Editor's Note: This article is part of the Financial Advisor series "How I Solved It." Advisors describe a client with a problem and what they did to help.
Several years ago, Russ Story of Story Wealth Management Group in Douglas, Ga., met a husband and wife through a financial seminar he conducted. Still a relatively small, family-run boutique firm with just six employees, based about three hours south of Atlanta, it typically serves clients who are nearing or already in retirement. The husband and wife fit that profile, and they became clients.
When the husband died, his widow, a retired teacher, remained Story's client. Eight years later, she became terminally ill. Her health deteriorated to the point where she was completely dependent on a ventilator and feeding tube. Her sons -- her only heirs -- "were in sharp disagreement over whether or not to continue her medical treatment," said Story, who had served as a vice president of Atlanta-based Buckhead Financial Corp. before founding Story Wealth Management.
The brothers' disagreement became so intense that one of them called Story on a Saturday morning. "The widow had only a few days to live," he remembered, and the sons didn't want her to suffer unduly at the end. But they couldn't agree on what course to follow. A decision had to be made, and neither son could recall discussing end-of-life options with their mother.
Story knew exactly what to do. As part of his standard intake process for new clients, he had asked the parents to create a health-care directive at the very beginning. "The couple had cooperated and was glad when it was completed, citing the peace of mind it provided," said Story. "It was actually the woman's request that I keep a copy of her health-care directive in my office" -- instead of just storing it with a family lawyer, as is customary. This turned out to be a prudent decision when Story received that panicky phone call.
"I immediately went to my office and found a copy of her living will, which I faxed to the son. It explained her final wishes," he said. "She'd stated that she wanted to be comfortable but not kept alive by artificial means."