STEWARDSHIP FOR TODAY’S WOMAN – THE WIDOW

          I’m continuing to share something from the book, Stewardship for Today’s Woman written by Helen Kingsbury-Wallace. As a reminder, it was written in 1960.

          In my last two blogs, I spent time discussing the chapter titles, The Career Woman, The Wife and The Mother. Today’s chapter is titled The Widow.

          This was a chapter that was focused (keep in mind it’s 1960 and most wives were mothers and were not working outside the home) on a woman whose husband died, leaving her and her children alone and with no knowledge of what was going on.

          This truly frustrates me, because it can still be true. Too often, I’ve spoken with a couple where only one of the spouses cares for the “financial stuff.” In the book, it says the husband never discussed financial affairs and kept it from his wife. This woman is now faced with 3 children still at home, and no idea whether there is enough left for her to maintain the standard of living they’ve had, or whether she’ll need to move.

          This issue is even bigger than knowing what “was”. There is so much that both spouses should spend time discussing and planning:

·       What are the assts?

·       Whose name is on the house, on the bank accounts?

·       Are there beneficiaries on retirement and pension plans?

·       Are there insurance policies – Who is the beneficiary?

          So focus on the planning until death. I have led a few workshops in local churches titled “Peace of Mind”. It’s the name of a book/binder that I located on Amazon, that guides anyone through the planning that needs to be done. I have to say, having worked for attorneys as a paralegal for many years, I thought I had a good grasp on what needed to be done, but this planner has so much else that needs to be discussed and planned for: licenses, pets, passwords, vehicles, etc. I think the cost of purchasing one of these books is vital to helping a couple plan and know what’s going on. Of course, there are wills and trusts to also plan for.

          What is the income that remains after the death of one of the spouses? Social Security? Retirement? Earnings? Savings? Annuities?

          And, most importantly, identify now and not wait:

·       Who is the banker?

·       Who is the insurance person?

·       Who is the accountant?

·       Who is the lawyer?

Knowing who to call will help remove some of the stress that is happening.

          Sorrow is still going to be there; there’s still going to be a lot to do, but caring for as much as possible will make that time as good as it can be.

I will continue my review of this book in the next blog.

         

Please feel free to contact me at (315) 427-3668 or susanranous@unyumc.org if you found this interesting.