 Jana Ellerman is an estate planning attorney in the local firm, Guthrie & Ellerman. She urges us to think about the impact we will have on our community after we die. She presented three ideas to consider that might help us plan better for the future. 1. Think about the Stuff you will leave behind: From Jana's experience some of the biggest fights among family members are over the stuff, the physical belongings of the deceased. Also, you should tell your heirs about what things have sentimental value to you. If have been married more than once, don't necessarily leave everything to the new spouse. One good solution is to have a line in your will pointing to the location of your latest list of your stuff, and to whom you want each piece to go. This list should be signed and dated, so that only the most recent version is valid. 2. Do your Legacy Project, Ideas: write your story (or part of it); teach people what you know or what you value; write a cookbook (like Jana and family did); write a genealogy story for your family; if you're not a writer, then record your story. Jana attested that as an amateur genealogist, any time you find a story that one of your ancestors wrote, it's exciting. 3. What are your values and how can you pass them on to your heirs? You can give part of your estate to charity and encourage your heirs to do the same. One of her clients left instructions that urged his heirs to donate time, at least once a year, to a charity of their choice. Another client was a big thinker. With a significant portion of his estate, they released funds to heirs to donate or provide startup funds to new projects to solve important problems. After Jana's talk, several members were talking about taking action based on several of these ideas. |
Bill Hughes presented Paul Harris Fellow recognition, Level 3, to member Sabrina Ho. The members gave a standing ovation to Sabrina for her generosity.
