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VOLUME 31, NUMBER 12 DECEMBER <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

<strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong> GIFT IDEAS<br />

FOR BUSINESS AND HOME<br />

By Ted Saul<br />

SEE PAGE 25<br />

TEMECULA VALLEY HOSPITAL<br />

STAFF RECEIVES JIMMY<br />

MOORE CITIZEN OF THE YEAR<br />

AWARD<br />

The Kiwanis Club of Temecula Valley presented the<br />

Jimmy Moore Citizen of the Year Award to the Temecula<br />

Valley Hospital staff for the outstanding services and care<br />

provided to the citizens in the Temecula Valley.<br />

SEE PAGE 23<br />

CELEBRATES THE HOLIDAY SEASON<br />

THE LEGISLATIVE SUMMIT<br />

WILL ADDRESS ISSUES<br />

AFFECTING BUSINESS<br />

SEE PAGE 3<br />

By Assemblymember Marie Waldron<br />

The Legislature will open on <strong>December</strong> 7th with the swearing in<br />

of all members and start the <strong>20</strong>21-<strong>20</strong>22 session. Though a few bills<br />

are likely to introduced, the day is largely ceremonial, and the new<br />

session will begin in earnest on January 6th.<br />

SEE PAGE 23<br />

AND...<br />

PREVENTING FALLS AT HOME<br />

DO YOU OWN AN INACTIVE<br />

BUSINESS?<br />

HOPE FOR THE HOLIDAYS<br />

FINANCIAL<br />

LAST MINUTE<br />

BUSINESS<br />

DEDUCTIONS FOR<br />

TAX YEAR <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

8<br />

INSURANCE<br />

PERSONAL<br />

UMBRELLA<br />

LIABILITY<br />

INSURANCE<br />

15<br />

REAL ESTATE<br />

THE DEFINITION<br />

OF INSANITY<br />

<strong>20</strong>


THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

2 www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

Wilson Creek Winery, famous for its world class wine and<br />

hospitality offerings, shared the loss of its beloved patriarch<br />

Gerry Wilson<br />

He was 90. He died peacefully<br />

with his family at his bedside.<br />

Gerald Raymond Wilson was<br />

born on April 7, 1930, in Billings,<br />

Montana. His family later moved<br />

to North Dakota then Minneapolis,<br />

Minnesota. Gerry attended the University<br />

of Minnesota where he was the<br />

Homecoming King and the president<br />

of his fraternity, Beta Theta Pi. He<br />

was an ROTC officer and also sang in<br />

the prestigious university choir.<br />

He was happily married to Rosie<br />

Wilson for 67 years. He served in the<br />

Air Force in Korea as a Lieutenant.<br />

Gerry and Rosie had four kids whom<br />

they raised in Minnesota and then in<br />

South Pasadena, California. Gerry<br />

served as a Rotarian (L.A. #5) and<br />

on his church board. He worked in<br />

financial advising/sales in the same<br />

company for over 25 years. Every<br />

place Gerry and Rosie lived they<br />

became icons in their cities due to<br />

their warm hospitality and heart for<br />

others. Their home in South Pasadena<br />

became a gathering place as well as a<br />

refuge for anyone who needed a warm<br />

embrace, whether it was those from<br />

broken homes, exchange students, or<br />

anyone needing a good meal and a hug.<br />

When Rosie and Gerry were both almost<br />

60 years-old they adopted two more<br />

kids, Heather and Chris, who would’ve<br />

otherwise been raised in the foster system.<br />

Heather and Chris are thriving adults<br />

today with their own families. They both<br />

are deeply thankful for Gerry for literally<br />

saving their lives.<br />

Gerry founded Wilson Creek Winery<br />

with his family in <strong>20</strong>00. His motive to<br />

start the winery was to reunite his scattered<br />

family and to create a legacy that<br />

will endure through the generations. He<br />

poured his hard-earned retirement into<br />

the business so the family can come<br />

together again. Gerry’s love and graciousness<br />

towards others has been the<br />

heartbeat of the winery, even to this day.<br />

Today, his vision has become a reality<br />

and the family is united and the winery<br />

has become a place where people from<br />

all over the world can experience warm<br />

hospitality. He and Rosie lived in a manufactured<br />

home in the vineyards right<br />

next to the winery and were very present<br />

at the winery.<br />

Gerry is widely known for his kindness,<br />

compassion, love, and graciousness.<br />

He is a man who has enhanced the lives<br />

of thousands of people. His sparkling<br />

blue eyes and contagious smile warmed<br />

the hearts of those he encountered. He<br />

gave without conditions; he had a heart<br />

for the outsider or disadvantaged.<br />

Many on staff at Wilson Creek considered<br />

Gerry a kind of father figure who<br />

modeled unconditional love. Gerry left<br />

behind four generations of family who<br />

are all deeply thankful for his influence<br />

on their lives and who will proudly carry<br />

on his legacy. If greatness is measured by<br />

the amount one loves, gives, serves, and<br />

values others, Gerry was a giant of a man.<br />

The family is thankful for the overwhelming<br />

amount of support and love<br />

they have received from friends, family,<br />

staff, wine club members, church leaders,<br />

and community leaders. Each person who<br />

has emailed, called, texted, or visited<br />

has shared how much Gerry has meant<br />

to them. The common thread is that was<br />

a great man and the effect he has had on<br />

their lives is deep and profound.<br />

A Celebration of Life service at the<br />

winery will be announced shortly. For<br />

more information, please contact<br />

Wilson Creek Winery - marketing@<br />

wilsoncreekwinery.com.<br />

Wilson Creek Winery is a family-owned<br />

winery in the heart of Temecula<br />

Wine Country known for its<br />

quality wines and warm hospitality.<br />

The winery features a welcoming<br />

tasting room, full-service restaurant<br />

with expansive patio, creekside picnic<br />

area, indoor and outdoor conference<br />

and event spaces, romantic wedding<br />

venue and exclusive retreat accommodations.<br />

The Wilson family has<br />

built an extended-family community<br />

around the sharing of wine, food<br />

and hospitality, turning visitors into<br />

friends and wine lovers into ambassadors<br />

for the brand. Information about<br />

the winery, vineyards, events and how<br />

to become part of the Wilson’s extended<br />

wine community can be found<br />

online at WilsonCreekWinery.com or<br />

Facebook.com/WilsonCreekWinery.<br />

Wilson Creek Winery is located<br />

at 35960 Rancho California Rd., Temecula,<br />

CA 92591. Questions can be<br />

directed to 951.699.WINE (9463) or<br />

info@wilsoncreekwinery.com.


<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

3<br />

Temecula Chilled Celebrates the Holiday Season with Holiday Lights, Outdoor<br />

Dining, Shopping, and a Message of Peace<br />

Southern Californians are invited<br />

to find their peace in Temecula<br />

Valley Southern California Wine<br />

Country with open spaces, outdoor<br />

tastings, dining al fresco, and safe<br />

accommodations. Temecula Chilled<br />

features three distinct neighborhoods,<br />

Wine Country, Old Town<br />

and Pechanga Resort Casino; each<br />

celebrating their holiday traditions<br />

in a unique way.<br />

Visitors are invited to stay the<br />

night (or two) to really take in the<br />

holiday spirit. Some top things to do<br />

this holiday season are shopping Old<br />

Town Temecula among the festive<br />

lights and decor, dining al fresco,<br />

and outdoor recreation like hiking,<br />

horseback riding, golfing, and hot<br />

air ballooning. Check out Winter<br />

Must-Dos for holiday and winter<br />

inspiration. Travelers can book a<br />

holiday package to get the most out<br />

of their stay.<br />

Holiday Décor - Old Town Temecula<br />

and Temecula Valley Wine<br />

Country will compete in a local<br />

decorating contest and visitors are<br />

invited to view the beautiful lights<br />

and décor as they spread their holiday<br />

cheer.<br />

Temecula residents also compete<br />

in a community holiday lights<br />

decorating contest. A map to the<br />

decorated homes will be available<br />

online <strong>December</strong> 8.<br />

Dining - Many restaurants will<br />

serve Temecula Chilled menu items<br />

from drinks to entrees to desserts.<br />

Some of the special items are Rolled<br />

Blueberry Coconut French Toast<br />

at 1909, Dolce Inverno! cocktail<br />

at Bottega Italia, Fruitcake Flip<br />

cocktail at Apparition Room, Spiced<br />

Snowball cocktail and Frosty Winter<br />

Tart at Avensole Winery Restaurant,<br />

Blueberry Cheesecake at Baily’s Old<br />

Town, Brandy Alexander at Crush<br />

& Brew’s Thompson & Twain,<br />

Peppermint Grinch Shake at Mad<br />

Madeline’s Grill, Desert Bloom<br />

cocktail at Small Barn, Cran-Spiced<br />

Martini and Strawberry-Vanilla<br />

Bean Panna Cotta with Blueberry<br />

Compote at Vineyard Rose at South<br />

Coast Winery Resort & Spa, Twist<br />

on a Shrimp Cocktail and Blackberry<br />

Bramble at Cork|Fire Kitch<br />

at Temecula Creek Inn, Jack Frost<br />

Unicorn Milk at Toast, and Pistachio<br />

Egg Nog Sundae at Creekside Grille<br />

at Wilson Creek Winery. Find all the<br />

Chilled drinks, eats, and treats at<br />

TemeculaChilled.com.<br />

In addition to Chilled menu<br />

items, several attractions will host<br />

holiday events. Europa Village will<br />

be a European winter wonderland<br />

with shimmering lights and garland<br />

hung. They will play The Grinch<br />

Special stay packages are available for a<br />

Southern California holiday escape<br />

Some top things to do this<br />

holiday season are shopping Old<br />

Town Temecula among the festive<br />

lights and decor, dining al fresco,<br />

and outdoor recreation like hiking,<br />

horseback riding, golfing, and hot<br />

under the stars, display a handmade gingerbread<br />

village, and a marketplace will<br />

be available for holiday shopping. Christmas<br />

Eve and New Year’s Eve dinners from<br />

Chefs Hany Ali and Luis Sandoval will be<br />

available at Bolero Restaurante.<br />

Temecula Valley Wine Country -<br />

Wilson Creek Winery is doing a Winter<br />

Wonderland for the holidays. The property<br />

will be decorated and they will be open<br />

until 8:00 pm on Thursdays, Fridays, and<br />

Saturdays. They will be serving holiday<br />

items on their menu with hot wassail and<br />

hot chocolate served at the Courtyard Bar<br />

and Grille.<br />

Jingle Bell Sleigh Rides will usher<br />

guests through more than 100,000 twinkling<br />

lights and holiday décor. Bundle up<br />

for a 25-minute private horse-drawn sleigh<br />

ride in Temecula Valley Wine Country<br />

with Temecula Carriage Company.<br />

Horse drawn carriage rides transport<br />

families to Santa’s Wine Country Workshop<br />

for a socially distanced visit with<br />

Santa in his gingerbread house. Reservations<br />

are required.<br />

Peltzer Winery’s outdoor ice rink is<br />

open through January 10. Reservations<br />

are required to ensure social distancing.<br />

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day<br />

dinners will be available for outdoor<br />

dining at The Vineyard Rose at South<br />

Coast Winery Resort & Spa. Special menu<br />

options will be available.<br />

Old Town Temecula - “Find Your<br />

Peace” is a Visit Temecula Valley theme<br />

air ballooning.<br />

this winter as the region invites its neighbors<br />

to take in the outdoor spaces and<br />

spread out under the open skies. Themed<br />

8-foot wide by 10-foot high murals painted<br />

by local artists and enlarged to hang<br />

from buildings in Old Town Temecula<br />

will be on display through the month of<br />

<strong>December</strong> to help inspire peace and visitors<br />

can use them as photo opportunity<br />

backdrops.<br />

Old Town Temecula’s annual Grape<br />

Drop will be virtual this year. Viewing will<br />

be on Facebook @TemeculaParkandRec.<br />

There will be a concert at 7:00 p.m. and<br />

9:15 p.m with the Grape Drop at 9:00 p.m.<br />

and midnight.<br />

Vail Headquarters - Temecula<br />

Chilled at the historic Vail Headquarters<br />

will be celebrated on <strong>December</strong> 12 from<br />

2:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. There will be photo<br />

