It's now been six weeks since the loss of my good friend who suffered in his later years with the debilitating effects of Alzheimer's. I have reflected often over these six weeks about his life: the energy, the vibrant personality and the zest for life that he had until that final year. It is so sad to see the effects of this disease and what it drains from a person right before your eyes.
My friend was married, had two wonderful children and three grandchildren. He always had a smile on his face, teased people immensely, and was forever volunteering to help others. Exactly what you would want in a friend, father, grandfather and husband.
As his generation takes their final journey I find myself asking: "Are we taking care of our fathers' generation as well as we can?"
So what does that have to do with insurance, or the profession we decided to make our life's work? We have the opportunity, no, we have the responsibility to make sure that the final journey is as smooth as possible without the pitfalls that come from the financial crisis that comes far too often to so many people who have not planned for the final journey of life.
In the weeks leading up to my friend's death, I was visiting with his wife about some of the financial issues she was experiencing, and she told me, "I don't know what I would have done if we didn't have long-term care insurance".