Why walk, when you can Shred!

Mission
To spread awareness and help gain support to a selected charity using original fundraising opportunities and “out of the box” educational concepts.

Overview
“Shred 4 A Cause” is a Non-Profit Organization dedicated to spreading awareness, and raising funds to help support the Brain Injury Association of Canada. Using radical fundraising techniques, interactive educational events and extreme social media focus “Shred 4 A Cause” will spread the word and gain support for the charity the Brain Injury Association of Canada.

CTV News Clip

Website

Facebook

Donate Here

By Norman Willet, Kanata, Ont.
BACKGROUND: We are POA and Guardians for my Intellectually Challenged niece. In January 2012 she fell victim to an online scam that began with a phone call frightening her about viruses on her computer. The male insisted that he worked for Microsoft and needed immediate online access to her computer to remove a fatal virus that they were alerted was on her computer. Once done extracting information from the computer and whatever else he did, he requested her credit information in order to bill her a small fee for his services. We discovered this only when the invoice was received for $550 weeks later. The following weeks lead us down a road of discovery and frustration that I wish to share with you.

• Step 1. Call the Credit Card Company and cancel the credit card used for the charge.
• Step 2. Ask to speak to their Fraud Department to begin the recovery process. You may be refused as we were initially because the information was given “freely” to the scam artist and not stolen.
• Step 3. Call and report the fraud to the RCMP Fraud department: 1-8888-495-8501. Once explained to the officer the information will be taken, advice given, and a File # issued to you. Record it and start your own personal file. I suggest that you record the time of day, number you call, and whom you speak to.
• Step 4. Call and report the fraud to your local police agency. They will pass you to their Fraud department. In our case, it was the Ottawa Police: 613-236-1222. Following the same process as with the RCMP in step 3. You will be given another case file number. Record it.
• Step 5. Call the bank and notify them that you have been a victim of on line fraud. Request a new on line access number for your telephone and internet banking. You can also do this from a secure computer. Do not use the same computer the perpetrator used in the fraud. Going to the bank is best.
• Step 6. Call the Equifax credit agency to put an alert on your account. This will mean that any abnormal activity will be reported directly to you by phone whenever your credit score is accessed or used. Their phone number for reporting fraud is: 1-866-828-5961. If you are acting as a POA you will need to send them current (within 2 years) POA documentation, two pieces of ID for both you and your charge, and a letter outlining the action you want them to take and have it signed. If the POA is older than 2 years you will need to get a Notary or a Commissioner of Oaths to sign a document giving current status. You should also include the two case numbers from the police agencies you have notified. You can either mail it or fax it to: 1-514-355-8502 Att: National Consumer Relations. It will take about 4 weeks.
• Step 7. Call Transunion credit agency to put an alert on their system the same as step 6. All the same steps apply. They can be reached at: 1-800-663-9980. Their fax number is: 1-877-411-2611 Att: Fraud Department.
• Step 8. Call back the Credit Card Company (use the banking manager to assist you if you are being refused access to the credit card fraud department as I was). Register the claim with the Fraud department listing pertinent information given to you by the police agencies and giving the case file numbers received from the police. Be insistent that you do NOT feel you should have to pay for the incurred charges on your card. Their fraud department will act on the information and do their due diligence to research and make changes to protect their card holders. This is serious and it is treated seriously but usually only if money has been taken fraudulently.
• Step 9. Send a registered letter to the credit card company listing the process you have followed including all the contacts you have spoken to and case files you have been given. Reiterate that you are not going to pay for the charges. Make sure you put in the same POA documentation as you have faxed the credit agency companies in steps 6 and 7 above. Make a copy of the whole file and save it along with all the other documentation so you have a complete record of what you have sent.
• Step 10. It is best to go back to the bank and inform your advisor of the steps you have taken and the action you are hoping will transpire. They are there to help you and should in fact champion your issue. Use them as your contact and point of reference. Follow up and keep the process rolling.

Important personal note for fellow POA and Guardians.
It is easy to avoid the steps necessary to document what for many is a lifelong commitment to our children or charges. What makes sense to you may not always be the legal process followed. Make sure that you are registered with every company that you deal with as champion for your charge especially if they are over 18 years of age. Do not take it for granted! They will not talk to you or allow you to access the account, put alerts of files, cancel credit or debit cards, and do banking transactions. It is our job as the POA and Guardians to keep our house in order. If we are removed from the equation do you have a process in place to transfer this information to a new body or POA authority? Is your Will current and does it layout Trust and Estate issues clearly? 10 hours today will save your Executor and Trustee weeks if not months of aggravation and frustration after you are gone.
All the best, Norman Willet – Advisor (& POA) – Independent Planning Group – Ottawa: 613-601-0707

For your help and advice I have listed several competent and experienced law firms you can use for your Estate documents and Wills:
AGB Lawyers
208-1400 Clyde Ave
Ottawa – 232-8832
Att: Adam Young

Kelly.Manthorp.Heaphy
2323 Riverside Drive East
Ottawa – 613-733-3000
Att: Paul J. Kelly
Edward G. Manthorp

Others? Please call for referral.

