By: Maria McElroy, PLAN of Massachusetts & Rhode Island
Every parent is concerned about what the future holds for their children. Parents of a special needs child have, what some may describe as a monumental level of concern. If you are like many parents, you have woken up in the middle of the night worrying about your child. Worrying about what will happen to them when you are no longer here. You are not alone. Hundreds of parents who have children with disabilities have these same thoughts and concerns, yet they often become so overwhelmed with the options that they do not know where to start.
Putting your mind at ease is as simple as planning for the future of your disabled child by establishing a Special Needs Trust for them. Now, a special needs trust may have crossed your mind before, but you dismissed it because you did not think you had enough money to fund it - that is where PLAN of MA & RI comes into the picture. Planned Lifetime Assistance Network of MA & RI is a 501©3 non-profit organization that specializes in Special Needs Trusts. We require no minimum deposits, and we offer creative avenues to fund the trust if you do not have the money right now. For example, you could use your life insurance or your estate to fund the trust when the time comes; this is called a Future-Funded Trust. The key point: you need to plan in order to make this possible.
PLAN is unique because of the licensed social workers on-staff who are experienced in working with people of different ages and ranges of disabilities and are knowledgeable about the ever-changing rules regarding Special Needs Trusts. By having one of the PLAN social workers communicate regularly with the beneficiary, they truly get to know them as a person. They come to understand what they like, what they don't like, what they want in life, and what is best for them. By establishing a trust early-on, you can not only have peace of mind knowing that your assets are going to a safe place, but you also can see hands-on how the trust can benefit your child as well as how it works on a day-to-day basis. If doing this can help you sleep better at night, knowing that your child will have someone advocating for them after you are gone, why not take the first step today?