Introduction

Some personal thoughts from
John Nadworny and Cynthia Haddad...

Dear Friend,

We share a common bond with you - a family member who has special needs. We are both well aware of the caregiving concerns that have been presented us.

As it happens, we have both arrived at the same point in our careers from different directions.

One of us (Cynthia) was born into a family in which an older brother has special needs. She grew up watching parents love and care for her brother while juggling the needs of the whole family, and is prepared to be a lifetime support for him.

The other (John) was well into developing a career and family when a third child was born with special needs, a life event which immediately (and for some years dramatically) changed the course of family living and priorities...yet a journey for which few-to-no "road maps" existed to guide the way.

It may be fate that the two of us ended-up in the same profession and in the same firm, but it is not by chance that we have dedicated our work to helping people like ourselves who are responsible for a person with special needs.

Our past experiences, personal knowledge, and professional expertise on the issues have enabled us to make a difference in the financial security of many families like yours.

Special Needs Planning is unlike the traditional "Money Magazine"-style financial planning where you buy a home, raise your children, plan four years of college education and retirement. Special Needs Planning is planning for two generations. Many adult children with a disability must be supported their entire lives, even long after their parents have died.

Our approach reaches beyond the limited boundaries of Wills and Trusts to provide you with a comprehensive plan to address your own Special Needs.

If you care to read on, we have put down our thoughts on the key issues with which many families are confronted.

Yours truly,

John Nadworny and Cynthia Haddad

All too often, we are contacted by family members in a time of crisis. Some noteworthy pressure points are:

• at your child's 18th birthday, or
• upon the turning of age 22, or
• upon the death of a parent or grandparent, or
• loss of SSI or SSDI benefits due to improper planning.

If assets, investments, insurances, and estate plans were properly coordinated ahead of time, families would not be forced to make compromising decisions in a crisis.

Our comprehensive approach strives to ensure that your family member will always be financially secure and that you will have peace of mind knowing this fact.

Some of the common concerns that we help you to properly address are how to utilize appropriate financial and legal tools to:

• preserve your child's eligibility for SSI or other government benefits
• maximize public and private resources
• address financial concerns of residential options
• identify short and long term financial costs
• develop an overall planning strategy

Beyond Wills & Trusts

Wills and Trusts are legal devices which provide for the orderly administration of tangible assets. Their creation is similar to the making of a bucket with a spigot. Wills provide for the one-time dump of the bucket . . . trusts have a rate of flow factor.

That's where the process ends!

Wills and Trusts do not provide a guarantee that your loved one will be cared for. Without a funding process beyond their establishment, there may be an empty bucket when funds are critically needed.

The economic facts are severe!

There is little chance that government programs and your assets alone will cover the continuing needs of your child or adult dependant with special needs.

Strength & Support

There are four factors that determine success in providing for your child's or sibling's current and future support...

• Your Physical and Emotional Strength
• Your Financial Strength and Legal Documents
• Your Immediate and Extended Family
• Your Associations and Governments

All factors can work either for you or against you and your family. And they are ever changing:

Government programs end . . . Family members move . . . Finances vary . . . and personal strengths wax & wane. The challenge is knowing how to get established and how to adjust.

With years of first-hand experience, we are uniquely qualified to address the financial and non-financial requirements of you and your family. Our goal is to provide the most comprehensive planning for families that have a loved one with a physical and/or developmental disability. Caregivers must comprehensively plan for all financial, social and medical issues which our integrated approach addresses

Based in our personal and professional experiences, we futher realize the need for families to plan for their own financial security as well. We address this, too.