Please let the lawyers know where the referral came from. We want to track this method of exposure.

Caregiver Tax Credits – Don’t Pay Too Much!

Host Organization: North Shore Community Resources Society

February 16, 2012 7:00 PM (PST)
When a loved one becomes ill, the last thing on your mind is taxes. Despite this fact, taxes are one of the certainties in life, but no one should pay more than their fair share! In this easy-to-follow interactive web and telephone based workshop you will learn how to take advantage of all the deductions and credits available to you.

This session is reserved for residents of: All of Canada

More Information and Registration

A Canadian Medical Association Journal Editorial

Nova Scotia passed legislation on Dec. 15, 2011, requiring all skiers and snowboarders — children and adults — to wear a helmet. This likely constitutes the world’s toughest such rules and is laudable from a public health perspective, but there’s just one problem. How good are the helmets? The fact is that, to protect their noggins, Canadian skiers and snowboarders might as well be using a toque as some of the helmets being sold. That’s according to an expert at the Canadian Standards Association (CSA).1 The CSA consulted with helmet manufacturers, resort owners, skiing groups and other stakeholders to come up with higher standards for made-in-Canada ski and snowboard helmets. Those standards were released back in 2009 but have yet to be met by any manufacturer. Why not is anyone’s guess. It could be that Canada’s relatively small market is deterring those who have to adhere to a bottom line. But undoubtedly, the lack of demand for CSA-approved helmets is a factor.

Read the full editorial (pdf)

In early 1999 I was hospitalized for four weeks with herpes simplex encephalitis. During that time my family searched the library and the Internet in vain, to learn more about encephalitis.

I created Encephalitis Global in late 1999, sharing information and support between encephalitis survivors, caregivers and loved ones. Encephalitis Global, Inc. now has over 1,500 members worldwide and exchanges more than 300 messages posted weekly, making it the most active encephalitis forum in the world.

Rare Disease Day 2012 is an international event held on February 29th 2012. In recognition of this Encephalitis Global has released FIGHTING ENCEPHALITIS, our entry in the American Academy of Neurology’s Neuro Film Festival 2012.

Wendy Station, President
Encephalitis Global, Inc.
www.encephalitisglobal.org
www.encephalitis.ca

Bicycle Helmet Recall from the US Consumer Product Safety Commission

Brain Awareness Week (BAW) is the global campaign to increase public awareness of the progress and benefits of brain research.

In preparation of the Council of the Federation starting today in Victoria, please read the news release from the Canadian Medical Association (pdf) on a new public opinion poll showing that Canadians overwhelmingly agree that governments should adopt principles to make the health care system more centred on the needs of patients. Full results and questions can be accessed at: http://www.ipsos-na.com/news-polls/pressrelease.aspx?id=5469.

Regards,
François Lessard
Senior Advisor, Advocacy and Public Affairs│Conseiller principal, Représentation et affaires publiques
Canadian Medical Association│Association médicale canadienne
613 731-8610 │800 663-7336 ext./poste 2261
francois.lessard@cma.ca
www.cma.ca
1867 prom. Alta Vista Drive, Ottawa ON K1G 5W8
Faites-vous entendre : www.transformationsante.ca
Have your say: www.healthcaretransformation.ca

The Canadian Medical Association (CMA) today announced that 14 patient advocacy groups are raising their voices in support of a set of common principles developed by Canada’s physicians and nurses to guide the transformation of the health care system to make it centred on the needs of patients. The news release is attached.

-Growing Support for principles to guide transformation of the health care system (pdf)
-Appui croissant en faveur des principes devant guider la transformation du système de santé (pdf)

Regards,
François Lessard
Senior Advisor, Advocacy and Public Affairs│Conseiller principal, Représentation et affaires publiques
Canadian Medical Association│Association médicale canadienne
613 731-8610 │800 663-7336 ext./poste 2261
francois.lessard@cma.ca
www.cma.ca
1867 prom. Alta Vista Drive, Ottawa ON K1G 5W8
Have your say: www.healthcaretransformation.ca

Brain Injury Association of Canada encourages widespread common sense

OTTAWA _ The Brain Injury Association of Canada invites Canadians to keep their heads up over the holidays and avoid close calls that could turn catastrophic. “Making sure that Canadians are aware of their surroundings,” said Harry Zarins, executive director of the national nonprofit. “Drive safely, be aware of icy conditions in a vehicle and on foot, and wear a helmet for all winter recreational sports.”

Of the 18,000 hospital stays every year due to traumatic brain injuries, 6,500 Canadians are permanently disabled, with total costs estimated at more than three billion dollars.

Youth, young adults and seniors are most at risk. In the majority of cases there is no turning back.

Heads Up Holidays 2011-2012 Audio

Zarins said hockey and sport has created an opening for dialogue that allows for freer discussion about a wide spectrum of brain injuries and the often far-reaching effects.

“It takes a long time to recover … and we do still have a lot to learn.”

Harry Zarins
Executive Director
Brain Injury Association of Canada
613-762-1222
info@biac-aclc.ca