New Financial Guide for Parents of Children with Disabilities and Other Special Needs

Easter Seals (National Easter Seal Society)
Monday, 15 April 2002

Caught up in the daily responsibilities of caring for a child with a disability, parents often push financial planning to the back burner. It can be difficult for parents to save enough both for retirement AND for a lifetime of care for a child with a disability. Postponing financial planning is understandable when a child's daily needs are more pressing, but this lapse can result in someone else choosing that child's future, should parents become unable to oversee his or her care.

Easter Seals and the National Endowment for Financial Education® (NEFE®) have collaborated to create a booklet titled, With Open Arms: Embracing a Bright Financial Future for You and Your Child with Disabilities and Other Special Needs. Written for parents, caregivers, grandparents or others involved in the care of a special-needs child, this 72-page booklet is designed to help plan for a child's financial future. It includes information on estate planning, finding the right lawyer or knowledgeable financial planner, wills, special-needs trusts, government benefits, savings options, insurance plans, and other available resources. The booklet is designed to help parents face financial challenges and look to opportunities for planning for the years ahead. Easter Seals and NEFE encourage families to start financial planning when their child with a disability is at a young age.

Planning for a Child's Financial Future

"Planning for the financial future of a child with a disability can seem overwhelming for a family. In addition to managing the special daily needs of their child, families are faced with medical bills and insurance statements waiting for their attention. This booklet can help families unravel the often daunting task of looking forward and providing a lasting financial future for their child," said James E. Williams, Jr., president and CEO of Easter Seals.

Managing Money for Today and Tomorrow

With Open Arms encourages parents to take a realistic look at long-term financial planning and offers practical, hands-on guidance. One useful worksheet titled "Making a Spending Plan" provides space for listing monthly income, identifying expenses, comparing income and expenses, and making appropriate adjustments. Parents are reminded that their savings plan is important for the entire family: the child with a disability, his or her siblings, and parents themselves.

Easter Seals and NEFE

For more than 80 years, Easter Seals has been providing services that help children and adults with disabilities gain greater independence. Easter Seals' primary services are medical rehabilitation, job training and employment, inclusive child care, adult day services, and camping and recreation - benefiting more than one million individuals and their families each year through 450 centers nationwide. For more information about Easter Seals or to locate an Easter Seals service site near you, visit the Easter Seals Website.

The Denver-based National Endowment for Financial Education is an independent, non-profit foundation committed to educating Americans about personal finance and empowering them to make positive and sound decisions to reach financial goals. NEFE accomplishes this mission in part through unique collaborations with other national non-profit organizations to develop tailored financial literacy materials. For more information about NEFE, visit the NEFE Website.

To order a copy of the booklet, visit the Easter Seals Website. Or send a $5.00 check for shipping and handling, payable to Easter Seals, to Easter Seals, 230 W. Monroe, Suite 1800, Chicago, IL 60606.

For more information, or to contact Easter Seals (National Easter Seal Society), see their website at: www.easter-seals.org