Sunday, August 27, 2000

Volunteers help elders steer clear of those who would exploit them

To learn more For information about the training session, call 994-1213.

Edalene Kunkel and Howard Frank wouldn't have believed it, had they not seen the exploitation firsthand.
   One loan company issued an elderly woman living solely on Social Security a loan she could never hope to repay. The interest? Eighty percent.
   Another was a woman with mental retardation whose family had her come visit them off and on. Not only did they make her do household chores for relatives during these so-called visits, they also cashed in on her government benefits.
   And then there was the blind woman whose only source of income was Social Security, money that family and neighbors pocketed for themselves.
   By joining the Money Management Program of Lutheran Social Services of the South Inc., volunteers like Kunkel and Frank have been able to step in and stop the exploitation, helping low-income senior citizens manage their money, avoid eviction, and ensure their utilities are never cut off.
   How do exploiters get their hands on benefits intended for the elderly?
   The schemes are many, but in the case of the blind woman it came down to necessity of sorts, being at the mercy of others willing to buy her groceries. Family and a few neighbors would agree to do so, taking, say $25, and giving her only $5 worth, says Lynn Mahaffey, coordinator of Money Management Program.
   After an agency referred the woman to the organization and a trained volunteer was put on the case, the money was redirected to the right pocket. In a short span of time, the woman had enough money not only to replace her old space heater with central heating, and she also had enough for other repairs.
   The woman has since died, but the help she got "allowed her to live in her home until she had to go to a nursing home," Mahaffey noted. The woman also saved enough to pay for her funeral, Mahaffey added.
   Money Management Program, co-sponsored by the American Association of Retired Persons, is designed to help at-risk, low-income senior citizens who receive government checks, such as Social Security, disability or veterans' benefits.
   "It is a program of last resort," Mahaffey said. "When there is no church, no family member, no neighbor, that's when we get called."
   The program has run so smoothly, Mahaffey, said that existing sister programs in Texas and throughout the nation are now modeling their guidelines after the local one.
   There is no fee to the client. The program serves Nueces County and has a similar one in Kenedy County.
   But the local group needs volunteers who must pass a criminal background check. The next training session will be Sept. 21.
   While Kunkel, 73, describes the program that she has been volunteering at for the past two years, as an excellent one, it's unfortunate that it is necessary.
   "It really is a sad comment on society," she said.