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| Planning
for the future, Preparing a Will and Living Will
The world is a place of great uncertainty. There are wars, diseases and accidents that take lives each day. In our premortal existence we were given the information that one day our physical bodies would die and that until the resurrection, made possible by our Savior, our spirits and bodies would separate. We still opted to come here. This life is our test. One part of this test is our preparedness. This includes some preparation in areas that may be difficult to think about. For the purpose of this discussion, facing our own health issues and death. When preparing for future health issues and our own death, there are two main things we need to prepare in order to make the lives of those we love and leave behind eaiser. First, preparing a Will, also known as Estate Planning. A will is a legal document that deal with the dispersal of temporal goods and guardianship of minor children. Second, preparing a Living Will, a document that directs our care, or the guardianship of ourselves, should we become incapacitated due to accident or disease; this type of document is known as an advance directive.
Steven J. Dixon, "Planning Ahead: The Importance of Wills and Trusts," (Ensign, June 1983) states:
He further states:
Preparing a well written and thought out, legal and binding will falls under the umbrella of Estate Planning. And as you can see, a Will is essential if you want to leave your family well cared for in the event when you die, at any age. The AARP further lists five basic things you should consider when drawing up a will:
This has already been stated, but I want to make just a few more comments on the importance of assigning legal guardianship of minor children with in your will. If they are not, then the government will be responsible for finding a suitable gardian for them. You are the major advocate for your children’s temporal well being in this life. Don’t neglect to name a legal guardian and update this information as time passes. For example, once you have a child more than 18 years of age, they may agree to act as legal guardian for younger siblings in the event of losing both parents. They are not obligated to agree to this, but they could be given the option. There are several ways to make and submit a legal will. There are websites, estate planning layers, even some that specilize in helping those within the LDS community set up their estate. Websites that offer advice on estate planning should be considered carefully.
Because of the nature of the documents you are filling contain personal information, you must be extremely careful when approaching this kind of venture online. Whichever manner of estate planning appeals to you is as personal as the information that will be contained in your will. The important thing is to follow through and not procrastinate this decision. Prepare your will while you are young and healthy and maintain it throughout your life.
Advance Directives The US living will registry website explains advance directives as:
Although laws vary from state to state, there are basically three kinds of advance directives.
You can have a health care proxy naming a person to make the decisions, a living will, and a DNR request to help guide those you love and are concerened about your medical wellfare in making the decisions. It is very important that in addition to writing down your wishes and formally making these requests with your doctor and hospital, that you also talk with your close friends and family members to prepare them for how you want your medical care handled. www.uslivingwillregistry.com contains more detailed information on recording and registering your advance directives with health care providers. There are also other sites available with forms for advance directives. Your healthcare provider or local hospital can also advise you about these documents. Again the internet is a great resource for providing information and the necessary forms for preparing your own living will. Here are a few sites we found helpful:
You need to give this type of will as much thought and prayer as your estate planning. You need to consider all who are affected by your decisions. It all comes back to careful preparation. D&C 104:13 states:
We are blessed to be on the earth today in such a time of plenty. The Lord has asked us to be responsible and care for the possessions we have been given, including our own lives. D&C 82:3 says it best:
We must
be diligent in our preparations. We do not need to be obsessed
with our own demise, rather thoughtful and ready to stand before
the Lord. If we are prepared temporally, we will be better suited
to preparing spiritually, for our conscience will be clear in
that regard and we will be able to answer happily when we are
asked what we did with the blessings we received. |
Life Insurance It is also important for people of all ages to hold life insurance and make sure that the beneficiaries list is kept up-todate. The purpose of life insurance is to provide for the welfare of your family after your death. There are many different types of insurance policies you can consider depending on your financial needs and the needs of the beneficiaries. To learn more about the different kinds of life insurance policies, visit any of these major insurance company websites: Metropolitan
Life
Want
to work with an LDS professional in your area when drawing up
a will or other estate planning documents (trusts, etc.)?
Preparing a Will Online: The following websites have the Better Business Bureau's endorsement and provide information about wills. That being said we highly suggest you do your own research and make sure you're 100% comfortable with their credentials and reputation. www.legalzoom.com The AARP also provides information about both estate planning and advance directives.
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