Why I do What I do
In the summer of 2010, my mom went from running 7 miles and living an active lifestyle, to a terminal diagnosis of an aggressive brain cancer.
I immediately took a part time job close to home, working 5am to 9am followed by caring for my mom while my 81-year-old dad went to work. My mom began to need more care and I ultimately lost my job because of the increasing demands her care required. I was only 28 years old when my mom passed away from stage 4 brain cancer. It was 4 months from her diagnosis to her death. We were able to receive an accelerated death benefit through her life insurance policy which we used to help pay off the house and some of the increasing medical bills. However, we quickly learned that her life insurance coverage was far from enough to help cover the bills. These bills and debts were left to my elderly father when she passed. A few short years after my mom’s death I had to sit my dad down and explain to him that he could no longer afford to keep the family home and we needed to sell the house.My dad ended up moving in with a friend for a few years, and during that time I married and had children. After some time, my dad began needing some assistance so we offered him a room in my house; however, he began to need increasing care beyond what I could offer. While I was caring for my mom during her brief illness, my dad made me promise that I would not exert the time, energy, and money in caring for him like I did with her.Over time, his gait became increasingly unsteady; with stairs and my (at that time) 3 small children, I knew it was time to find a place where his needs could be met.
Kelly Stewart
He did not have long term care insurance or enough funds to live in the specific senior living facility where he wanted to be. He then decided that he wanted to go to a VA care facility so we began the application for him to go to the nearest VA long-term care facility, which was 3 hours from my home. During this application process, we learned that it could take months, if not years, to get him into the VA.We then decided it would be best for him to go into a nursing home close to home. We found a newer care facility that was highly regarded and I believed he would enjoy it there. He was only there a week before he fell and was sent to the hospital. While at the hospital, he requested to not go back to that facility. Back to square one. We worked with the care coordination team and were able to transfer him to a different care facility; however, because of the cost, everything my father had accumulated over his 93 years was spent in less than a year to pay for his care. He was then placed on Medicaid to cover his nursing home care. We suddenly found his choices for facilities limited and he could not even afford a private room, this left him with a roommate whom he did not like. At the time of his death in 2022, he had less than nine hundred dollars in the bank and an excessively large bill from the government for his care over the years.
This got me thinking… How can a single life event, like cancer, completely upend a family’s entire financial world?
Both of my parents came from large families. They were raised to work hard and save money in order to have the best hope for life and retirement. My parents taught us those same values, but for most people this simply does not work.
Many people find themselves without any financial safety nets, no safe money strategies, and grossly inadequate life insurance coverage.
My mom thought she was doing all the right things: she put money into her 401k and she purchased a life insurance plan but it was not enough.
No amount of money will replace a loved one. When you are dealing with the enormity of that loss, the last thing you should have to think about is if you could lose everything in addition to losing your loved one.
In the years following the death of my mom and then my dad, I began searching for a better way to become financially independent. I have gained knowledge and insight through studying, hard work, but also by asking the hard questions. My goal is to help people plan for the worst so when they go through it, they will be better equipped for the steep cliffs and rocky paths. My desire is to provide education and individualized strategies to help safe-guard your hard-earned money while leveraging it to its fullest extent for whatever comes your way.
A well-prepared guide would never embark on a climb to the summit of a mountain without maps, a compass, a trauma pack, and other necessary tools. I look forward to providing my knowledge and insight to help you reach the summit of your financial needs. Contact me today to see how I can help you plant the flag of financial freedom at the top of your mountain.
To help guide people to protect their hard-earned money while leveraging it to its fullest extent for whatever comes their way.
We help you plan for the summit by being prepped and prepared for today, tomorrow, and the future. We coach you through your own personalized summit plan, we guide you along your personal journey, and we help set anchors for the steep cliffs and rocky paths of life. We desire to help you leave a legacy for future generations.