Hi Berta and thank you so much for your reply. Yes, I am familiar with the many Alzheimers support websites - and my mother and I have joined a support group in Brooklyn, New York as well. Also, we've consulted with an elder care attorney regarding the house and my fathers assets. Lucky for us, we found someone who was very very skilled and also lucky for us - we contacted him immediatly when we discovered that Daddy was acting unusually. We were able to get him medication very early on, which is probably the reason why the progression of the disease has been so slow. It was 9-11 when we first realized something was wrong and he was diagnosed by Nov. 2001. Anyway, Daddy is rated 10% service connecting for hearing loss, he also receives SSA - but that check goes directly to the bank so we have no concern with that. Actually, the ONLY reason we are thinking of doing this fiduciary thing with the VA is because of how much we have heard about how it is frequently a 'stall' technique or at the very least it adds more time to the A&A approval process. Also, Berta - no I don't think he should be rated higher than 10%, and I don't recall receiving any information during the claim process. (Daddy was receiving this check since 1945 honorable discharge - but the checks stopped because he was throwing away the mail apparently and did not show up for an examination several years ago). With a great deal of work I was able to get his check re-instated about 5 years ago. Yes, he has a Health Care Proxy - it's me. I am only seeking to be the fiduciary for VA payments, and at the moment those payments are only his monthly SC check. And I appreciate your advice regarding contacting a service officer from DAV. Again, I appreciate your response so much Berta - I was so glad it was you that responded! Best Regards, Julia