Incorporating Faith and Values Into Your Estate Plan

Rather than worrying about where assets will go, some people put more emphasis on incorporating faith and values into their estate plan.  Fortunately, there are several different ways this can happen. 

For some people, this means including one or more charities into their plan as a beneficiary.  It could be a charity you have supported during your lifetime that you want to continue to support.  You could leave a dollar amount or percentage, or establish a trust to provide income or principal distributions to the charity for years to come. 

Establishing distribution provision for loved ones is another way to add faith and value to your plan.  You may want distributions to your children or grandchildren to be for education or something important to you, thus, personalizing the way the money can be used.  Some people choose to limit distributions to encourage hard work and self-sufficiency. 

If your medical and end-of-life wishes are tailored around your faith or other values, it is important to name an agent who shares those same values.  It is also a good idea to put those wishes in writing and discuss them with your agent. 

See Carissa Giebel, Ways to Incorporate Faith, Values Into Your Estate Plan, Green Bay Press Gazette, Dec. 29, 2014.

Special thanks to Brian Cohan (Attorney at Law, Law Offices of Brian J. Cohan, P.C.) for bringing this article to my attention.