Opinion
May 11, 1949.
Appeal from Workmen's Compensation Board.
Present — Foster, P.J., Heffernan, Brewster, Santry and Bergan, JJ.
The only question raised on the appeal is that of dependency. The parents of the deceased operated a farm from which they received their sole support. The deceased was twenty years of age at the time of his death. The father was in poor health and unable to do the heavy work required in the operation of the farm. In the spring of 1946 the deceased was released from service in the Marines to assist with the work on the farm. During the summer he did most of the laborious work connected with the farm, receiving only his board, room and spending money. In the fall of the same year, when the heavy work was over, he left the farm and went to work as a truck driver for the employer stating to his father that he would send money from his wages to pay for hired help on the farm and that when he became of age he hoped to get a G.I. loan and take over the farm. He had been working for his employer about two weeks when he died from accidental injuries received while driving a truck in the course of his employment. He had sent no money to his parents up to the time of his death. He had received only a part of a week's pay amounting to $21, and had to pay for his room and board during the two weeks of his employment. After their son's death the parents continued to operate the farm aided by the temporary help of their neighbors gratuitously rendered. The net income from the farm, however, decreased and when the temporary assistance of neighbors would no longer be available it would be bound to decrease further. The evidence supports the finding of the board that the parents were partially dependent on the deceased at the time of the accident and that such dependency still exists. Award unanimously affirmed, with costs to the Workmen's Compensation Board.