The unfolding story of the famous creative mind behind the Marvel universe is a sobering reminder that seniors of all walks of life are potentially susceptible to becoming victims of elder abuse.
Stan Lee — the legend behind numerous superheroes such as Spiderman — was recently granted a temporary restraining order against a man who has been working as the 95-year-old’s caregiver since his wife Joan Lee died last year.
According to documents reportedly presented to the court, Keya Morgan — who has denied all allegations — is a New York memorabilia collector and dealer who “inserted himself into Mr. Lee’s life” after Joan passed away.
Los Angeles police are investigating the allegations of elder abuse.
The headlines follow on the earlier development of Lee’s declared intention to sue Pow! Entertainment — a company he co-founded — alleging he was made to sign over his name and image rights when he was in an emotionally and physically fragile state. Naturally, the company says the claims are without merit.
But the point is, if this can happen to an adored millionaire such as Lee, then that means others without as many resources to resort to can also be victimized with little to no recourse for action.
What’s worse is the perpetrators tend to be either family or friends who see no problem preying on someone's deteriorating mental and physical condition for personal gain.
Unfortunately, even in a small, tight-knit community such as Sundre, we cannot allow ourselves to become complacent by assuming no such exploitation of elders is occurring.
Quite the contrary. Keeping an eye out for instances of senior abuse has become important perhaps more than ever.
Elder abuse is not limited to physical attacks. While this is not unheard of, crimes committed against seniors are generally financial in nature.
Typically, elder abuse that happens in a public setting is not necessarily obvious to a casual observer who might be minding his or her own business. So learning to recognize when to react is one of the first steps.
Sundre’s Coordinated Community Response has been working with local stakeholders to develop strategies to combat and curtail instances of senior abuse. A presentation was held at the Sundre Seniors Supportive Living drop-in centre on World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, June 15 to offer interested members of the public some insight and advice. Stay tuned for coverage on that presentation.
We applaud their efforts and hope residents get informed not only on recognizing when a senior is being exploited, but also what to do in such situations.
— Ducatel is the Round Up’s editor
