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Retirement and Estate Planning for Farm Women

Ruth Hambleton

Summary

Retirement and Estate Planning for Farm Women is a single day six-hour program designed to meet specific needs of women as they approach retirement years and their time for transition planning. While many excellent retirement and transition programs address the nuts and bolts of funding retirement years, there is further need for women to understand managing farm assets in retirement years that they may inherit from their spouses or a woman´s family farm. Farm women also tend to be the central communicator for all kinds of issues that arise in the transition and estate planning process. Sometimes a woman who has dedicated her life to the farm operation discovers she is totally excluded from an estate plan. Other times a woman is caught between families and between generations. Through formal presentation and group interaction, this program addresses basic issues of retirement and estate planning, and helps women sort out priorities and their roles in these important decisions. Women who attended this program reported changes in attitudes and behavior. One woman hired a professional counselor to help her and her husband´s family deal with difficult estate issues. Other women reported taking action to review insurance policies and wills. Instructors are a mix of educators, attorneys, insurance providers and Certified Financial Planners. Retirement and Estate Planning for Farm Women, in its third year, is a second tier program for Annie’s Project—Education for Farm Women.

Details

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