Wilma Hansen told me at the Seniors Club that she had been the president for 16 years. I remember that she was president when Lorne and I started going to seniors. Wilma also told me that Irene Large had been a member for some time before she joined. Wilma found Irene to be a steady helper to her when she was president. As Wilma pointed out, when you are in a leadership role it is very important to have people around who will tell you the truth as they see it and not just try to please you. Irene is gone now, and we have Wilma as a truth teller and memory keeper.
Scrabble anyone?
The Seniors Hall has started scrabble days on Wednesdays at 11 a.m. Coffee pot will be on. For more information call Wendy at 250-785-9193. Wendy won the Scrabble tournament at the Canadian Seniors Games last year.
Tax advice for seniors
Margaret Little has prepared a mini-guide to go with the 2021 Community Health Guide which includes tips for seniors preparing their income taxes.
1. “One-time payment for older seniors: If you received the one-time payment for older seniors, the payment is a taxable benefit. Service Canada will have sent you the required T4A tax slip. You will need to declare this payment when you file your income tax and benefit return. Please note that this payment will not be counted as income towards entitlement for the Guaranteed Income Supplement.”
2. “Tax credits and benefits: Remember when you are working on your taxes that there are a number of credits for seniors, including: · Canada caregiver credit · disability tax credit · medical expenses · home accessibility expenses · age amount · pension income amount · pension income splitting.”
For people earning under $40,000 free help is available preparing your taxes from the Women’s Resource Centre 250-787-1121.
The Dawson Creek Literacy Society also provides free income tax preparation for marginalized income people. Phone 250-782-4211 for details.
Margaret’s update to the Community Health Guide is available at the FSJ Public Library.
Using our gadgets
Last week, I learned something about the mouse on my computer. My grandson Benaiah explained to me that the little wheel at the middle of the mouse will let you scroll down the screen. If I knew that before I had forgotten!
Quote of the week
“What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” — Jane Goodall
Ruby McBeth lives and writes in Fort St. John
