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Create Your
"A GOAL WITHOUT A PLAN
IS JUST A WISH."
Antoine de Saint Exupery
While we would never attend a Broadway musical without a ticket or take a trip without luggage, most Americans have not taken the time to plan for their future. We simply never get around to doing it. The result is disappointing. When we fail to plan, our dreams, wishes and hopes may never be fully realized. Unfortunately, this also means our family and beneficiaries experience the expense and frustration of estate administration. A few months of probate can destroy what it took a lifetime to create. Don't let this happen to you or your family.
Creating a plan can be easy when you use the two-step process offered by The United Methodist Foundation of Louisiana-the "It's Different in Louisiana: Estate Planning Course and their new online Wills Planner. The course helps you become informed about estate planning, wills, trusts, and gift and estate taxes. The Wills Planner helps you organize information about your family, estate and goals that you can then use with your attorney for developing your plan.
The Estate Planning Course is being offered by Noel as part of our Simple Sunday Classes. The class is only two Sundays, October 30 and November 13, 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. or you can register to take the online course at wwwumfgiving.org. This course will arm you with the information to make good decisions and take appropriate action. And it is written by a Louisiana attorney with simple descriptions of our unique laws. The Wills Planner, available on the United Methodist Foundation website at www.umfgiving.org, will guide you step-by-step through the process of identifying what you have and what you want done with it.
Perhaps the best feature of the Wills Planner is that it helps you identify your goals, dreams, and aspirations for the future. The Wills Planner will be an invaluable tool for your attorney who can then complete your plan, and ensure that your wishes are followed.
There are great rewards for those who have a will. There is a comfort and satisfaction in knowing that love for family and friends will continue for years to come. Another benefit can come from including your church in your will. Most importantly, it demonstrates and affirms that the donations and support you have shown your church during your lifetime will be transformed into a lasting legacy, and your estate benefits form an estate tax charitable deduction. Even if you don't think you have many belongings, your life's dreams and values are worth preserving. With the Estate Planning Course and the Wills Planner, you have the opportunity to take the first step to embarking on one of the most fulfilling and satisfying adventures of your life.
This article reprinted from Legacies, a quarterly publication of the United Methodist Foundation of Louisiana.
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