Our upcoming events were discussed.

• On June 26, 2017, the golf outing will be held at Royal Melbourne Country Club. This event is our largest fundraiser and volunteers, donations and golfers are needed for this special golf outing.  All funds raised will be used to assist the Moonshot Program to provide our residents with the best direct care staff.
• The Day at the Races is again scheduled for Sunday, July 30. More information will be coming shortly.
• The Illinois Friends picnic will be held at St. Marcelline’s Church grounds on August 19.
• The Oktoberfest is scheduled for October 7 at Inverness Country Club.

At our April meeting, Mary Anne Ehlert (President and Founder) of Protected Tomorrows was the guest speaker.  Mary Anne discussed the new ABLE account that is available through the state of Illinois for disabled individuals.  This account is considered part of Section 529A of the Internal Review passed by Congress in 2014.  This allows states to establish a tax-advantaged savings account to assist persons with disabilities to save for their future without putting their federal benefits at risk.  To qualify, individuals must be disabled and entitled to benefits under the Social Security Disability Act.  Up to $14,000 per year can be placed into this account, with a maximum of $350,000.  The Illinois State Treasurer is the administrator of Illinois’ 529A program, called Illinois ABLE.

As of now, upon death of the disabled person, all funds in this account would revert back to the state of Illinois.  This “payback” is being reviewed by the state of Illinois and perhaps will be changed in the future.  For more details, you can contact Mary Anne Ehlert of Protected Tomorrows at 847-522-8086.

For more information on Illinois Friends, please visit our website at http://ilfriendsstcolettawi.org.