ops, holiday décor, an outdoor movie<br />

showing, and an outdoor marketplace.<br />

Pechanga Resort Casino - For those<br />

staying at a vacation rental or hotel and<br />

don’t want to dine out, bring the feast to<br />

you from Pechanga. They are offering a<br />

bone-in prime rib Christmas dinner for<br />

curbside pick up. The last day to order<br />

is <strong>December</strong> 17. Hotel rooms are not<br />

currently offered, however the pubic is<br />

invited to see the beautiful holiday decorations,<br />

dine at one of their many restaurants,<br />

and play for a chance to win some holiday<br />

spending cash.<br />

Holiday Stay Packages - Nutcracker<br />

Suite package includes an overnight stay in<br />

an intricately decorated themed room<br />

a the Inn at Europa decked out with<br />

nutcracker holiday décor, delicious<br />

breakfast at Bolero Restaurante ,<br />

cookie turndown service and two tickets<br />

to The Ballet Studio’s performance<br />

of The Nutcracker at Europa Village<br />

starting at $307 based on double occupancy.<br />

The Sugar Plum Suite package<br />

includes an overnight stay at Inn at<br />

Europa Village with all the sweet<br />

holiday trimming décor, breakfast<br />

at Bolero Restaurante, cookie turndown<br />

service, and two tickets to The<br />

Nutcracker live performance starting<br />

at $307 based on double occupancy.<br />

Wine, Dine & Toast to <strong>20</strong>21 at<br />

South Coast Winery Resort & Spa<br />

or Carter Estate Winery Resort. This<br />

sparkling package offers two-night<br />

accommodations in a South Coast<br />

Winery Village or Carter Estate Bungalow.<br />

It includes the fine dining gustatory<br />

salute to the past New Year’s<br />

Eve Dinner at The Vineyard Rose<br />

Restaurant for two guests, as well as<br />

a welcome a bottle of sparkling wine,<br />

still wine, and New Year’s Eve party<br />

favors. Rate is $880, based on double<br />

occupancy, at South Coast Winery<br />

Resort & Spa; Rate is $950, based on<br />

double occupancy and includes daily<br />

continental breakfast, at Carter Estate<br />

Winery and Resort.<br />

Visit Temecula Valley asks travelers<br />

to visit responsibly, face masks<br />

and social distancing are required at<br />

some locations and strongly recommended<br />

when not eating or drinking.<br />

Plan your Temecula Chilled stay at<br />

VisitTemeculaValley.com.<br />

ABOUT TEMECULA VAL-<br />

LEY AND VISIT TEMECULA<br />

VALLEY<br />

Temecula Valley is open and<br />

welcomes local visitors. The businesses<br />

have strict cleaning protocols<br />

to ensure everyone’s safety and<br />

comfort because they consider the<br />

health of their employees and guests<br />

top priority. They have met and often<br />

succeeded county and state requirements.<br />

Face masks are strongly recommended<br />

when visiting and please<br />

be kind to the workers, they are doing<br />

everything they can to make the experience<br />

an enjoyable one.<br />

Temecula Valley is a popular<br />

Southern California destination that<br />

includes Temecula Valley Wine<br />

Country, Old Town Temecula, and<br />

Pechanga Resort Casino. In <strong>20</strong>19,<br />

Wine Enthusiast named it a 10 Best<br />

Wine Travel Destination.<br />

Visit Temecula Valley is the<br />

region’s official tourism marketing<br />

organization and resource for visitors.<br />

For visitor information and assistance,<br />

please call (888) 363-2852 or<br />

go to VisitTemeculaValley.com.


THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

4 www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

In this issue:<br />

<strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong> Gift Ideas for Business and Home 1<br />

Temecula Valley Hospital Staff Receives Award 1<br />

Temecula Chilled Celebrates the Holiday Season 1<br />

The Legislative Summit Will Address Issues Affecting Businesses 1<br />

Wilson Creek Winery Shares the Loss of Gerry Wilson 2<br />

Addiction and Mental Illness is a Public Health Crisis 6<br />

Last Minute Business Deductions for Tax Year <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong> 8<br />

Preventing Falls in the Home - Be Aware of the Risk Factors 9<br />

Estate Planning: The Perfect Gift for the Holiday Season? 10<br />

Do You Own an Inactive Business? Is it Time to Close it Before End of Year 11<br />

Hope for the Holidays 12<br />

Save Money Through the Holidays with EVMWD’s Aquahawk System 13<br />

As the Seasons Change, So Do Our Services and Program Offerings 13<br />

Personal Umbrella Liability Insurance 15<br />

Online Eye “Exams” 17<br />

Phishing – There are Always More Phish in the Sea 19<br />

The Definition of Insanity <strong>20</strong><br />

Temecula Valley Museum Announces Winning Entries 21<br />

Dear Third District Resident 21<br />

Together, Making a Difference 22


<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

5


THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

6 www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

www.facebook/thevalleybusinessjournal<br />

For questions, comments, or story ideas, please<br />

e-mail publishertvbj@verizon.net or call (951) 461-0400.<br />

EDITOR/PUBLISHER/CEO<br />

Linda Wunderlich<br />

Email: publishertvbj@verizon.net<br />

ADVERTISING SALES INFORMATION<br />

(951) 461-0400<br />

CREATIVE DIRECTOR<br />

Helen M. Ryan<br />

VP OF DISTRIBUTION<br />

Dane Wunderlich<br />

Addiction and Mental Illness is a<br />

Public Health Crisis<br />

by Matthew Taylor<br />

Let me first introduce myself, my<br />

name Matthew Taylor proud owner of<br />

TaylorMade Counseling & Consulting.<br />

Also, I am your Addiction and Mental<br />

Health Rehabilitation Therapist. I am so<br />

excited to be a new contributor and writer<br />

for this great publication, The Valley<br />

Business Journal.<br />

Overdose is now the #1 cause of<br />

accidental death in the United States,<br />

recently surpassing car accidents. Every<br />

four minutes a parent loses a child to<br />

addiction, and the rising cost of addiction<br />

now exceeds $400 billion a year.<br />

Research shows that the stigma of<br />

addiction keeps people from getting the<br />

treatment needed and my goal is to help<br />

change that narrative. This is a fact 1 in<br />

3 families are impacted by substance use<br />

disorder but only 1 in 10 ever seek treatment,<br />

while we are looking at numbers let<br />

me share one more number with you, well<br />

a little more than one more number. It is<br />

estimated to cost businesses more than<br />

$193 million annually due to employee<br />

substance use.<br />

Not very long ago addiction was<br />

considered a moral affliction. Addicts<br />

were seen as bad people, devoted to the<br />

pursuit of pleasure and self-gratification,<br />

rather than individuals suffering from a<br />

mental and physical affliction. After years<br />

of research, we now have a more enlightened<br />

understanding of addiction with the<br />

current model revealing that addiction<br />

is a chronic, progressive disease of the<br />

brain. In fact, addiction is sometimes<br />

alternately referred to as a substance use<br />

disorder, which prompts comparisons to<br />

conditions like Alzheimer’s disease or<br />

dementia as frequently as illnesses like<br />

diabetes.<br />

In my opinion Addiction and Mental<br />

Illness are siblings just with their own<br />

different personalities. In terms of psychological<br />

symptoms, individuals who<br />

have developed addictions have a dramatically<br />

disrupted hierarchy of needs,<br />

suggested by their tendency to act against<br />

their own self-interests. This is illustrated<br />

by the habitual substance abuse behavior<br />

in spite of the numerous consequences,<br />

including a decline in overall physical<br />

health and potential legal repercussions.<br />

As such, addicts become incapable of<br />

controlling their impulses, which is also a<br />

symptom of many other mental illnesses.<br />

Ok, it was not a mistake that I<br />

launched my new company here in Wildomar,<br />

California but I have one request<br />

of you, please help to make a difference<br />

in our communities.<br />

Matthew Taylor, AODC, MHRT, CCFP<br />

STAFF WRITERS/<br />

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS<br />

Gene Wunderlich<br />

Ted Saul<br />

Craig Davis<br />

Stefani Laszko<br />

Nicole Albrecht<br />

Julie Ngo<br />

Tom Plant<br />

Esther Phahla<br />

Steve Amante<br />

Monique deGroot<br />

Andrea Shoup<br />

Gloria Wolnick<br />

Dr. Drake Levasheff, PhD<br />

Mort J. Grabel, Esq.<br />

John & Christine Hamby<br />

Brian Connors<br />

Tristin Collopy<br />

Dr. Pat Utnehmer<br />

Bonnie Woodrome<br />

Haley Munson<br />

Criteria for Submitting Articles:<br />

1. Since the publication of articles is an added public<br />

relations feature for our advertisers, their articles will be<br />

given first priority. Other articles will be published on a<br />

space available basis.<br />

2. Articles should be submitted as a Word document file.<br />

3. Articles must be business-oriented and pertain to<br />

the author’s area of expertise. A photo of the writer is<br />

appropriate.<br />

4. All submissions are subject to editing by the publisher.<br />

5. Send completed articles by e-mail to: publishertvbj@<br />

verizon.net<br />

6. Article and advertising deadlines are the 15th of each<br />

month for the next issue.<br />

The Valley Business Journal is a California Corporation. All rights<br />

reserved. Reproduction in any form, in whole or in part, without the<br />

written permission of the Publisher is prohibited. The publication is<br />

published monthly. The opinions and views expressed in these pages<br />

are those of the writer or person interviewed and not necessarily those<br />

of The Valley Business Journal. The Valley Business Journal hereby<br />

expressly limits its liability resulting from any and all misprints, errors<br />

and/or inaccuracies any advertisement or editorial may contain, to<br />

the credit of the specific advertising payment and/or the running of a<br />

corrected advertisement or editorial correction notice.


