Welcome everyone. My name is Jennifer Spalding and I’m so happy to be here with you. Before we get started, the first thing I want you to do is get the worksheet you’ll be using throughout this presentation. You can do this by either clicking the link on your screen or scanning the QR code with your phone’s camera. This worksheet will ensure that you get absolute clarity on your next steps before we end here today. And when you fill it out and submit it at the end of the presentation you will get two free gifts from me to support your next steps. We have a lot of ground to cover, so let’s get started!

I always like to begin by sharing who I am and my why. As I mentioned my name is Jennifer Spalding and I’ve been practicing law for 20 years now. I opened my own firm on September 1st of last year [2022] so that I could practice estate planning in a more meaningful way that focuses on relationships and not just a set of documents.

As for my why, on the right you’ll see a picture of me and my dad. It’s the last picture taken of us together on Father’s Day 2015. In November of that year he suffered a stroke. He did not have a healthcare directive. That meant that my stepmom, my three half siblings, and myself had to come together to make healthcare decisions for him. As you can imagine, we did not all agree and this was a really stressful time for us. Unfortunately, five days later he passed away and we were again forced to make some really difficult decisions. Did he want to be cremated? Did he want to be buried? We didn’t know. And we did not all initially agree. You see my dad had a will but, as I mentioned, he did not have a healthcare directive. I really believe that my dad’s lawyer failed him. And he most certainly failed our family. And I don’t want what my family went through to happen to anyone else. This situation could have been avoided had my dad’s attorney simply recommended he complete a healthcare directive.

You see, what happens most of the time is that planning for the future is something most people know they should do but they procrastinate and then eventually it becomes too late. I’ve made it my mission to help other families avoid what my family went through by supporting them to get plans in place now before it’s too late.

On a personal note, I’m a mom and because of that I understand that estate planning is something you do, not just for yourself, but really for the people who you love. This is a picture of me and my husband, Scott, and our two kids, Dylan and Ryan.

So there are many reasons that may have brought you here today. Maybe you want to know for certain that your family will be taken care of and know exactly what to do when you pass away.   …