The Memorial Business Journal (the NFDA’s weekly newsletter) has been drilling down into the NFDA’s 2024 Consumer Awareness and Preferences Survey. With the FTC’s Funeral Rule amendment looming, the July 4th MBJ edition was of particular interest to us. The Survey found that 92% of the survey respondents use Facebook, with most of those
transition plans
Mom’s Dementia and the empty house: Using the power of attorney to move on
One of the most difficult challenges for a financial POA agent is the parent’s empty house. Dementia has robbed the parent of the life skills needed to continue living at home and the health care POA agent has already made the decision to move Mom to an assisted living facility. As time passes, it becomes…
Transition Plans and the Client with Dementia: Caregiver Challenges
A recent Guardian article offers excellent advice to caregivers for individuals with dementia. The author, Cynthia Dearborn, shared her experiences about caring for a father with vascular dementia. Cynthia described how her father’s short-term memory became severely impaired, along with his judgment and reasoning skills. I am having a similar experience with a Transition Plans’…
End of Life Forums: Well Intended, but Sometimes Misleading
We find the AgingCare website to be a good source information for end of life planning. The website includes a forum for readers to post questions and offer their experiences. However, readers need to be careful when the forum is used to seek legal help on end of life issues. One such topic thread began…
End of Life Planning: An Inventory
COVID is forcing American families to confront end-of-life planning. There are numerous articles on the subject, but NPR published one during the summer of 2020 that made a recommendation that is often overlooked: creating an inventory. My wife, the list maker, established our first inventory 30 years ago when our first child was born. …
Final Expense Life Insurance: Some Additional Considerations
CNN underscored recently posted a good article about final expense life insurance. Death care clients have been contacting us more frequently about this type of policy, and we will share some of their issues.
Funeral homes are backing away from the conventional life insurance policy for some of the same reasons. Large life insurance companies…
NY Times: But Mom said everything was taken care of
We’re back to that recent New York Times article about funeral planning. The reporter offers spot on advice about the ‘gaps’ of preneed arrangements. A surviving parent will frequently advise adult children that they need not worry about his (or her) funeral because they have purchased a preneed contract. As the article suggests, adult children…
New York Times: How to Plan Your Own Funeral
Earlier this year, the New York Times ran a story that on funeral planning that raised several valid issues and recommendations. We will use the next few blog posts to explore certain issues and recommendations in greater detail. With this post we will start with the article’s discussion of prepaying for a preneed contract, and…
Health Care Proxy: Someone with a Backbone
The Conversation Project recently posted a blog entry titled “Somebody with a Backbone”: Tips for Choosing a Health Care Proxy. We could not agree more with the post’s recommendations about how to go about selecting a power of attorney for health care decisions. The post includes a hyperlink to “How to” brochure that is…
Transition Plans: Family Support
The Kansas City Star recently devoted a column to Marty Schottenheimer, and his family’s support as he adjusts to life with Alzheimer’s. Coach Schottenheimer was diagnosed with the disease in his late 60’s, but continues an active life, with the assistance of his wife, son, and daughter-in-law. The column is a reminder that multiple family…