<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

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THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

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<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

Last Minute Business Deductions for Tax Year <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

Here are seven powerful business tax<br />

deduction strategies that you can easily<br />

understand and implement before the<br />

end of <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong>.<br />

1. Prepay Expenses Using the IRS<br />

Safe Harbor - You just have to thank the<br />

IRS for its tax-deduction safe harbors.<br />

IRS regulations contain a safe-harbor<br />

rule that allows cash-basis taxpayers to<br />

prepay and deduct qualifying expenses<br />

up to 12 months in advance without challenge,<br />

adjustment, or change by the IRS.<br />

Under this safe harbor, your <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

prepayments cannot go into <strong>20</strong>22. This<br />

makes sense, because you can prepay<br />

only 12 months of qualifying expenses<br />

under the safe-harbor rule.<br />

For a cash-basis taxpayer, qualifying<br />

expenses include lease payments<br />

on business vehicles, rent payments on<br />

offices and machinery, and business and<br />

malpractice insurance premiums.<br />

Example. You pay $3,000 a month in<br />

rent and would like a $36,000 deduction<br />

this year. So, on Thursday, <strong>December</strong> 31,<br />

<strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong>, you mail a rent check for $36,000<br />

to cover all of your <strong>20</strong>21 rent. Your landlord<br />

does not receive the payment in the<br />

mail until Tuesday, January 5, <strong>20</strong>21. Here<br />

are the results:<br />

• You deduct $36,000 in <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong> (the year<br />

you paid the money).<br />

• The landlord reports taxable income of<br />

$36,000 in <strong>20</strong>21 (the year he received<br />

the money).<br />

You get what you want—the deduction<br />

this year.<br />

The landlord gets what he wants—<br />

next year’s entire rent in advance, eliminating<br />

any collection problems while<br />

keeping the rent taxable in the year he<br />

expects it to be taxable.<br />

Don’t surprise your landlord: if he<br />

had received the $36,000 of rent paid in<br />

advance in <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong>, he would have had to<br />

pay taxes on the rent money in tax year<br />

<strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong>.<br />

2. Stop Billing Customers, Clients,<br />

and Patients - Here is one rock-solid,<br />

time-tested, easy strategy to reduce your<br />

taxable income for this year: stop billing<br />

your customers, clients, and patients until<br />

after <strong>December</strong> 31, <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong>. (We assume<br />

here that you or your corporation is on a<br />

cash basis and operates on the calendar<br />

year.)<br />

Customers, clients, patients, and<br />

insurance companies generally don’t<br />

pay until billed. Not billing customers<br />

and patients is a time-tested tax-planning<br />

strategy that business owners have used<br />

successfully for years.<br />

Example. Jim Schafback, a dentist,<br />

usually bills his patients and the insurance<br />

companies at the end of each week;<br />

however, in <strong>December</strong>, he sends no bills.<br />

Instead, he gathers up those bills and mails<br />

them the first week of January. Presto!<br />

He just postponed paying taxes on his<br />

<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong> income by moving that<br />

income to <strong>20</strong>21.<br />

3. Buy Office Equipment - With<br />

bonus depreciation now at 100 percent<br />

along with increased limits for Section<br />

179 expensing, buy your equipment or<br />

machinery and place it in service before<br />

<strong>December</strong> 31, and get a deduction for 100<br />

percent of the cost in <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong>.<br />

Qualifying bonus depreciation and<br />

Section 179 purchases include new and<br />

used personal property such as machinery,<br />

equipment, computers, desks, chairs,<br />

and other furniture (and certain qualifying<br />

vehicles).<br />

4. Use Your Credit Cards-but<br />

remember to pay them off right after<br />

for good financial health. - If you are a<br />

single-member LLC or sole proprietor<br />

filing Schedule C for your business, the<br />

day you charge a purchase to your business<br />

or personal credit card is the day<br />

you deduct the expense. Therefore, as a<br />

Schedule C taxpayer, you should consider<br />

using your credit card for last-minute<br />

purchases of office supplies and other<br />

business necessities.<br />

If you operate your business as a<br />

corporation, and if the corporation has<br />

a credit card in the corporate name, the<br />

same rule applies: the date of charge is<br />

the date of deduction for the corporation.<br />

But if you operate your business as<br />

a corporation and you are the personal<br />

owner of the credit card, the corporation<br />

must reimburse you if you want the<br />

corporation to realize the tax deduction,<br />

and that happens on the date of reimbursement.<br />

Thus, submit your expense<br />

report and have your corporation make its<br />

reimbursements to you before midnight<br />

on <strong>December</strong> 31.<br />

5. Don’t Assume You Are Taking<br />

Too Many Deductions - If your business<br />

deductions exceed your business income,<br />

you have a tax loss for the year. With a<br />

few modifications to the loss, tax law<br />

calls this a “net operating loss,” or NOL.<br />

If you are just starting your business,<br />

you could very possibly have an NOL.<br />

You could have a loss year even with an<br />

ongoing, successful business.<br />

You used to be able to carry back<br />

your NOL two years and get immediate<br />

tax refunds from prior years; however,<br />

the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) eliminated<br />

this provision. Now, you can only<br />

carry your NOL forward, and it can only<br />

offset up to 80 percent of your taxable<br />

income in any one future year.<br />

What does this all mean? You should<br />

never stop documenting your deductions,<br />

and you should always claim all your<br />

rightful deductions. We have spoken with<br />

far too many business owners, especially<br />

new owners, who don’t claim all their<br />

deductions when those deductions would<br />

produce a tax loss.<br />

6. Thank COVID-19 - Let’s be<br />

real: there’s little to be grateful for with<br />

COVID-19, with one of the several exceptions<br />

being the potential opportunities<br />

to turn NOLs into cash for your business.<br />

Two NOL opportunities come from<br />

the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic<br />

Security (CARES) Act:<br />

The CARES Act allows NOLs arising<br />

in tax years beginning in <strong>20</strong>18, <strong>20</strong>19,<br />

and <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong> to be carried back five years for<br />

refunds against prior taxes.<br />

The CARES Act allows application<br />

of 100 percent of the NOL to the carryback<br />

years.<br />

Before the CARES Act, you could<br />

not carry back your <strong>20</strong>18, <strong>20</strong>19, or <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

losses, and your NOL could offset only<br />

up to 80 percent of taxable income before<br />

your Section 199A deduction.<br />

7. Deal with Your Qualified Improvement<br />

Property (QIP) - In the<br />

CARES Act, Congress finally fixed the<br />

qualified improvement property (QIP)<br />

error that it made in the TCJA.<br />

QIP is any improvement made by<br />

the taxpayer to the interior portion of a<br />

building that is non-residential real property<br />

(think office buildings, retail stores,<br />

and shopping centers) if you place the<br />

improvement in service after the date you<br />

place the building in service.<br />

If you have such property on an already<br />

filed <strong>20</strong>18 or <strong>20</strong>19 return, it’s on<br />

that return as 39-year property. You now<br />

have to change it to 15-year property,<br />

eligible for both bonus depreciation and<br />

Section 179 expensing.<br />

I trust that you found the seven ideas<br />

above worthwhile. If you have any questions<br />

or would like to discuss the above in<br />

more detail, please contact our office to<br />

schedule a strategy planning appointment<br />

by calling us at 951-719-1515.<br />

Sincerely, Nicole M. Albrecht<br />

“<br />

IRS regulations<br />

contain a safe-<br />

harbor rule that allows<br />

cash-basis taxpayers<br />

to prepay and deduct<br />

qualifying expenses<br />

up to 12 months in<br />

advance without<br />

challenge, adjustment,<br />

or change by the IRS.<br />

FINANCIAL<br />

presented by<br />

Nicole M Albrecht EA


<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

9<br />

Preventing Falls in the Home - Be Aware of the<br />

Risk Factors That Can Cause Seniors to Fall<br />

by John & Christine Hamby<br />

One in four older Americans falls<br />

every year. Falls are the leading cause<br />

of injuries for seniors aged 65 and<br />

older, so preventing falls can be vital<br />

to their overall health.<br />

According to the Centers for Disease<br />

Control and Prevention (CDC),<br />

one out of five falls causes a serious<br />

injury, such as broken bones, hip<br />

fractures or head injuries. And each<br />

year, at least 300,000 older people are<br />

hospitalized for hip fractures.<br />

If you have an aging parent or<br />

grandparent, helping them reduce their<br />

risk of falling can keep them safe,<br />

healthy and independent. There are<br />

ways of preventing falls in the home.<br />

First, you need to be aware of some of<br />

the risk factors that can lead to a fall,<br />

which include:<br />

Balance and gait – As we age and<br />

become less active, we can lose some<br />

coordination, flexibility, and balance,<br />

which can cause instability.<br />

Vision – As we get older, less light<br />

reaches our retina, which makes contrasting<br />

edges, tripping hazards and<br />

other obstacles more difficult to see.<br />

Medications – Some prescriptions<br />

and over-the-counter medications<br />

can cause dizziness, dehydration<br />

or drowsiness, which can all lead to<br />

a fall.<br />

Environment – Seniors who have<br />

lived in their homes for a long time<br />

may not think about simple changes<br />

they can make to their space to keep<br />

it safer as they age.<br />

Now that you know the risks, here<br />

are 4 things you can do for preventing<br />

falls so that your loved one stays safe<br />

and that you have peace of mind.<br />

Monitor their balance - Is your<br />

older loved one unsteady on their feet?<br />

See if they’re holding onto walls, furniture<br />

or someone else when walking,<br />

or if they seem to have difficulty getting<br />

up from a chair. They may need<br />

help improving their balance, strength<br />

and gait. A cane, walker or other mobility<br />

aid might be the answer. But<br />

oftentimes light exercise and regular<br />

activity can improve overall stability.<br />

Discuss their health conditions -<br />

Is your older loved one having trouble<br />

managing their own health? Make<br />

sure they are remembering to take<br />

their medications, and ask if they are<br />

experiencing side effects from that<br />

medication. Are they having difficulty<br />

doing routine daily tasks or do they<br />

have other health concerns? If certain<br />

health issues are not addressed immediately,<br />

it could lead to more serious<br />

problems down the road.<br />

Take them for an eye exam - If<br />

your parent or grandparent wears<br />

glasses, do they have a current prescription?<br />

If not, it may be time for<br />

an eye exam. Also make sure they are<br />

using the glasses as directed by their<br />

eye doctor. Remember that sometimes<br />

tint-changing lenses can be hazardous<br />

when going from bright sunlight to the<br />

indoors. And bifocals can be problematic<br />

on stairs and other level changes<br />

in the home.<br />

Modify their home<br />

There are many things you can do<br />

to make your loved one’s home safer<br />

so that they may age in place for a<br />

long time:<br />

• Pick up anything on the floor that they<br />

could trip over, including unnecessary<br />

clutter.<br />

• Consider moving anything that is<br />

plugged in to a different area of the<br />

home if the cords become a tripping<br />

hazard.<br />

• Add secure railings to both sides of<br />

stairs, inside and out.<br />

• Make sure their home has enough<br />

light by adding more or brighter light<br />

bulbs.<br />

• Add grab bars inside and outside the<br />

tub or shower, as well as next to the<br />

toilet. Also consider adding a shower<br />

chair or hand-held shower.<br />

At FirstLight, we help seniors<br />

enjoy the best quality of life for as<br />

long as possible. Contact FirstLight<br />

Home Care to learn more about our<br />

senior home care solutions that help<br />

keep your loved one safe, healthy and<br />

independent.<br />

If you’d like to learn more about our<br />

Senior Care Services give us a call at<br />

(951) 395-0821 or visit our website<br />

at www.temecula.firstlighthomecare.<br />

com.


THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

10 www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

Estate Planning: The Perfect Gift for<br />

the Holiday Season?<br />

As families gather for the holidays,<br />

it is traditional to offer gifts and<br />

celebrate the season together. If you<br />

are trying to think of the perfect gift<br />

for your family this year, you might<br />

consider making an estate plan or taking<br />

other generous steps. When you<br />

make a simple estate plan you ensure<br />

your family’s future and well-being,<br />

and that is a gift that will keep giving<br />

for many years.<br />

Create a Trust: A Current Gift<br />

that Has a Future Benefit<br />

If you make a trust today, that is<br />

a current gift that is stewarded for the<br />

future by the trustee. The trust can<br />

name one or more beneficiaries and<br />

can contain any type of asset. If you<br />

have minor children, the trust can provide<br />

for support and name a guardian,<br />

giving everyone peace of mind.<br />

Set Up a Family Foundation to<br />

Support Charity<br />

Another step to take that your<br />

family can be a part of is a family foundation,<br />

that manages funds for your<br />

favorite charities. This is something<br />

the whole family can be a part of, by<br />

selecting charities and deciding how<br />

to make gifts.<br />

Family Discussion About Personal<br />

Effects, Valuables and<br />

Heirlooms<br />

Depending on the age of your<br />

family members, the holidays can be<br />

the perfect time to talk about unique or<br />

sentimental property, and what preferences<br />

there might be. Then when<br />

you make your estate plan, you can<br />

designate those items for each heir, or<br />

you could even give them as gifts now<br />

for the holiday.<br />

Encourage Adult Children to<br />

Make Their Own Estate Plan<br />

Another gift that you can make is<br />

to offer to help your adult children to<br />

make their own estate plan, and even<br />

to fund the cost. Sometimes younger<br />

adults don’t think about estate planning,<br />

but at a minimum they should<br />

have an advance health care directive,<br />

which is essential for unexpected illness<br />

or injury.<br />

Cash Gifts<br />

You may also want to take advantage<br />

of the annual gift tax exclusion of<br />

$15,000 per family member, which is<br />

free from any gift tax. So, instead of<br />

leaving all of your resources in your estate,<br />

you can start to distribute it while<br />

you are alive. This can also help your<br />

estate tax planning also by lowering the<br />

overall value of your estate.<br />

If you have questions about giving<br />

the gift of estate planning this holiday<br />

season, please contact the attorneys<br />

at Shoup Legal, A Professional Law<br />

Corporation, at 951-445-4114 or www.<br />

ShoupLegal.com.<br />

SHOUPLEGAL.COM<br />

LEGAL<br />

by by<br />

Andrea Steve Fillingim Shoup<br />

“<br />

If you are trying to think of the perfect<br />

gift for your family this year, you might<br />

consider making an estate plan or<br />

taking other generous steps. When<br />

you make a simple estate plan you<br />

ensure your family’s future and<br />

well-being, and that is a gift that will<br />

keep giving for many years.


<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

11<br />

Do You Own an Inactive Business? Is it Time<br />

to Close it Before the End of the Year?<br />

Esther Phahla,<br />

CPA, CTS, MST<br />

With the end of the year fast approaching,<br />

it’s time to dissolve any<br />

inactive business to avoid having to pay<br />

extra fees and paperwork for <strong>20</strong>21. When<br />

a business entity is no longer needed, has<br />

completed its business dealings, has completed<br />

its job in a foreign State, or even if<br />

it was never used for anything, it is very<br />

important that it follows the legal steps<br />

in “winding itself up” as a legal entity<br />

through dissolution or cancellation or if<br />

it is a foreign entity through withdrawal.<br />

All corporations, limited-liability<br />

companies, limited partnerships, limited-liability<br />

partnerships and other business<br />

entities are legal entities which can<br />

only be dissolved through formal action,<br />

not by a letter or phone call. You remain<br />

liable for all taxes, assessments, fines,<br />

penalties and interest until you receive a<br />

certificate of dissolution from the Secretary<br />

of State.<br />

Here are some of the requirements to<br />

legally dissolve a business with the IRS,<br />

State and Local authorities:<br />

1. Hold a vote to dissolve the business:<br />

If the business was operating as a<br />

corporation or limited liability company<br />

(LLC), the shareholders or members need<br />

to approve the formal dissolution of the<br />

business. The first step is to hold a meeting<br />

to vote on shutting down the business;<br />

the final vote needs to be recorded in the<br />

meeting minutes.<br />

• For corporations: Two-thirds of the<br />

voting shares need to agree to close the<br />

business. If shares were never issued,<br />

then the corporation’s board of directors<br />

need to agree.<br />

• For LLCs: Specific rules vary by state<br />

and can be found in the state’s Limited<br />

Liability Company Act. Or, if you<br />

specified a dissolution procedure in<br />

your operating agreement, you’ll need<br />

to follow that procedure.<br />

2. File Articles of Dissolution<br />

paperwork with the state: After the<br />

members, shareholders or board of directors<br />

vote to dissolve the business, the<br />

LLC or corporation will need to file the<br />

Articles of Dissolution or Certificate of<br />

Termination with the Secretary of State’s<br />

office wherever the LLC or corporation<br />

was formed.<br />

In addition, if you filed a foreign<br />

qualification to operate in another state,<br />

you’ll also need to close these foreign<br />

qualifications. To do so, you’ll need to<br />

file paperwork, such as, Certificate of<br />

Surrender of Right to Transact Intrastate<br />

Business, with that state’s secretary of<br />

state office.<br />

3. Settle all debts: Before you can<br />

distribute assets among members or<br />

shareholders and put money in your own<br />

pocket, you need to settle any outstanding<br />

business debts. If your business owes<br />

any vendors, those accounts need to be<br />

settled and paid.<br />

4. Collect accounts receivable:<br />

You should work to collect on any past<br />

due invoices before announcing you’ll<br />

be shutting down the business. It will<br />

be difficult to collect after it’s known<br />

the business will close. If necessary, an<br />

effective strategy is to offer a discount on<br />

any outstanding bills in order to collect<br />

as much as possible.<br />

5. File Final Payroll Tax Returns:<br />

If you had employees, submit the payroll<br />

tax returns after you have paid them their<br />

final wages and salaries.<br />

6. Submit Final State Sales Tax<br />

Forms: If you collected sales tax from<br />

your customers, find out what your state<br />

tax agency requirements are in order to<br />

close your tax account. Submit your final<br />

state sales tax forms with the tax that you<br />

have collected from your customers.<br />

7. File the final tax return: When<br />

a business closes, it needs to notify the<br />

IRS. For LLCs and corporations, this is<br />

typically done by checking “final return”<br />

on the final tax return. In addition, the<br />

business will need to report shareholder<br />

allocations and losses for members on<br />

Schedule K-1.<br />

8. Close all business permits and<br />

licenses: Another important step toward<br />

dissolving a business is to notify the local<br />

business authorities and cancel any business<br />

permits. If you don’t cancel these<br />

licenses, they’ll still be expected to be<br />

paid any associated fees.<br />

9. Distribute the remaining assets:<br />

After taxes, debts and final payrolls have<br />

been paid, the business distributes the<br />

remaining money and assets among the<br />

business owners. LLCs distribute money<br />

and assets to members according to everyone’s<br />

proportional ownership share.<br />

Corporations distribute money and assets<br />

to shareholders based on the number of<br />

shares owned.<br />

By following these steps, you can<br />

properly dissolve a business with the<br />

state and IRS. If you have already moved<br />

on from the business, you should close<br />

it out before the end of the year to avoid<br />

having to pay unnecessary fees in <strong>20</strong>21.<br />

Esther Phahla is a Certified Public<br />

Accountant and Certified Tax Strategist<br />

in Temecula. She is the Author of tax<br />

planning books: “ Why Didn’t My CPA<br />

Tell Me That” and “10 Most Expensive<br />

Tax Mistakes That Cost Business Owners<br />

THOUSANDS”. She also holds a Master’s<br />

of Science in Taxation. She can be<br />

reached at (951) 514-2652 or visit www.<br />

estherphahlacpa.com


THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

12 www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

Hope for the Holidays<br />

Loma Linda University (LLU) Children’s<br />

Hospital is committed to keeping<br />

children healing, healthy and happy, no<br />

matter where they are in their healthcare<br />

journey. With 343 beds, our Children’s<br />

Hospital treats nearly 100,000 children<br />

from across Southern California each<br />

year, restoring them to health regardless<br />

of their family’s ability to pay for services.<br />

Our world-class child healthcare<br />

services help kids of all ages live their<br />

best life.<br />

LLU Children’s Hospital is home<br />

to the 84-bed Neonatal Intensive Care<br />

Unit, one of the largest in the country,<br />

providing delicate, specialized care to<br />

the tiniest of patients. Loma Linda University<br />

Children’s Health is the pioneer<br />

of infant heart transplantation which was<br />

first performed here in 1984. A major<br />

teaching facility in Southern California,<br />

LLU Children’s Health is dedicated to<br />

teaching the pediatricians and pediatric<br />

specialists of the future.<br />

Named a Top Children’s Hospital<br />

in <strong>20</strong>17, <strong>20</strong>18 and <strong>20</strong>19 by the Leapfrog<br />

Group, LLU Children’s Health is<br />

committed to quality care and safety in<br />

all aspects of care that we provide. Our<br />

award-winning healthcare and ongoing<br />

commitment to quality service make us<br />

one of the top children’s hospitals in<br />

the country.<br />

LLU Children’s Hospital continues<br />

the healing ministry of Christ, focusing<br />

on the physical, mental, emotional, and<br />

spiritual needs of children and their<br />

families. We desire to be a champion for<br />

children by bringing world-class healthcare<br />

to every child under our watchful<br />

care. Through valued professionals,<br />

staff, community partners, and friends,<br />

we seek to enhance the lives of our<br />

community’s children by delivering on<br />

the promise of a healthier future today.<br />

We are here to make sure the spirits<br />

of the children we care for are joyful and<br />

their hearts are restored with innocence.<br />

From well-check visits to hospital stays,<br />

our commitment to children’s health<br />

and happiness will always remain our<br />

priority.<br />

We’ve provided lifesaving pediatric<br />

care for decades, thanks to the generosity<br />

of our philanthropic supporters. By<br />

giving to our LLU Children’s Hospital<br />

Foundation, our donors help us continue<br />

to provide outstanding, whole-child care<br />

at LLU Children’s Hospital. With their<br />

ongoing support, we can sustain our<br />

vision of being a champion for children<br />

under our watchful care.<br />

Pediatric cancer and other childhood<br />

diseases don’t take a break during the<br />

holidays. This <strong>December</strong>, thousands of<br />

children will come through the doors<br />

of LLU Children’s Hospital. You can<br />

make a difference during the holiday<br />

season and all year long for these special<br />

patients.<br />

Please help us provide hope for families<br />

during the holidays, a time of year<br />

that should be the most wonderful. Your<br />

gift will help thousands of children as<br />

they fight against illnesses, traumas and<br />

other healthcare needs, and bring them<br />

and their families Hope for the Holidays.<br />

Visit giving.lluh.org/Holiday<br />

LLUCH.<br />

Please help us provide hope for families<br />

during the holidays, a time of year that should<br />

be the most wonderful.


