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UPPER LAKE, Calif. – Put June 12 on your calendar for the date of the Lake County Land Trust’s annual spring fundraising event.
Once again Bernie and Lynne Butcher, owners of the Tallman Hotel and Blue Wing Blue Wing Restaurant in Upper Lake, have offered to host this fundraising event for the Land Trust.
The event will feature Lake County wines, hors d’oeuvres and live music and will be held from 3 to 6 p.m. with tickets costing $50 per person.
Reservations are required and can be made by calling 707-262-0707. Payment in advance is urged or payment can be taken at the gate to the garden. You can pay on line by going to the Land Trust’s Web site at www.lakecountylandtrust.org , click on the “Donate,” button and write “Spring Fundraiser donation,” in the comment section.
All funds raised at the annual spring event will support the Lake County Land Trust and its many projects in Lake County, including preservation of the Clear Lake shoreline and operation of the trust’s Rodman Preserve near Upper Lake and Rabbit Hill Park in Middletown.
The event will provide time to enjoy the company of fellow land trust supporters and to visit with Land Trust board members and hear updates to ongoing local projects.
The Lake County Land Trust is a local nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation of open space and natural habitats of Lake County.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Monica Rosenthal, candidate for Lake County District 1 supervisor, will host a series of “meet and greet” events in south Lake County communities.
These informal events are an opportunity for south county residents to get acquainted with Rosenthal, ask questions and learn more about her perspective on important issues facing Lake County.
The first community gathering will be held in Lower Lake at the Lower Lake Coffee Co. from 8 to 10 a.m. Monday, May 16.
“Meet and greets” also will take place in Hidden Valley Lake and Middletown. Coffee and cookies will be served.
“I consider it essential to speak regularly with my neighbors in South County,” said Rosenthal. ”I look forward to hearing their concerns and ideas, especially regarding the South Lake County fires of 2015 and our community’s recovery challenges.”
Lower Lake
Monday, May 16, 8 to 10 a.m., Lower Lake Coffee Co.
Monday, May 23, 8 to 10 a.m., Lower Lake Coffee Co.
Hidden Valley Lake
Wednesday, May 18, 8 to 10 a.m., Mountain High Coffee & Books
Wednesday, May 25, 8 to 10 a.m., Mountain High Coffee & Books
Middletown
Thursday, May 19, 4 to 6 p.m., 2 Women Traders
Thursday, May 26, 4 to 6 p.m., 2 Women Traders
Other opportunities to speak with Rosenthal include:
– Friday, May 20, 5 to 8 p.m., Hidden Valley Lake Concert on the Green;
– Sunday, May 22, 5 to 7 p.m., North Coast Volunteer Celebration in Middletown Park;
– Sunday, May 29, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Lower Lake Parade and Barbecue
Rosenthal encourages all south county residents – as well as those living in other parts of the county – to attend and bring their questions, concerns and vision for the future.
“I look forward to meeting and speaking with you,” said Rosenthal. “Please put the meet and greet on your calendar, and don’t forget to vote on June 7”
For further information, questions or comments, contact Monica Rosenthal by phone, 707-355-2762, via email at
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The regular meeting of the Clearlake Planning Commission and Park and Recreation Committee scheduled for Tuesday, May 17, has been canceled.
The next regular meeting is scheduled for early June.
Estate planning is not one size fits all. That said, there are estate planning goals which occur frequently in certain family situations.
Let us consider how estates are distributed in these various family situations.
Consider a married couple of 30 years with three children together all of whom are doing well. The parents’ assets were acquired during their marriage together and purchased with marital earnings.
Here, almost always, the couple will choose to leave everything to the surviving spouse and then, after the surviving spouse dies, all equally amongst their surviving children.
However, with a blended family, particularly where one or both spouses have significant separate property assets and separate children, then the distributions are typically different.
Unless both spouses raised each other’s children together from an early age, the husband and wife are likely to want to leave more to their own children from their share of the estate.
That said, each spouse is unlikely to want to leave all of their separate property assets entirely outright to the surviving spouse. What makes sense depends on the size of each spouse’s estate.
A well-off spouse may choose to leave some assets to his or her surviving spouse so that the surviving spouse is able to live, while leaving the other assets to his or her children, who will not have to wait for the death of their step parent. This eases the tension when step children are anxious about receiving their delayed inheritances. The surviving spouse and the step children can go their separate ways.
In other blended families, where there are more limited assets, the surviving spouse may receive a life estate in a residence and most all of the deceased spouse’s financial assets.
When the surviving spouse dies, the residence (or the proceeds from its sale) will go to the children. If the couple have a child together, that child will often receive a larger share of the estate. The half-brothers and half-sisters, after all, will usually also inherit from the estate of their other biological parent.
Consider a middle class couple who have three children, one of whom has special needs and receives SSI and Medi-Cal, and two of whom are self supporting.
In that case, the parents often want to ensure that the special needs child has the necessary resources to live after the parents are gone. They are less likely to make an equal division of their estate if doing so would jeopardize the well being of their special needs child.
When the special need child lives at the parents’ home, the parents may choose to make a specific gift of their residence and financial assets to a special needs trust for that child; later, upon the death of the special needs child, that trust would distribute the unused assets to the couple’s then surviving children and/or grandchildren.
The parents’ remaining assets, especially items of sentimental personal property, will be divided equally between their other two children.
Consider a couple with one or more estranged children. These parents often choose to disinherit those children with whom they have had no continuing relationship. Doing so may sometimes complicate the lives of the other child(ren) who will have to deal with their upset siblings.
Typically, however, the disinherited child(ren) also have no further relationship with their siblings either, so it usually doesn’t matter that much.
As we can see, what is a fair distribution for some families is oftentimes not an equal distribution. What is fair all depends on that family's own circumstances.
Dennis A. Fordham, Attorney, is a State Bar-Certified Specialist in estate planning, probate and trust law. His office is at 870 S. Main St., Lakeport, Calif. He can be reached at
KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – Redbud Audubon Society members and guests are welcome to participate in the annual end-of-the-year picnic and installation of officers from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, May 19.
The event will be held at Lakeside County Park on Park Drive off of Soda Bay Road.
The picnic is a potluck, but Audubon supplies hot dogs, buns and condiments. You are welcome to bring an alternate meat or meat-substitute to grill if you prefer. Sodas and water also will be provided.
Participants are encouraged to bring salad, beans, chips or dessert to share. Please arrive at 5:30 p.m. Look for them down by the lake to the left of the launch ramp.
The picnic is a nice way to visit with and get to know chapter members.
The event will include installation of officers, including Co-Presidents Roberta Lyons and Bonnie Thompson Vice President Tina Wasson, Treasurer Nichola Selph and Secretary Marina Vedovi.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The Clear Lake/Callayomi Masonic Lodge No. 183, Free and Accepted Masons, hosts the “best breakfast in Lake County” on the third Sunday of each month at the Masonic Center, located at 7100 South Center Drive in Clearlake.
The next breakfast will be served May 15.
The lodge serves a full, sit-down breakfast from 8 to 11 a.m.
Choose your breakfast from a large menu including eggs (any style), omelets, hash browns, biscuits and gravy, hot cakes, breakfast meat, toast, juice and coffee.
The cost is $8 for adults, $4 for children ages 6 to 12. Children under age 6 may eat for free and are served a special “kids” breakfast.