Robert Brokamp

What should I start doing?

Well, Kerry, this has been an enlightening and, dare I say, nostalgic conversation.

Thanks so much for joining us.

It's time to get it done, fools.

You know, we're heading into the holiday season where we'll be spending time with family and friends.

I hope you'll be enjoying some good company, good food, and good gifts, but also take the opportunity to talk about a much less cheery topic with the important people in your lives, and that is estate planning.

And I say this in light of two items I read this week.

One comes from the Wall Street Journal, which told the tale of a married couple in their 70s.

The husband managed all the finances, but unexpectedly passed away, leaving the wife overwhelmed by having to learn where everything was and how to manage it.

And the other item comes from my Foolish colleague, Jim Mueller.

A relative of Jim's was taking care of an elderly mother who has dementia, including managing her finances.

Sadly, this relative recently passed away at a relatively young age, and now Jim and his wife are taking over.

But they're flying blind.

They don't know where to find any of the estate planning documents, what bills need to be paid, where any accounts are, or how to access them.

I know estate planning isn't the merriest of topics for the holidays, but take the time to talk with the people you expect to take over and fulfill your financial wishes if something happens to you.

And if you expect to be fulfilling that role for someone else, encourage them to get an updated estate plan, which should include all the important information about all their finances and find out where to find it if you need it.

And on that cherry note, that's the show for this week.

Thanks for spending part of your weekend with us.

And thanks to Bart Shannon, the engineer for this episode.

As always, people on the program may have interest in the investments they talk about, and The Motley Fool may have formal recommendations for or against.