Ray and Liz finally decided who should serve as guardian of their children if they were to pass away too early in life. First, they will name Liz’s sister, Joy. If Joy could not do it, then Ray’s nearly life-long friend, Ted, will be named to serve.
That was the step one. Next, they want to minimize the possible burden on Joy or Ted and maximize the benefits for their children. One way to help is to write letters to Joy and Ted, to be opened only if Ray and Liz do pass away before little Rose and Sam are ready to be on their own.
It may seem a bit eerie, but writing letters from the grave can really make a big difference – and they can be updated whenever the family situation changes. Ray and Liz can simply replace the old letters.
Ray and Liz write about what they hope for their kids, like pointing out how much Rose loves bugs, lizards and microscopes, and they think she might like to be a scientist.
They can encourage both Joy and Ted separately to talk with each other about what is going on with the kids, regardless of which one of them is serving as the guardian right then.
Importantly, they can give Joy ‘permission’ to decline to serve if it would not work well with her situation as it exists after Ray and Liz’s deaths, by telling her they are confident that Ted would keep family contact for the kids.
Liz and Ray now have an annual New Year’s Day Project, to update their letters each year, as part of looking forward to the next year and taking stock of last year’s changes.
Happy New Year from the Gruber Law Office!
© 2014 Gruber Law Office, Ltd.