<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

13<br />

Save Money through the Holidays with<br />

EVMWD’s Aquahawk System<br />

Money can be tight around the holidays<br />

and every bit of savings counts!<br />

EVMWD is here to help you make the<br />

most of this holiday season. In addition<br />

to providing financial assistance and<br />

payment plans, EVMWD provides<br />

resources to help customers reduce<br />

water waste and save money on their<br />

bill. EVMWD’s free Aquahawk system<br />

enables ratepayers to monitor water<br />

use, set alerts, and more with just a<br />

few clicks.<br />

By providing alerts when excessive<br />

or unusual usage occurs, Aquahawk<br />

helps individuals and families discover<br />

leaks and identify when hoses or faucets<br />

are accidentally left on. With this<br />

resource, you no longer have to worry<br />

about coming home from vacation to<br />

find a flooded yard and expensive water<br />

bill! Utilizing the Aquahawk system has<br />

made a significant difference for many<br />

ratepayers.<br />

The Hallahans—two EVMWD<br />

customers—recently experienced the<br />

importance of water alerts firsthand.<br />

EVMWD’s Aquahawk system flagged<br />

excessive use at their home, showing<br />

that water had been running constantly<br />

and had dispensed more than 460 gallons<br />

over a 24-hour period. Upon receiving<br />

this alert, EVMWD staff visited<br />

the Hallahans to assist in identifying the<br />

source of the problem: a hose that had<br />

simply been left on in the backyard.<br />

“I am so grateful that EVMWD<br />

contacted us,” said Sandy, the Hallahans’<br />

daughter. “After learning more<br />

about EVMWD’s Aquahawk system, I<br />

plan to use it for my parents’ home and<br />

the other homes I manage in this area.<br />

It is a great tool!”<br />

Because of Aquahawk, the Hallahans<br />

were protected from further<br />

flooding, water waste, and expense.<br />

Next time a hose is left on, the system<br />

will notify them and help them to avoid<br />

water waste.<br />

The Aquahawk system is simple to<br />

set up on your smart phone or via email<br />

and you can receive alerts as soon as<br />

an issue arises. EVMWD encourages<br />

all customers to take advantage of this<br />

resource.<br />

Log on to www.onlinebiller.com/evmwd/<br />

to sign up for Aquahawk and save<br />

money through the holidays!<br />

As the Seasons Change, so do our<br />

Services and Program Offerings<br />

Michelle’s place is heading into this<br />

holiday season with some major GOALS<br />

on how we plan to help families impacted<br />

by cancer.<br />

November: Provided 302 Thanksgiving<br />

Meals to families<br />

<strong>December</strong>: Provide 155 Children<br />

Santa Sacks filled with toys & goodies<br />

This is almost twice the amount we<br />

gave last year! We are blessed with some<br />

amazing angels that help us do this. People<br />

just like you and me who want to help<br />

make someone’s holiday a little brighter.<br />

It’s really our favorite time of year!<br />

We love to see our clients and we love<br />

giving them something special during a<br />

particularly tough time (and then there’s<br />

COVID...) You can help too... see below<br />

for more information on how.<br />

My friend Jami McNees is at it<br />

again... I want to share with you another<br />

wonderful book she created. Jami made<br />

this book in honor of caregivers of cancer<br />

patients and composed a book full<br />

of meaningful quotes and sayings by<br />

caregivers themselves. We all know that<br />

without those who love and care for us,<br />

we would not make it through the most<br />

difficult times. This makes for the perfect<br />

gift for your loved ones. And all proceeds<br />

benefit Michelle’s Place.<br />

I know this is a tough time for many.<br />

This year has presented challenges only<br />

nightmares are made of. But today I<br />

choose to think of all that I am thankful<br />

for. I am thankful for this amazing team I<br />

have the pleasure to work with each day.<br />

These ladies can ‘pivot’ like no other!<br />

The passion, diligence, strength and<br />

sense of humor that I have seen in the last<br />

year from this team is nothing less than<br />

phenomenal. I am so proud of them. I am<br />

thankful that I have my health, a home, a<br />

loving husband, my mom, my kids and<br />

their boyfriends, my family and good<br />

friends that keep me laughing through<br />

it all. I am thankful for all of you. For<br />

our clients, you inspire me daily to work<br />

harder and do more. To those that read<br />

my newsletters, send messages to say hi,<br />

volunteer our time and those who donate<br />

because ‘you know we need it.” Thank<br />

you. I wish you all a wonderful Thanksgiving.<br />

It may look a little different this<br />

year, but whatever your Thanksgiving<br />

looks like, I wish you health, happiness,<br />

good food and maybe a zoom call with<br />

family! Hugs to each of you!<br />

Holiday Sponsorships Available!<br />

Would you or your business like to help<br />

us make the holidays extra special this<br />

year? Click on the sponsorship opportunities<br />

below to read more...<br />

You can feed a family of four for just<br />

$60! Thanksgiving Sponsorship - Christmas<br />

Sponsorship<br />

To purchase a sponsorship, you can<br />

contact Jennifer at Jennifer@michellesplace.org<br />

or (951) 239-4734.


THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

14 www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

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<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

