By Dawn Scotland
The Truth Reporter
Getting Your Affairs in Order, presented by the Area Office on Aging and the Toledo Lucas County Public Library was held October 19 at the Main Library Branch. The informative workshop helped attendees to prepare for a Living Will and Transfer on Death Deed. The sold-out event included lunch and was free and open to the public.
The workshop was held from 12:30- 2:30 p.m. and featured a host of experts that spoke on various aspects of estate planning for those in attendance. This was the fourth and final event in the series.
The Welcome was given by Jason Kucsma, executive director Toledo Lucas County Public Library, followed by Justin Moor, president and CEO of the Area Office on Aging.
The Invocation was given by Rev. Barbie Harrison and the Program Purpose by Deborah Barnett of N-SYNC, LLC.
The event was organized by Barnett, Harrison and Celeste Day who saw the need to have a program to encourage people, young and old, to get their affairs, especially financial affairs, in order.
“We experienced that our friends, who are getting older, affairs may not be in order. We’ve seen our friends go through this in traumatic ways. Because if you don’t have your affairs in order all kinds of things can go wrong,” stated Harrison. “We thought this would be a good thing to have so that we could start to have the conversations.”
Topics ranged from how to communicate wishes to the family, final arrangements instructions, living wills, trusts and more.
The event, which started earlier this year, has grown to over 200 people, “We had to stop registration. It tells us that the need is great and it’s getting greater,” said Harrison.
“Everyone should start getting their affairs in order as soon as they begin to think about it,” she shared. “Young adults, especially young adults with kids, need to start having these conversations now, the focus has been on the seniors but everybody should be talking about it,” she remarked.
Speakers Included:
- Barbie Harrison
- Pastor Arthur Battle, Esq.
- Nichole Rodriguez, Fifth Third Bank
- Katie Moline, Lucas County Auditor
- Douglas Johnson, Lucas County Treasurer Office
- Laura Watt & Andrea Dhondt, Lucas County Clerk of Courts
- Michael Ashford, Lucas County Recorder
The event concluded with a question & answer session moderated by Celeste Felix.
Major sponsors included Fifth Third Bank, Lucas County Clerk of Courts, Lucas County Recorder’s Office and supporting sponsors Black and Brown Unity Coalition, Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance (IMA), Lucas County Auditor, Lucas County Treasurer, N-SYNC, LLC, Tastefully Two, Toledo Community Coalition, United Pastors for Social Empowerment (UPSE).
