A Poem

By Steven Mattingly 

The daughter of a new resident of our community sent me the following poem written by her mother’s second husband. She also shared that having her mother at Pacifica “. . . makes my life so much easier and I'm happy to be with her again". It is pure joy to see her at peace and happy at Pacifica. She knows she is safe and well cared for! 

The poem is about a community where her mother and her mother’s second husband lived for several years before he died. The daughter wished that he was still around to write one for her mother’s new community. 

This is a realistic and poignant look into the world of assisted living from the viewpoint of a resident. He seems to be expressing his appreciation for those whom he encounters each and every day and the idea that while he knows life will come to an end, he is a better person for knowing those whom he names in his poem. May we all be able to make this kind of a difference in the lives of those entrusted to our care. 

There’s place for those who seek a rest - 

It’s found right here in the Golden West.

You’ll spot it as soon as you arrive 

At Eight-O-One on Island Drive.

If your pace has slowed and you’ve ceased to roam,

It’s just the place you might call “home”.

A gracious lady runs this place

And it all reflects her charm and grace.

A greeting by Cindy; then a chance to explore? 

She’ll usher you in to see David next door.

Have a quick look around; and we’ll see you later. 

Please try not to hurry our nice elevator!

There’s a typical room! It’s nice and it’s neat!

Now let’s go and see where you’re going to eat.

Three things you will find that are no surprise:

You sleep and you eat and you exercise!

And now, you’re to meet a special wee lass - 

It’s Rosemarie and her exercise class!

She keeps us all limber and balanced and strong.

Without her I’m sure we’d not last very long.

Not to worry my friend; and please don’t be afraid,

Meet the rest of the team who are here for your aid.

Aseleph hands out the pills here each day 

As she tries to keep doctors and nurses away.

And there’s Barbara and Amber and then Saba too,

All here just to do their best for you.

And then to make life just a bit more worthwhile

Martha greets all with her bright morning smile. 

The grounds are great and the place is neat, 

And we get far more than we can eat.

Now, let’s take a look at these folks of yore

Who make up the tenants - 100 or more! 

As you get to know all these people so well,

You find that each one has a story to tell. 

Lives spent in brave service for country and God.

From office or factory or paratroop sod.

On the land, in the air or on the blue sea,

They have stood in our places to keep us all free.

There’s Cliff and there’s Art and there’s Thomas and Bill 

And Charlie and Sheldon and Herbert and Gil.

While walking and talking are harder these days,

Their lives still shine through in hundreds of ways.

Few are the places these folks have not trod,

And now they’ve come home from a long life abroad.

There’s Tony and Margaret who’ve lived far away

They are golfers deluxe, and may show you some day.

Lillian’s a hiker - very much on the go. 

While Helga still touches her toes like a pro.

There’s music here too, and in flat or in sharp,

There’s Jean with her so welcome Vibra-Harp!

We all love to hear those old songs of our choice, 

And Cecilia brings with her that bright, happy voice!

Do we all have problems - did I hear you say?

I can’t even remember the time of the day.

A cane is a must, or we’d sure take a roller,

But most of us here sport a very fine stroller.

There’s a sadness here too, for we’re all getting older

And a pat feels so good on a tired old shoulder.

Try as we will to reverse this dread trend,

We know in our hearts that it all has to end. 

~Gil Dunkin

Tax Deduction of Assisted Living Costs

by Patricia Conlon

Over one million seniors live in Assisted Living communities across the United States and many of them pay their monthly fees with their own financial resources. Some or all of their costs may be tax deductible.

These are the basic rules concerning the tax deductibility of assisted living expenses:

According to the 1996 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), “long-term care services” may be tax deductible as an unreimbursed medical expense on Schedule A.

Qualified long-term care services have been defined as including the type of daily “personal care services” provided to Assisted Living residents, such as help with bathing, dressing, continence care, eating and transferring, as well as “maintenance services”, such as meal preparation and household cleaning.