15<br />

Personal Umbrella Liability Insurance<br />

Life is unpredictable, and as much<br />

as you plan, there’s always something<br />

around the bend that never crossed<br />

your worried mind.<br />

If the unexpected occurs, do you<br />

have enough liability limits to protect<br />

your and your family’s assets the way<br />

you want?<br />

If you were found liable for an<br />

accident, would your current liability<br />

limits cover the judgment against you,<br />

or could your assets be at risk?<br />

With a Personal Umbrella policy,<br />

you’ll have additional liability limits<br />

over and above those provided by<br />

your underlying policies. Your assets,<br />

as well as your future earnings, are<br />

covered.<br />

Umbrella Insurance Explained<br />

To get a better sense of what<br />

Umbrella insurance is and how it<br />

would work, it helps to think about<br />

it in action.<br />

Say you’re held liable for causing<br />

a car accident with multiple vehicles,<br />

and the cost to cover the damages and<br />

injuries is $650,000. However, the<br />

liability limits on your Auto policy<br />

are only $500,000.<br />

In this case, your insurance would<br />

pay only $500,000 for the entire accident,<br />

and you would be responsible<br />

for the remaining $150,000 out of<br />

your own pocket!<br />

With a Personal Umbrella policy,<br />

however, you could extend your<br />

liability limits beyond the maximum<br />

provided by your underlying policies.<br />

In this case, an Umbrella policy would<br />

provide liability limits above the<br />

$500,000 limit of your Auto policy,<br />

up to the limit you choose for your<br />

Umbrella policy (typically anywhere<br />

“<br />

INSURANCE<br />

by by<br />

Craig Steve Davis Fillingim<br />

If the unexpected occurs, do<br />

you have enough liability limits to<br />

protect your and your family’s<br />

assets the way you want?<br />

If you were found liable for an<br />

accident, would your current<br />

liability limits cover the judgment<br />

against you, or could your assets<br />

be at risk?<br />

from $1 million up to $5 million<br />

in coverage). In other words, you<br />

wouldn’t be left paying the remaining<br />

$150,000.<br />

Other Benefits<br />

Besides providing increased<br />

liability limits, a Personal Umbrella<br />

policy can fill gaps in your coverage<br />

with added benefits, such as:<br />

• Coverage for claims that may not be<br />

covered by your underlying Homeowners,<br />

Auto, or Watercraft liability<br />

policies, such as libel, slander, or<br />

defamation of character.<br />

• Coverage anywhere in the world.<br />

• Coverage for defense costs and attorney<br />

fees associated with claims<br />

against you that are covered by your<br />

Personal Umbrella policy, but not<br />

by your primary policies.<br />

Talk to your local insurance<br />

professional about adding a Personal<br />

Umbrella policy to your insurance<br />

portfolio.<br />

Craig Davis is an agent for Farmers<br />

Insurance and the owner of Craig Davis<br />

Family Insurance located at 27645<br />

Jefferson, Suite 113, in Temecula. He<br />

may be reached at (951) 699-1776.<br />

cdavis@farmersagent.com<br />

Hired someone new?<br />

Launched a new product?<br />

Won an award?<br />

Invented something?<br />

Re-opened?<br />

Have a new service?<br />

Share your news with us!<br />

The Valley Business Journal<br />

publishertvbj@verizon.net


www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

16 <strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong>


<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

Online Eye “Exams”<br />

by Pat Utnehmer<br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

17<br />

The convenience of online shopping<br />

is a big-time saver for many people this<br />

time of year. Online technology has literally<br />

changed the world and how people<br />

do business. Why not get an eye exam online?<br />

What is an online eye “exam”? Are<br />

you really obtaining an “exam” online?<br />

A refraction determines the lens<br />

power you need to compensate for<br />

any refractive error (nearsightedness,<br />

farsightedness or astigmatism), as well<br />

as the curvature of the eye to prescribe<br />

glasses or contact lenses. Online eye<br />

tests attempt to replace one element of<br />

an eye examination, the refraction, in<br />

order to yield a prescription for glasses<br />

or contacts. It is not unlike taking a blood<br />

pressure reading at a kiosk and expecting<br />

a prescription; the reading does not provide<br />

sufficient information to determine<br />

a patient’s needed course of therapy.<br />

The refraction performed by online eye<br />

tests is only one of many tests performed<br />

during an eye examination, and taken<br />

by itself, does not provide sufficient<br />

information regarding the treatment of<br />

a patient, including the prescription of<br />

glasses or contact lenses.<br />

Are online eye tests accurate? - Online<br />

vision tests often give inaccurate or<br />

misleading information, and can misinform<br />

consumers that can delay essential,<br />

sight-saving treatment. Comprehensive<br />

eye exams with your doctor of optometry<br />

are one of the most important, preventive<br />

ways to preserve vision, and the only way<br />

to accurately assess eye health, diagnose<br />

an eye disorder or disease, and determine<br />

the need for corrective lenses.<br />

Why should you have a comprehensive<br />

eye examination by a doctor<br />

of optometry? Personalized comprehensive<br />

eye examinations by a doctor of<br />

optometry are an important part of general<br />

preventive health care. In addition,<br />

changes in refractive status can be an<br />

underlying symptom of a number of eye<br />

or systemic conditions. Systemic diseases<br />

can also be detected through comprehensive<br />

eye exams. In fact, 240,000 cases<br />

of diabetes were first detected by an eye<br />

doctor in <strong>20</strong>14.<br />

What tests are performed during<br />

an in-person comprehensive eye<br />

exam? - If serious conditions are left<br />

undiagnosed for long periods of time and<br />

a patient skips office visits with an eye<br />

care professional, the chance for identifying<br />

an effective treatment lessens and<br />

could lead to irreversible vision loss or<br />

worsening of a systemic disease. That<br />

is why a comprehensive adult eye and<br />

vision examination may include, but is<br />

not limited to, the following tests:<br />

Patient and family health history,<br />

visual acuity measurement, preliminary<br />

tests, refractive status, eye health examination<br />

and dilation and additional tests<br />

as needed that may include digital retinal<br />

imaging tests, ultrasounds of the eye<br />

and automated visual field technology<br />

may also be used to detect and diagnose<br />

serious eye and health problems. Click<br />

here for more information about comprehensive<br />

eye exams.<br />

Does the American Optometric<br />

Association (AOA) recommend the use<br />

of online vision testing apps? - Medical<br />

technology can be a powerful tool when<br />

used properly by a licensed professional.<br />

The AOA and doctors of optometry are<br />

supportive of technology that helps patients,<br />

but there stands a growing concern<br />

over the claims that a vision screening<br />

conducted through an app can replace<br />

an in-person, comprehensive eye exam.<br />

Eye exams uncover vision issues as well<br />

as a multitude of health problems like<br />

diabetes. Telemedicine cannot be held to<br />

the same standards as an in-person visit.<br />

“The AOA’s primary concern is that<br />

patient health and safety is at risk due to<br />

lack of understanding as to what services<br />

an online vision test company actually<br />

offers and can deliver to consumers,” said<br />

Steven A. Loomis, O.D., AOA past president.<br />

“When a patient comes in to the<br />

office for an examination we do so much<br />

more than just update a prescription for<br />

glasses or contacts. Our tests are specialized<br />

for the needs of each individual<br />

and allow us to check the overall health<br />

of our patients. By analyzing images of<br />

the back of the eye, for example, we can<br />

see how a patient’s blood vessels are<br />

functioning which can signify serious<br />

conditions like hypertension that often<br />

go undetected. The eyes are the window<br />

to your well-being and their care cannot<br />

be left to a computer and a smart phone.”<br />

The AOA has voiced its health and<br />

safety concerns to the Food and Drug<br />

Administration (FDA) requesting legal<br />

action against an online vision test being<br />

marketed by Opternative, Inc. without the<br />

type of testing and pre-market approvals<br />

frequently required of new medical device<br />

technology. In a detailed complaint<br />

submitted to the FDA in April, the AOA<br />

challenges claims made by Opternative<br />

about its product’s capabilities, and calls<br />

for enforcement action to remove it from<br />

the market until it can be shown to meet<br />

all appropriate Federal requirements<br />

for medical devices under the Food,<br />

Drug and Cosmetic Act, including those<br />

for safety and effectiveness, as determined<br />

by Federal officials.<br />

Are online vision screening test<br />

available in all states? - Ten states<br />

including South Carolina, Alabama,<br />

Georgia, Indiana, Maine, Michigan,<br />

Mississippi, Nebraska, Ohio and West<br />

Virginia have enacted critical patient<br />

protection safeguards that reinforce the<br />

benefits of in-person, comprehensive eye<br />

examinations.<br />

Patients who’ve been harmed or<br />

received erroneous prescriptions from<br />

an online vision test are urged to file a<br />

claim/report with FDA Med Watch at<br />

http://www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch.<br />

For a real world comparison of an online<br />

“exam” (Opternative) verses the results<br />

the patient received at an in-person exam<br />

at an eye doctor’s office see this article:<br />

https://www.wzzm13.com/article/life/<br />

wellness/healthy-you/a-closer-look-atonline-eye-exams-questions-of-legality/69-<strong>20</strong>1516298<br />

Visit us on Facebook:<br />

@ thevalleybusinessjournal


www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

18 <strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong>


<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

19<br />

Phishing – There are Always<br />

More Phish in the Sea<br />

TECHNOLOGY<br />

by<br />

by<br />

James<br />

Steve<br />

Laszko<br />

Fillingim<br />

“Oh, an email from Microsoft?<br />

That looks important.” Once you’ve<br />

opened the email the situation looks<br />

even more dire. “My account has been<br />

compromised?!” The email presents an<br />

easy solution: Microsoft, the ever helpful<br />

and friendly company has stopped the<br />

malicious actor in their tracks, and only<br />

needs you to login to verify your account<br />

credentials. “Easy enough…” Except it<br />

isn’t, the scenario outlined above is just<br />

one example of a scam that has become<br />

commonplace—phishing.<br />

The term phishing originated in<br />

the hacker-spaces in the early days of<br />

the Internet, and comes from the idea<br />

of hackers trolling for users that would<br />

allow their accounts to be compromised,<br />

similar to the actual practice of fishing.<br />

Since those early days of compromised<br />

America Online accounts, phishing<br />

emails have become much more sophisticated.<br />

Below, we will outline six of the<br />

most dangerous types of phishing and<br />

email scams you’re likely to run into.<br />

Artifical Intelligence-based phishing<br />

apps: This is a technique generally<br />

only deployed by nation-states (think<br />

Russia, North Korea, Iran), and utilizes<br />

a sophisticated artificial intelligence to<br />

tailor phishing messages specifically to<br />

their targets. This might mean impersonating<br />

someone the target knows using<br />

knowledge of specific events or a similar<br />

writing style. By building phishing<br />

attempts into automated systems, malicious<br />

actors make it easier to pinpoint<br />

targets that can be monetized quickly.<br />

Use of imposter domains: Bad<br />

actors attempting to impersonate a site<br />

like PayPal or Chase will often craft a<br />

login page that looks very accurate to<br />

the real one, but a closer examination of<br />

the website address the page is hosted on<br />

would show that it is illegitimate. Instead<br />

of logging into chase.com you may be<br />

directed to something like chasee.com.<br />

Deepfake audio: Threat actors have<br />

begun making phone calls using voice<br />

deepfakes<br />

(a very accurate approximation of a<br />

real person using software) to impersonate<br />

corporate officers requesting things<br />

like wire transfers. Since CEOs and<br />

CFOs increasingly appear on YouTube or<br />

TED talks, audio samples can be readily<br />

gleaned from these sources to help facilitate<br />

a malicious audio doppelganger.<br />

Sextortion: This has become increasingly<br />

common—an email will be<br />

received indicating that the threat actor<br />

is in possession of photographic or video<br />

evidence of the user engaged in embarrassing<br />

activities. The email will go on to<br />

threaten to release that video to Facebook<br />

friends or the wider Internet if a ransom<br />

of some sort isn’t paid. This scam isn’t<br />

particularly sophisticated, and generally<br />

relies on website breaches that release<br />

lists of email addresses and passwords<br />

on the dark web.<br />

Impersonating supervisors: This<br />

scam is also becoming more and more<br />

common, increasing 274% in the past<br />

three years. Sometimes referred to as<br />

“spear phishing,” a threat actor will send<br />

an email to an employee purporting to<br />

be from a supervisor—for instance the<br />

email may say that it’s from the CFO<br />

and ask the controller to wire money<br />

immediately to an account for a client or<br />

vendor. Nearly two-thirds of employees<br />

say they’re most likely to open an email<br />

from their supervisor before any other,<br />

and threat actors utilize this sense of<br />

urgency to overcome suspicion of the<br />

requests being made.<br />

SSL certificates: SSL stands for<br />

Secure Socket Layer, and, in short, is the<br />

standard technology for keeping an Internet<br />

connection secure and safeguarding<br />

any sensitive data sent between two<br />

systems. For many years the majority of<br />

phishing websites were unable to obtain<br />

an SSL certificate, meaning that they<br />

were on an http:// connection instead of<br />

https://. Because of this, many users understood<br />

that websites that didn’t display<br />

the little lock icon in the browser were<br />

unsafe to visit. A lot of changes have<br />

occurred that decrease the requirements<br />

needed to obtain an SSL certificate.<br />

Many phishing websites are now procuring<br />

SSL certificates to facilitate an<br />

https:// connection.<br />

What does all this mean for you? As<br />

with many things, the best defense is a<br />

good offense, and the best offense in the<br />

case of phishing emails is education and<br />

suspicion. Microsoft will never send you<br />

an email requesting that you login to a<br />

website to validate your credentials, the<br />

same is true of your banking institution.<br />

An email from the CEO requesting $5000<br />

in Amazon gift-cards should be treated<br />

with a good deal of skepticism and<br />

require a confirmation over the phone.<br />

When in doubt, seek assistance from<br />

your IT provider or make a follow up<br />

phone call to whomever is asking you to<br />

perform a suspicious action. As attackers<br />

improve their methods for separating<br />

people and the companies they work<br />

for from their money, so to must your<br />

education on scammer tradecraft. All the<br />

firewalls, antivirus, and antispam technology<br />

in the world cannot hold a candle<br />

to someone armed with knowledge of<br />

threat actor tradecraft and a healthy dose<br />

of skepticism.<br />

Mythos Technology is an IT consulting<br />

and management firm that provides<br />

Managed Technology Services including<br />

hosted cloud solutions. For more information,<br />

please visit www.mythostech.<br />

com or call (951) 813-2672.<br />

Get<br />

MAXIMUM<br />

Exposure for<br />

YOUR BRAND<br />

Contact us for advertising opportunities<br />

in The Valley Business Journal.<br />

publishertvbj@verizon.net<br />

(951) 461-0400


THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

<strong>20</strong> www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

The Definition of Insanity<br />

REAL ESTATE<br />

by by<br />

Gene Steve Wunderlich Fillingim<br />

Let’s start with congratulations to all<br />

the recent election victors. Thanks as well<br />

to those who stepped up, gave it a run and<br />

came up short. Thanks for volunteering<br />

to be of service to our communities. A tip<br />

of the hat to all us survivors of another<br />

political season as well. There’s still a<br />

lot we don’t know about the outcome as<br />

of this writing, but it appears that while<br />

California residents justifiably and loudly<br />

complain about how the state is being<br />

run, they sent all the same lawmakers<br />

back to Sacramento, apparently expecting<br />

a different result, so…<br />

Housing continues to perform well<br />

as across our region we posted another<br />

month-over-month increase in sales, up<br />

3% (1,168 / 1,<strong>20</strong>6) and up 18% over last<br />

October (992). That not only catches us<br />

up to last year-to-date (9,380) but puts<br />

us ahead of <strong>20</strong>19 by 2% (9,543). Pretty<br />

amazing considering the cliff the market<br />

tumbled off back in March. From our<br />

low point in May (695), we’ve averaged<br />

1,145 sales every month since. Pending<br />

sales dipped 7% coming into November<br />

so we can expect some normal seasonal<br />

slowing ahead, but we should still finish<br />

well ahead of last year’s pace.<br />

Pushed by this heavy demand, shrinking<br />

inventory, and record low interest rates,<br />

median prices continue to appreciate,<br />

up 1% month-over-month ($444,500 /<br />

$446,486), but up a stellar 12% over last<br />

October ($391,433). The forecast for <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

