Kasey Kasem. Robin Williams. Now, it's Glen Campbell's family mixing it up over who controls his money and his health care.
This is not a gossip column, but let's face it, these high-profile, public cases are highly instructive. They remind us that fostering family harmony must be the priority as you plan for your life, for possible incapacity, for death. Getting it right can be challenging, particularly when there is money at stake, and children from multiple marriages.
In 2013 I reported that the Rhinestone Cowboy, diagnosed in 2011 with Alzheimer's Disease, was wrapping up his "goodbye" musical tour. When Campbell appeared before a special Senate hearing to advocate for Alzheimer's research funds, it looked like everyone in his family was getting along and united regarding the 78-year-old singer's treatment. That's quite an accomplishment, given the nature of the family: Married four times, Campbell has one child from his first marriage; three from the second; one from the third; and his youngest three are from his marriage to his fourth and current wife, Kim.
Now, Cambell's family unity seems to be cracking. The Associated Press reports that in January two of his children, Debby Campbell-Cloyd and Travis Campbell (half-siblings and the stepchildren of the singer's current wife) filed a petition in Tennessee asking the court to appoint a guardian to take over their father's care and finances. They allege that Cambell's current wife, Kim, is mismanaging his money, preventing several of his children from visiting him at the long-term facility he now resides in, not visiting with regularity herself, and not providing him with the necessary toiletries and clothing. They also object to Kim's allowing her husband to be interviewed and filmed at the facility, saying it is inappropriate based on his frail condition.
Campbell would surely be appalled if he knew what was happening among his loved ones. It is of course impossible to exert total control over how our families behave when we are disabled or pass away, but a good estate plan can go a long way to bringing our loved ones together...just as a bad one can divide them. A qualified estate planning attorney is your and your family's best resource!
This is not a gossip column, but let's face it, these high-profile, public cases are highly instructive. They remind us that fostering family harmony must be the priority as you plan for your life, for possible incapacity, for death. Getting it right can be challenging, particularly when there is money at stake, and children from multiple marriages.
In 2013 I reported that the Rhinestone Cowboy, diagnosed in 2011 with Alzheimer's Disease, was wrapping up his "goodbye" musical tour. When Campbell appeared before a special Senate hearing to advocate for Alzheimer's research funds, it looked like everyone in his family was getting along and united regarding the 78-year-old singer's treatment. That's quite an accomplishment, given the nature of the family: Married four times, Campbell has one child from his first marriage; three from the second; one from the third; and his youngest three are from his marriage to his fourth and current wife, Kim.
Now, Cambell's family unity seems to be cracking. The Associated Press reports that in January two of his children, Debby Campbell-Cloyd and Travis Campbell (half-siblings and the stepchildren of the singer's current wife) filed a petition in Tennessee asking the court to appoint a guardian to take over their father's care and finances. They allege that Cambell's current wife, Kim, is mismanaging his money, preventing several of his children from visiting him at the long-term facility he now resides in, not visiting with regularity herself, and not providing him with the necessary toiletries and clothing. They also object to Kim's allowing her husband to be interviewed and filmed at the facility, saying it is inappropriate based on his frail condition.
Campbell would surely be appalled if he knew what was happening among his loved ones. It is of course impossible to exert total control over how our families behave when we are disabled or pass away, but a good estate plan can go a long way to bringing our loved ones together...just as a bad one can divide them. A qualified estate planning attorney is your and your family's best resource!
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