Assisted Living residents seeking tax deductions for their services must qualify as “chronically ill”. This definition refers to seniors who are unable to perform two or more “Activities of Daily Living” (eating, transferring, bathing, dressing and continence) without assistance, or who need constant supervision because of a “severe cognitive impairment” such as Alzheimer’s disease or related dementias. The Assisted Living resident must have been certified within the previous 12 months as “chronically ill” by a licensed health care

In order to qualify for a deduction, personal care services must be provided pursuant to a plan of care prescribed by a licensed health care practitioner. Many Assisted Living communities have on staff a licensed nurse or social worker who prepares a plan of care, sometimes called a “Wellness Care Plan,” in conjunction with the resident’s physician which outlines the specific daily services the resident will receive in the community.

In order to take advantage of deductions, a taxpayer must be entitled to itemize his or her deductions. Additionally, long-term care services and other unreimbursed medical expenses must exceed 7.5% of the taxpayer’s adjusted gross income. (Generally, a taxpayer can deduct the medical care expenses of his or her parent if the taxpayer provides more than 50% of the parent’s support costs.)

For some Assisted Living residents, the entire monthly rental fee might be deductible, while for others, just the specific personal care services would qualify for a deduction.

Assisted living residents and their adult children should speak with their own income tax advisors to get clarification about their personal 


Patricia Conlon in the Community Relations Coordinator at Pacifica Senior Living in Palm Beach, FL.

A Lesson Taken From The Movies. . .

by Steven Mattingly

This past weekend I engaged in one of my favorite guilty pleasures, watching an oldie moldy movie.  This Sunday in between watching the 2012 London Olympics, I watched one of my favorite oldie moldy movies, “Now Voyager”, starring Bette Davis, Paul Henreid and Claude Raines.  I remember this movie from my childhood.  As an adolescent I think I spent many Sunday afternoons during winter watching outdated movies on “Sunday Afternoon at the Movies” on the television with my mother.  To this day there are movies that bring flashbacks of the avocado green Naugahyde covered couch, the orange Naugahyde covered chair, and multiple bowls of popcorn watching the black and white television.  I can also reminisce about the oversized ashtrays and the matching antiqued end tables with matching lamps, but I’ll save that for another time.

There are a fair number of familiar Bette Davis quotations:  “If you want a thing well done, get a couple of old broads to do It.”; “Hollywood always wanted me to be pretty, but I fought for realism.”  But my favorite remains: “Old age is no place for sissies.” 

These are great and very true words about the aging process.  Residents of our communities encounter the things that we’ll call bullies each and every day.  Arthritis, stroke recovery, cancer, congestive heart failure, congestive obstructive pulmonary disorder, diminished vision, diminished hearing, family members who don’t have time to listen, family members who don’t want to listen, and a healthcare system that systematically fails to treat them as adults and far too many more to name.   A few of our residents have only one demon to look in the eye each day but for most, a whole gang of bullies sizes them up each day ready to pummel them with as much hurt and force as they can manage. 

With age there sometimes comes a unique grace and certain degree of suave in managing the bullies that are found on life’s path.  I am amazed each and every day at the aplomb and fortitude shown by residents as they stare down, beat back, and conquer their individual bullies.  Every now and then I’ll hear residents comparing their list of bullies and it sounds almost like a game of one-up-man-ship.  There is a strange reverence reserved for those who defeat the biggest number of bullies routinely. It reminds me of the game “King of the Hill”.   Remember that the next time your family member or loved one starts reciting the list of their various ailments.  It not that they are complaining, perhaps they are just getting ready for their next game of “King of the Hill”.

The title of the movie “Now Voyager” is taken from a poem titled “The Untold Want” by Walt Whitman.  In a pivotal scene for the character played by Bette Davis she is handed a piece of paper with the following lines; The Untold Want By Life and Land Ne'er Granted Now, Voyager Sail Thou Forth to Seek and Find Life isn’t the movies and no one gets handed a piece of paper telling them to sail forth and seek and find.  But a good swift punch will beat back the bullies each and every time. Steven Mattingly is the Executive Director of Pacifica Senior Living in San Leandro, CA.