A client once told us about something they found in their grandfather’s garage.
They were going through the house after he passed — the way families do, sorting through what stays, what goes. Most of the stuff was what you’d expect. Old paint cans. Worn lawn chairs. A stack of extension cords that hadn’t been touched in years.
But under the workbench, they found an old toolbox.
It wasn’t anything special. Scuffed up. Metal latches a little bent. No brand name or monogrammed plaque. Just a basic box — filled with a jumble of hand tools that had clearly seen decades of use.
“I almost threw it out,” the client said. “But then I realized — he used this for everything.”
And not just on the house.
When someone’s screen door needed fixing, when the lawnmower wasn’t working, when his neighbor’s fence came loose in a storm — that’s the box he grabbed. Not to make a big deal out of it. Not for credit. Just because something needed to be handled.
It wasn’t sentimental. It was functional.
And that, in the end, was what made it worth keeping.
That story has stuck with us — because it says something about how a lot of people in our lives have shown care: not with big words or big gestures, but by taking responsibility for the things that matter, often before anyone asked them to.
Estate planning, when done well, does the same thing.
It’s not about appearances. It’s not about fancy binders or buzzwords. It’s about building something reliable — something your family can lean on when they need it most.
It doesn’t have to be flashy, but it does have to be complete. The tools have to be there — organized, aligned, and ready.
A solid power of attorney. A clear, well-funded trust. Beneficiary designations that actually match the plan. These aren’t bells and whistles. They’re what makes the plan work.
The people who tell us they “don’t have much” or that they “took care of the will years ago” are often the same ones whose families end up overwhelmed — not because the plan was complex, but because the key pieces weren’t in place.
That old toolbox wasn’t impressive on the surface — but it did exactly what it was supposed to do. And the family knew they could count on it.
Your estate plan should work the same way.
Reliable. Thoughtfully built. Aligned with what matters most. There when it’s needed — and ready before it is.