One thing often overlooked in the administration of the day-to-day life of a family is the preparation of a will. Let’s face it, creating a will is not top of mind for most people! Often people do not like to even dwell on end-of-life issues let alone think about all that is involved in a will creation. However, the reality is that settling an estate can take anywhere from three weeks to several years. The American Bar Association estimates probate normally averages around 6-9 months. Because of poor planning, or not planning at all, your family will have to spend more time and money to settle your estate. Plus, at the point of loss, emotions are heightened, grief is strong, and energy is often depleted. The last things a grieving family member cares to deal with are financial issues and worries of settling an estate. Although it may be uncomfortable, taking the time to create a will can significantly ease the burden on your loved ones.

            Servant Solutions wants to assist you in your will preparation as we believe this is just one more way of preparing well for your family’s future. To members of our Retirement Plan, we offer a free service available through the strong relationship with our recordkeeping partner, Principal Financial Group. Principal has teamed with ARAG and provides a will as well as the following free online resources that you and/or your spouse can prepare.

• Healthcare Power of Attorney

• HIPAA Authorization

• Durable Power of Attorney

• Living Will

• Medical Treatment Authorization for Minors

Steps to Create a Will and other Family Legal Documents

1.     Go to the Estate Planning Documents page of the Servant Solutions website.

2.    You will find steps that will enable you to complete the online resources.

Know that you will be directed to a partner site, ARAG, to complete your online document. ARAG is a partner of Principal, and they have a mission to provide affordable legal representation to all persons within the 50 United States. We recommend you save and print your will, as well as keeping an electronic copy on your desktop.

We also offer a Deceased Member Checklist that can assist your family members with handling the personal and legal details that need attention at the time of death. This guide will help your family move through this arduous and sometimes emotionally complicated process. We recommend you print a copy of this checklist as well as your will and keep them filed together. Make sure you notify someone close to you about these useful documents to help them as they are grieving the loss of their loved one.
         Our mission at Servant Solutions is to “Serve Those Who Serve.” And we do this to and through retirement years. We see this service as yet one more way of carrying out our mission to our members and families with trust, integrity and excellence at a most difficult time.