Panic. Full-on, total panic. The kind that makes your heart skip a beat. The kind that puts your life on hold.
These were the emotions that assaulted Connie Wortman when she learned that she needed heart surgery, and it couldn’t be put off.
After the initial shock, Connie’s thoughts turned to “Am I prepared?” “Do I have my affairs in order?” Unfortunately, the answer was “no.” She realized that “I wanted to go through my estate documents, but I had all these papers and files.”
The first thing she did was to dig out legal documents, her insurance policy and her healthcare directive. The second thing was that she called Senior Village and asked for a home visit from the Forms and Documents team.
Connie moved quickly. “Circumstances do change in our lives, and all of a sudden, I’m realizing that there are things I need to change in my will and trust.”
With papers and folders covering her dining table, Connie and two Forms and Documents volunteer advocates started the task of organizing the paperwork into manageable piles. On the next visit, the advocates reviewed the Planning Ahead handbook with Connie to help her understand what legal and financial matters had to be updated and signed.
Once focused, Connie began to feel that these tasks were manageable with the help of the Forms and Documents advocates. By asking questions, the advocates were able to focus Connie on organizing her documents step by step to avoid feeling overwhelmed.
Connie needed to reconsider whom to name for the Personal Representative of her will, the executor of her revocable living trust and agents to make her healthcare decisions if she could not speak for herself. In addition, she had to confirm the beneficiaries of her annuity to make sure those names were current. A final detail was to call Senior Village and make an appointment to have her long-term insurance policy reviewed.
Since her trust entailed special circumstances, the Forms and Documents advocates provided information on the role of a fiduciary to handle ongoing management of her trust. The advocates also alerted her to the fact that meeting with an attorney could mean waiting months for an appointment. Fortunately, she was able to arrange an appointment quickly.
Connie’s story does have a happy ending: the surgery was successful and, as a bonus, she now has her documents organized and estate planning updated.
If you have been putting off these tasks and would like information about estate topics, call Senior Village and ask for the Forms and Documents Team at (520) 314-1042. Volunteer advocates provide basic information but do not give legal advice. Consultation with an estate attorney is recommended.
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