The passing of Clifton Kruse
It is with a heavy heart that I report the passing of “the” elder law expert, Clifton Kruse.
The following excerpts are from his obituary:
Clifton Bryan Kruse, Jr., 74, passed away surrounded by his family on December 30, 2008, from complications of Alzheimer’s disease.
After receiving his undergraduate degree from Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas in 1956, and his graduate degree in theology from Boston University in 1959, Mr. Kruse was awarded a Juris Doctorate Degree from Washburn University School of Law in 1963. He was an ordained Methodist Minister and prison chaplain. A nationally acclaimed elder law attorney, in 1956 Mr. Kruse was given the Colorado Bar Association’s Award of Merit, the highest honor given by the CBA for outstanding contributions to the legal profession and the bar association. He was a member of the American Bar Association, Colorado Bar Association (Vice President), El Paso County Bar Association Past President), National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (Past President and Fellow), and the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel. He taught Business Law at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs for 27 years and taught at the University of Denver School of Law.
Mr. Kruse lectured at seminars, symposiums and workshops throughout the country and authored many books and articles. Mr. Kruse was the founding member of Kruse and Lynch, P.C. and specialized in the preparation of wills, trusts, estate administration and elder law.
He had a passion for helping others, especially the elderly. His book, “Selma’s Cat and Other Things That Matter,” is a collection of essays pertaining to the concerns and experiences of senior citizens. * * *
A memorial service will be held Saturday, January 3, 2009, 1:00 P.M. at the Broadmoor Community Church, 315 Lake Avenue, Colorado Springs.
In lieu of flowers the family suggests donations to Pikes Peak Hospice, 825 E. Pikes Peak Avenue, Suite 600, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80903, or the Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region, 610 Abbott Lane, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80905.
Personally, I owed a debt of gratitude to Clif for granting me permission to reprint excerpts from his outstanding article entitled Contracts to Devise or Gift Property in Exchange for Lifetime Home Care–Latent and Insidious Abuse of Older Persons in my Estate Planning casebook.