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Values + Valuables - How will you pass them on? Learn from fellow members who have answered this question—and how you can, too.
by Gretchen Roberts
 Does the word "legacy" make you think of famous philanthropists like Andrew Carnegie or J.D. Rockefeller? Or maybe the countless lives touched by Mother Teresa's compassion?
Those are noble legacies, to be sure. But to the people and causes you care about, your legacy will be just as important—no matter how small your bank balance or how seemingly ordinary your acts of kindness.
"A legacy is simply how you want to be remembered—who you are and what matters to you," says Chris Andersen, president and executive director of the Lutheran Community Foundation, a public charity that works with individuals and families to create customized charitable funds. "The question is whether you're purposeful about it or whether your legacy happens accidentally."
Ready to get purposeful?
Your Financial Legacy
First, a helpful definition: "Leaving a financial legacy" means putting together a program that will keep your financial assets available for your intended beneficiaries, whether that's family, charity or both.
"Some people may say, 'I don't have an estate,' or 'I don't need a trust, because I'm not wealthy,'" says Dan Evensen, director of Trust and Investment Services at Thrivent Financial Bank. "But I believe everyone has someone or something they want to care for after they're gone."
So why do so many of us put off planning? Reason No. 1: Intimidation. Whether we picture mountains of paperwork or eye-popping attorney fees, getting a financial legacy in place doesn't sound like much fun. (Myth buster: It's easier than you may think.) Reason No. 2: No matter how strong our faith, our demise is something we'd rather not dwell on.
But here's the payoff: There's enormous peace of mind that comes with knowing that you—not inflexible government statutes—are deciding precisely what will happen to your assets when you die.
Give Thought to Your Goals
"It's important to begin the process by asking the question: 'What do I want to have happen after I'm gone?'" Evensen says. "What you need to do will begin to take shape in the context of your answer."
When Lyle and Mary Goss, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans members from Menomonie, Wisconsin, thought about their financial goals, an answer came to mind immediately. The couple, age 81 and 76, respectively, are very close to their two sons, Randy and Steven, both of whom are married with children. "We just love our boys to death. They are wise, hard-working, loving sons with wonderful families, and if we have anything left after we go to meet the Lord, we want it to go to them," says Mary. "We raised our boys to follow the Lord, and we hope and pray that they will meet us in Heaven."
The Gosses asked Jonathan Kroening, a Thrivent Financial representative in Menomonie, for help in creating a financial program. Kroening met with the Gosses and their sons to help them define their goals. Ultimately, the Gosses decided to purchase a life insurance contract for Mary with Randy and Steven as the beneficiaries.
"There's no cookie-cutter approach to leaving a legacy," Kroening says. "We put together a program that accomplished the Gosses' goals as tax-efficiently as possible."
Myth:
Only wealthy people need wills.
Reality:
All adults need a will, including parents of minor children. Without a will in place, anyone who meets state-established guidelines may petition the court for custody of your children.
Myth:
My property will be distributed according to my general wishes, even without a will prepared by an attorney.
Reality: State statutes will strictly dictate how your assets are distributed according to an inflexible formula.
Myth: I don't have children so I don't need a will.
Reality: The property and assets of people without children is willed according to state law to relatives in specified shares. Charities you care about will lose out.
Put Things Into Play
Once you've thought through your goals, an easy first call can be to your Thrivent Financial representative, who will listen to your ideas, help clarify your objectives and determine what other experts will be helpful—certainly an attorney to draw up plans, and possibly an accountant to cover the tax aspect and a charitable advisor to help maximize your charitable giving.
Don't get overwhelmed. "You may not need all of these people, depending on the complexity of your situation," Evensen says. People with a higher net worth usually make more detailed plans, but the baseline process is the same for everyone.
Are you fearful of fees? That's understandable. But remember that the money you spend securing your financial legacy now could save your loved ones countless dollars—and headaches—down the road.
Be Sure to...
Hop to it. Procrastination is another big roadblock to legacy planning, Evensen says. "The time will come when we can no longer make decisions for ourselves, whether that's because of death or incapacity. Create a sense of urgency for yourself." Working with a financial representative is a great way to stay on task.