median appreciation was pegged at around<br />

3% - 4% but year-to-date we’re running<br />

a solid 8% ahead of <strong>20</strong>19 ($385,150 /<br />

$418,429). After a slow start in January,<br />

Temecula’s median price has exceeded<br />

$500,000 every month, venturing as high<br />

as $555,000 in August. Driven by 17 sales<br />

in excess of $1,000,000, Temecula posted<br />

an average price of $621,365 last month.<br />

Not to be left too far behind, Murrieta had<br />

16 sales in excess of $1,000,000, their 2nd<br />

month above $500,000 median and an<br />

average price of $569,859. Canyon Lake,<br />

Menifee, and Lake Elsinore each posted a<br />

$1,000,000+ sale last month as well.<br />

Meanwhile our inventory of homes for<br />

sale contracted by another 4% last month,<br />

down to just 855 homes across ALL price<br />

ranges. That’s down 61% from last October<br />

when buyers had 2,<strong>20</strong>5 home to select<br />

from. We also lost another 3 days off the<br />

inventory – down to .7 of a month from<br />

.8 last month. That’s literally 3 weeks of<br />

inventory when a normal market is 6-7<br />

months. Homes are languishing on the<br />

market for just 6.2 days on average whereas<br />

last month they were sticking around for a<br />

solid week. That’s down 76% from a year<br />

ago when the average home stayed on the<br />

market for 25.4 days. Aside from being<br />

a hyper-competitive market right now,<br />

some of that reduction in days-on-market<br />

is due in part to a new practice in our MLS<br />

allowing agents to show ‘Coming Soon’<br />

listings. This gives aggressive buyers a<br />

few days’ notice of an upcoming property,<br />

providing a jump on the market resulting<br />

in quicker sales.<br />

How can you sell 1,<strong>20</strong>6 homes when<br />

you only have 855 available? Absorption!<br />

In addition to what’s on the market, we’re<br />

selling virtually every new listing that<br />

comes on the market (99%) in less than<br />

a week.<br />

The California Association of Realtors®<br />

just provided their update and<br />

forecast during what would normally<br />

have been our annual meeting and there’s<br />

some fascinating info in it. In summary,<br />

the trends we’re seeing locally are being<br />

repeated across the state with sales and<br />

prices both up to record levels. Inventory<br />

is also sagging statewide – down to 2<br />

months, and properties are only staying<br />

on the market 11 days on average. As a<br />

result, median price hit an all-time high<br />

for the state of $706,900, which negatively<br />

impacts housing affordability across the region.<br />

Yet in spite of declining affordability,<br />

the share of first-time homebuyers rose to<br />

38.4%, exceeding the long run average of<br />

37.2 for the first time since <strong>20</strong>10.<br />

Here’s some other startling, but<br />

unsurprising, factoids of the market. In<br />

<strong>20</strong>19, and estimated again in <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong>, 30%<br />

of sellers were leaving the state. That’s<br />

the highest number since <strong>20</strong>05 when 31%<br />

hightailed it for greener pastures. Another<br />

36% are moving within the same county<br />

and 18% to another county. LA County<br />

lost an estimated <strong>20</strong>0K residents to the<br />

IE between <strong>20</strong>10-<strong>20</strong>18, their first choice,<br />

with another 80K moving to OC, 60K<br />

to Texas, etc. So if LA County residents<br />

are increasingly moving inland as their<br />

first choice, where are inland sellers<br />

going? Not within California, that’s for<br />

sure. First choice is Arizona (apparently<br />

taking their political habits with them),<br />

then Texas, Utah, Nevada, Georgia, and<br />

so forth.<br />

While most cities in our region boast<br />

homeownership rates of 60% - 70%,<br />

46 of California’s largest cities are now<br />

majority renter cities with Santa Monica<br />

leading at 72% renters, LA and SFO at<br />

63%, and even San Diego and Escondido<br />

at 54% and 51% respectively. Those cities<br />

have created their own problems with<br />

restrictive and pricey housing policies,<br />

but they must also govern a majority<br />

renter city differently than we do. Where<br />

there is no pride-of-ownership, quality of<br />

life, education and public safety assume<br />

different priorities – hence the return of<br />

rent control initiatives every couple of<br />

years.<br />

So, hang in there – this bumpy ride’s<br />

not quite over yet but there may a light at<br />

the end of the tunnel. Of course, it’s <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

so that may just be another train coming.<br />

Gene Wunderlich is Vice President,<br />

Government Affairs for Southwest Riverside<br />

County Association of Realtors.<br />

If you have questions on the market,<br />

please contact me at GAD@srcar.org.


<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

Temecula Valley Museum Announces<br />

Winning Entries from 13th Annual Ralph<br />

Love Plein Air Competition<br />

21<br />

The Temecula Valley, with beautiful<br />

scenery and a quaint Old Town,<br />

was the perfect inspiration for artists<br />

participating in the 13th Annual Ralph<br />

Love Plein Air Competition. Local<br />

artists were invited by the City of<br />

Temecula.<br />

Community Services Department<br />

to spend one-week painting works of<br />

art inspired by local scenes. Nine participating<br />

artists submitted original art<br />

works for a chance to win a prize in the<br />

13th Annual Plein Air Competition.<br />

This competition is held annually in<br />

honor of renowned Temecula artist<br />

Ralph Love (pictured at left).<br />

The anonymous, unsigned pieces<br />

were judged at the Temecula Valley<br />

Museum by esteemed judges.<br />

Geoffrey Allen (Best of Show <strong>20</strong>19<br />

Winner)<br />

Bonnie Martland (artist and former<br />

art teacher at Temecula Unified School<br />

District)<br />

Fred Lamb (Fred Lamb Graphic<br />

Design and former art gallery owner)<br />

Tony Moromarco (artist, instructor,<br />

and owner of Bigfoot Graphics)<br />

Eric Levine (Community Services<br />

Commission Chair)<br />

Dale Borgeson (Community Services<br />

Commissioner) and special guest<br />

judge<br />

Evelyn Norris (the late Ralph Love’s<br />

daughter). Scorecards were carefully<br />

tabulated to determine the winners.<br />

Eighteen artists participated for<br />

<strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong>, submitting 45 stunning pieces of<br />

artwork, ranging from oil, watercolor,<br />

and mixed media.<br />

This year, due to COVID-19 restrictions,<br />

we are unable to hold the<br />

Awards Ceremony, however, the original<br />

artwork can be viewed online any<br />

time on the TemeculaValleyMuseum.<br />

org website.<br />

Dear Third District Resident<br />

by Supervisor Chuck Washington<br />

The Riverside County Third District<br />

Supervisor’s Office is working remotely<br />

to answer constituent questions about<br />

property taxes, COVID-19 restrictions<br />

and mandates, obtaining benefits and<br />

other County-related matters.<br />

Staff members are available Monday<br />

through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.<br />

Please call 951-955-1030 or send an<br />

email to d3email@rivco.org, and someone<br />

will be in touch with you promptly.<br />

You may also visit our Facebook and<br />

Instagram pages (@supervisorchuckwashington)<br />

and Twitter page (@Sup-<br />

Washington).<br />

Just as a reminder, the weekly bulletin<br />

has transitioned to a biweekly bulletin.<br />

The next one will be released Wednesday,<br />

Dec. 9.<br />

The best<br />

WAY<br />

to<br />

“<br />

Eighteen artists<br />

participated for <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong>,<br />

submitting 45 stunning<br />

pieces of artwork, ranging<br />

from oil, watercolor, and<br />

mixed media.<br />

LAUNCH<br />

See how advertising in<br />

in the Valley Business Journal can help.<br />

publishertvbj@verizon.net<br />

(951) 461-0400


THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

22 www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

Temecula Valley Lexus Breaks Ground on<br />

Luxury Dealership<br />

A brand-new Lexus dealership<br />

is coming to the City of Temecula.<br />

Temecula Valley Lexus started grading<br />

on a 54,383 square foot state of<br />

the art dealership that will be located<br />

on 4.73 acres of land at 4<strong>20</strong>81 DLR<br />

Drive. The dealership will include<br />

rooftop parking, sales, service, parts<br />

and storage.<br />

Temecula Valley Lexus is part of<br />

the ownership family of Temecula<br />

Valley Toyota. Tom Rudnai, President<br />

of Temecula Valley Toyota says,<br />

“We are thrilled to bring Lexus to the<br />

Temecula Valley.<br />

This has been a long process, but<br />

we thank the City and community for<br />

the ongoing support. We look forward<br />

to opening our doors with a brand-new<br />

state of the art facility in the fourth<br />

quarter of <strong>20</strong>21.<br />

The City of Temecula welcomes<br />

Temecula Valley Lexus to the community.<br />

“Here in Temecula, we have<br />

such a community centric group of<br />

Auto Dealers.<br />

Temecula Valley Toyota is definitely<br />

a part of this group. They are<br />

very philanthropic in addition to being<br />

one of the City’s Top 25 Sales Tax<br />

Producers.<br />

We are ecstatic to welcome Temecula<br />

Valley Lexus to the community<br />

and proud that a local dealership is<br />

maintaining ownership.” Says Mayor<br />

Pro Tem Maryann Edwards.<br />

Construction for Temecula Valley<br />

Lexus is estimated to take 11 months<br />

to complete.<br />

Together, Making a Difference<br />

With the holidays approaching and<br />

bringing in some much-needed warmth,<br />

thankfulness and good cheer, we know<br />

nonprofits are working overtime to ensure<br />

that those they serve will experience<br />

some goodwill through this challenging<br />

time. In the “Spirit” of giving, we are<br />

taking the phrase, “it is better to give than<br />

to receive” to heart. The #JDSFamily is<br />

encompassing this feeling and participating<br />

in #GivingTuesday! The national<br />

day of generosity is an opportunity to<br />

positively impact the community and<br />

help those who may need an extra hand.<br />

#GivingTuesday occurs this year on<br />

<strong>December</strong> 1, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving.<br />

