos Apache Reservation The San Carlos Job Corps Center is scheduled to receive its first enrollees on September 30. The 90 acre complex, being built at a cost of $650,000, will employ a staff of 36 to train and supervise some 200 young men. Clyde J. Stimpson, director, said the center will take mostly high school drop-outs 16 to 21 years old. They will be trained in manual skills and will work towards the equivalent of a high school diploma. Manual arts classes will be in heavy equipment operation, conservation and the culinary arts.