Follow through. Evensen once had a client come to him with a trust plan an attorney had drawn up. It turned out that although the plan had been put on paper, the trusts had never been funded. "It's not enough to talk about it; you have to take action," Evensen says.
Keep things up-to-date and organized. Any big changes, such as a death in the family or a new marriage, warrant a new look at your goals and your strategies to get there. And make sure your essential paperwork, including important contact information, is in order and easy to find. Inform a trustworthy family member or friend of its location.
Get your family in the loop. "Not telling your children is such a lost opportunity," Andersen says. "Having a conversation with your loved ones about the legacy you want to leave is one of the most meaningful experiences you can have."
Thrivent Financial members Charles and Geri Bushey asked their children, Ann Harvey and Chris Bushey, to sit in on meetings with Jim Dunlop, a Thrivent Financial representative in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, to discuss their legacy. After Charles Bushey died earlier this year, Ann realized how important it was to have been involved from the beginning.
"My father was an accountant, and his investments were such an interest for him. He enjoyed talking to us about them," Ann says. "When he died, having that knowledge made it a lot easier to deal with his financial matters. We were grieving, and there was an incredible amount of paperwork to deal with. Keeping us in the loop made everything so much easier for my brother and me."
 What About Charities?
Gene Lane, a Thrivent Financial member from Belleville, Pennsylvania, knows the legacy-planning process well. A widow with no children, Lane has been building her charitable legacy since the early 1990s. Her first gifts were scholarship trusts at Susquehanna University. "I was a church organist for 60-some years at different Lutheran churches," says Lane. "That was something I really wanted to pass on: the ability to major in music and carry on playing in our churches. My husband was in the banking business, so I gave one scholarship trust for him in business, and one for me in music."
Throughout the past 15 years, Lane has established charitable gift annuities through the Lutheran Community Foundation and a charitable fund to benefit charities including the American Red Cross, American Heart Association, YMCA and others, using quarterly annuity payments to purchase more charitable annuities.
"Gene's list of charities is phenomenal. She's having a hard time deciding which charity to support next!" says Lori Henry, Lane's Thrivent Financial representative in Lewistown, Pennsylvania.
"I believe we're on this earth for a purpose," Lane says. "As I've gotten older, I've realized I'm still completing mine. I'm just an ordinary person trying to make use of what I've been given."
Your Values Legacy
Many of us believe we're here for a reason. And when it comes to deciding what we'll hand down to the next generation, our values are often just as important as our valuables.
What's Your Net Worth?
Simple: It's the value of what you own minus the value of what you owe. Your financial representative can help you make the most of what you have. Calculate your net worth.
The best part? Leaving a values legacy costs nothing. Think of your own loved ones who have passed away. Chances are they gifted you a legacy of kindness or good humor that still affects you today. Even a treasure like a genealogical history is a valuable legacy for future generations, says Evensen. But where to start?
"It's important to articulate your life values," says Andersen, and writing down a legacy statement can help you summarize your hopes. A legacy statement also can help you share your life values with your loved ones. "Parents and children often have trouble talking about legacies," he adds, and a legacy statement can jump-start conversations about what you hold dear.
Formalizing your values legacy is something you can do right now. First, think it through. What beliefs, issues and causes are important to you? What values do you want to pass to your loved ones? Next, put your thoughts on paper, remembering to write with candor and from your heart.
Once written, share your statement. If it has a financial component, call your financial representative and begin the process of leaving your legacy for future generations. Most important, be sure to give a copy to your family members, maybe with a personal note to each about why he or she is important to you.
And throughout your legacy planning, remember that it's not something you wake up one day and do, and then check off your list. "It's a process," Evensen says. "It takes thought, effort and a lot of love and concern for those individuals and institutions that you want to positively affect after you're gone."
Knoxville, Tennessee, writer Gretchen Roberts, a frequent Thrivent contributor, hopes to leave her children a solid foundation of Lutheran values, as well as financial security for their future.
Take Action
To learn more about creating your legacy, you can contact:
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