It’s a day to acknowledge the<br />

power of giving, volunteerism and simple<br />

acts of kindness. Please join JDS Creative<br />

Academy on this day when communities<br />

and businesses come together to support<br />

the greater good. To support this national<br />

day of giving, start by sharing the good<br />

news of the #GivingTuesday campaign,<br />

help a loved one or neighbor, and if you<br />

are able, make a donation to your favorite<br />

supported cause. Every donation and act<br />

of kindness counts!<br />

As a nonprofit ourselves, there are<br />

several ways to help us that don’t have to<br />

involve a monetary contribution. You can<br />

share JDS Creative Academy’s worthy<br />

cause and follow JDSCA on social media<br />

then like, comment and share. Subscribe<br />

and watch JDSCA’s local news and<br />

information TV shows, Spirit Of Innovation<br />

and SOI Update. Our main show,<br />

Spirit of Innovation is an award-winning<br />

magazine-style news and information<br />

program. Spirit of Innovation is our gift<br />

to the community to be informed and<br />

empowered with local, regional need-toknow<br />

information.<br />

All of us at JDS Creative Academy<br />

are honored that Stromsoe Insurance is<br />

sharing our mission for the month of<br />

<strong>December</strong> in their featured Nonprofitof-the-Month<br />

Program. If you or your<br />

business is in need of insurance, please<br />

consider them. JDSCA is a client of<br />

Stromsoe, and we highly recommend<br />

their services. For every referral that<br />

comes their way, they will donate $<strong>20</strong><br />

to nonprofit JDS Creative Academy!<br />

Call the Stromsoe Insurance Total<br />

Protection Team at (951) 600-5751 or<br />

email insure@siaonline.com for more<br />

information.<br />

Here at JDS Creative Academy, our<br />

purpose is to provide career pathways<br />

and opportunities in visual, performing<br />

and digital arts for youth, teens and<br />

adults. The nonprofit hosts an array of<br />

creative classes for K-12, meeting the<br />

California Education VAPA Code and<br />

vendors with all the Charter Schools in<br />

Southern California. Enrollment for <strong>20</strong>21<br />

classes are open; scriptwriting, backstage<br />

production, acting, musical theatre, fashion<br />

design and photography are offered<br />

virtually and in-person.<br />

JDSCA also has a specifically designed<br />

program to provide services to<br />

adults with Intellectual Developmental<br />

Disabilities. Did you know that in <strong>20</strong>19,<br />

the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported<br />

that only 19.3 percent of persons<br />

with a disability were employed? JDSCA<br />

is determined to make this number grow<br />

and our job-training program works to<br />

do just that. In today’s changing world,<br />

inclusiveness is more vital now than ever<br />

before.<br />

Attending our events is another way<br />

you can support our causes. A great opportunity<br />

to do so is to watch our Willy<br />

Wonka Zoomsical, being sent directly<br />

to your inbox. If we don’t have your<br />

email, subscribe to our newsletter on our<br />

website, www.jdscreativeacademy.org.<br />

Be sure to stay tuned because we have<br />

another production in the works for the<br />

Holidays.<br />

Just announced: DigiFest Temecula<br />

dates! The festival will take place on<br />

April 16, 17, & 18, <strong>20</strong>21. This annual<br />

event will take place virtually and in-person,<br />

if able. This city-wide acclaimed<br />

event is embarking on its fifth year. The<br />

DigiFest Committee is already in planning<br />

sessions and volunteers are always<br />

welcome. Competition submissions<br />

open January 1, <strong>20</strong>21. More information<br />

about JDS Creative Academy events and<br />

DigiFest can be found on their websites,<br />

www.jdscreativeacademy.org and www.<br />

DigiFestTemecula.org.<br />

Everyone at JDSCA looks forward to<br />

“feeling” your kindness on #GivingTuesday.<br />

The nonprofit hopes you will share<br />

how you celebrated and tag #JDSFamily<br />

on social media! This organization believes<br />

that together, we can make a difference.<br />

Whatever your holidays look like,<br />

we hope they are filled with happiness<br />

and health. Cheers and goodwill to all!


<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

TEMECULA VALLEY HOSPITAL STAFF RECEIVES AWARD<br />

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1<br />

Jimmy Moore was known by many<br />

as “Mr. Temecula” for having played a<br />

major role in the City of Temecula incorporation<br />

in 1989. Jimmy was a 29-year<br />

veteran of the U.S. Army who served as a<br />

pilot in the Vietnam War, and was an Icon<br />

within the Temecula Valley Community.<br />

Jimmy was a member of the Kiwanis<br />

Club of Temecula Valley, and they acknowledge<br />

his accomplishments by recognizing<br />

them annually with a “Citizen<br />

of the Year” award in his name.<br />

“Each year our club presents this<br />

award to individuals, community service<br />

organizations or institutions that contributes<br />

to our community in an exceptional<br />

way. The Temecula Valley Hospital staff,<br />

management and facility certainly cover<br />

all three types of past recipients of this<br />

award,” said Mark Ward, President, Kiwanis<br />

Club of Temecula Valley.<br />

“It is an honor to receive this very<br />

special award on behalf of our hospital<br />

staff,” said Darlene Wetton, Chief<br />

Executive Officer of Temecula Valley<br />

Hospital. “Our Temecula Valley Hospital<br />

employees and the Kiwanis Club have<br />

our community at heart in everything<br />

they do. What a wonderful way for our<br />

teams to come together to celebrate Jimmy<br />

Moore’s legacy of our region!”<br />

Please see the attached photo of<br />

Temecula Valley Hospital (TVH) CEO<br />

Darlene Wetton and Temecula Valley<br />

Kiwanis Club.<br />

About Temecula Valley Hospital<br />

Temecula Valley Hospital (TVH),<br />

with a 5 Star Medicare Hospital Compare<br />

rating, brings advanced technology,<br />

innovative programs, patient-centered<br />

and family sensitive care to area residents<br />

featuring 140 private patient rooms.<br />

TVH is the first Universal Health<br />

Services Hospital Emergency Department<br />

in the country to achieve accreditation<br />

from the American College of Emergency<br />

Physicians (ACEP) as a Geriatric<br />

Emergency Department. TVH specializes<br />

in advanced cardiac services, stroke care,<br />

general and surgical specialties, and orthopedics<br />

as a recent Blue Distinction®<br />

Center Designation for Quality in Knee<br />

and Hip Replacement Surgeries.<br />

TVH is nationally recognized for Patient<br />

Safety by the Leapfrog Group, with<br />

a <strong>20</strong>17 Top Hospital Award and seven ‘A’<br />

Grades for Patient Safety.<br />

For more information, please visit<br />

https://www.temeculavalleyhospital.com/<br />

about/news<br />

About Kiwanis Club of Temecula<br />

Valley<br />

Kiwanis International is a global<br />

organization of volunteers dedicated<br />

to improving the world one child and<br />

one community at a time. The Kiwanis<br />

Club of Temecula Valley is focused on<br />

serving the needs of their community<br />

with emphasis on children but is also<br />

involved in projects that serve others.<br />

For information about the Kiwanis Club<br />

of Temecula Valley, please visit their web<br />

site at www.kiwanistv.org.<br />

PHOTO PAGE 1 (L to R): Kiwanis Club President<br />

Mark Ward; TVH CEO Darlene Wetton; Kiwanis<br />

Club member Dale Qualm; TVH Board Chairman<br />

Maj. Gen. Claude Reinke; and Kiwanis Club<br />

member Jim Stead.<br />

THE LEGISLATIVE SUMMIT<br />

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1<br />

23<br />

Next year my priorities will<br />

continue to be on the needs of this<br />

region. We must ensure that we have<br />

sufficient resources and response to<br />

disasters like COVID and prevention<br />

of wildfires, that we have a secure,<br />

reliable water supply for people and<br />

agriculture alike, that our education<br />

system is funded with operational<br />

certainty for students and parents,<br />

that people can access health care<br />

easier, and that our increasingly overcrowded<br />

highways are modernized<br />

and upgraded.<br />

The pandemic’s economic fallout<br />

has been catastrophic for thousands<br />

of people and for California’s overall<br />

economy. With businesses closing<br />

and thousands losing their jobs it is<br />

critical the state fixes the EDD, DMV<br />

and other failures.<br />

With that in mind, I will support<br />

policies that help small businesses<br />

and job creation to get the economy<br />

moving again. Needless to say, a faltering<br />

economy results in fewer tax<br />

dollars. Meeting the responsibilities<br />

of government will be extremely<br />

challenging with the tight state budget.<br />

But we must take a close look at<br />

our priorities to put necessities above<br />

desires.<br />

In Sacramento, we may disagree<br />

on many issues, but there is much we<br />

agree on. Healthcare, education, wildfires,<br />

water and power infrastructure,<br />

and our economic distress – none of<br />

these is political which creates the<br />

need for bi-partisan solutions.<br />

As the new session begins, I will<br />

continue to work with my colleagues<br />

from both parties as we tackle the<br />

enormous challenges facing California.<br />

I am humbled by the support I<br />

received from the district November<br />

3rd, and I look forward to continuing<br />

to serve you in Sacramento.<br />

Assembly Republican Leader Marie<br />

Waldron represents the 75th Assembly<br />

District in the California Legislature,<br />

which includes the communities<br />

of Bonsall, Escondido, Fallbrook,<br />

Hidden Meadows, Pala, Palomar<br />

Mountain, Pauma Valley, Rainbow,<br />

San Marcos, Temecula, Valley Center<br />

and Vista.


www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

24 <strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong>


<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

<strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong> GIFT IDEAS FOR BUSINESS AND HOME USE<br />

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1<br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

25<br />

Once again, the market is flooded<br />

with tech gifts and gadgets for the holiday<br />

season. However, whether working<br />

from home or the office, gifts that can<br />

be used for both business and personal<br />

use make the decision-making process<br />

easier. To get started, here are few ideas<br />

and their applications.<br />

Mini- Photo Printers – These have<br />

been around for a few years but technology<br />

and quality has improved. Initial<br />

devices had limited use but now for<br />

example requirements such as the need<br />

to secure facilities with photo ids, temporary<br />

badges can be quickly created. They<br />

may also provide a photographic hardcopy<br />

timeline of a product being manufactured<br />

for the buyer. A mini-printer<br />

can be right for any application which<br />

needs a picture on your phone printed<br />

immediately.<br />

Smart Theatre Projectors – For a<br />

number of years it’s been great fun to put<br />

on a neighborhood outdoor movie night<br />

with one of these. But newer and smaller<br />

HD projectors will play your latest marketing<br />

video or commercial within your<br />

store allowing potential consumers to see<br />

your product in action.<br />

Bluetooth Speakers – They’ve been<br />

on Christmas lists for a while but continued<br />

development makes them useful<br />

in environments providing background<br />

music to shop, dine outside or keep<br />

your customers relaxed while waiting<br />

for their turn in line. Easily relocatable<br />

waterproof speakers with no wires to run<br />

allow exposure to the elements without<br />

worry of damage.<br />

Smart Controlled Devices – This<br />

technology field has continued to expand<br />

so that one can set up their own security<br />

system at a business or home and mon-<br />

by<br />

by<br />

Ted Saul,<br />

Steve Fillingim<br />

Sr. Staff Writer<br />

itor from a smart phone. Control lights,<br />

door locks, cameras and temperature to<br />

name a few giving peace of mind that<br />

the building has been properly secured.<br />

Wireless Headsets and Earbuds<br />

– With longer battery life and comfort<br />

levels these devices are an excellent tool<br />

where communication between employees<br />

is essential. Many restaurants with<br />

drive-thru and curbside delivery use them<br />

today to coordinate employee movement<br />

and prevent unnecessary steps. But other<br />

applications are waiting to be discovered<br />

where finding that one employee quickly<br />

is essential.<br />

New High-Speed Routers – Businesses<br />

operating from home can find<br />

themselves in competition with school<br />

work, gaming and entertainment streaming.<br />

These new devices can work at 5G<br />

speeds to handle more traffic than ever.<br />

Everyone both family and business will<br />

benefit from this performance upgrade.<br />

Happy Shopping.<br />

Ted Saul is a business coach that assists<br />

with Business Plans and Project Management.<br />

He holds a master certificate in<br />

project management and has earned his<br />

MBA from Regis University. Ted can be<br />

reached on LinkedIn, TedS787 on Twitter<br />

or emailing TedSaulBiz@gmail.com.<br />

However, whether working from home or the<br />

office, gifts that can be used for both business<br />

and personal use make the decision-making<br />

process easier.


THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

26 www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

YOUR LOCAL CHAMBERS<br />

Temecula Valley Chamber of Commerce<br />

www.temecula.org<br />

Murrieta/Wildomar Chamber of Commerce<br />

www.MWCoC.org<br />

Menifee Valley Chamber of Commerce<br />

www.menifeevalleychamber.com<br />

Lake Elsinore Valley Chamber<br />

www.lakeelsinorechamber.com<br />

Hemet/San Jacinto Valley<br />

Chamber of Commerce<br />

www.hsjvc.com


<strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong><br />

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com<br />

27<br />

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Advertise with us and<br />

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THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />

28 <strong>December</strong> <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong>

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