Their youngest daughter, State Farm Agent, Beth Moloughney, who gave birth to the first grandchild only 6 weeks earlier, recalls their excitement as the closing date drew near. She also recalls a very important decision her parents made.

 “My parents were faithful and longtime State Farm policyholders. Both my sister and I have had life insurance since we were infants,” Beth said.

Martin and Dorothy approached their State Farm Agent, James Spera to place insurance on the home they were buying in three days. At that meeting, Mr. Spera presented them with additional life insurance quotes to cover the mortgage on their dream home. Martin, feeling they already had enough, said to Mr. Spera, “Every time we come in here you try to sell us more life insurance.” Mr. Spera replied it was his job to make sure that they were properly covered. After some back and forth, they purchased two policies.

The Sonnenbergs left with the binding receipts and went off to close on their dream home. They named it “The Shore House.”

This should be the end of this fairytale story, but like every fairytale, there is some tragedy. This tragedy was earth-shattering.

Three days after closing on their “dream home,” Martin died suddenly. Shattering the family’s world and Martin & Dorothy’s dream of growing old together in The Shore House. But because of the life insurance, the home was paid in full, and Dorothy never had to worry about that property.

At first, Beth was reluctant to spend time there. She felt it was a “death house.” “My Dad died for this,” she thought. But her grandmother sat her down and explained the best way to honor his memory was to do exactly what he had envisioned with the home.

Dorothy kept that home for the next 30 years where all the grandchildren spent their summers learning how to boat, fish, and enjoy all that is the Jersey Shore. It was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy in 2011.

Life insurance changes lives in many ways. Not just the immediate, but sometimes setting us on the path we are meant to be on.

“This is why I am here today as a State Farm Agent. I was able to see firsthand the value of life insurance and how it has a generational impact and leaves a legacy of love beyond words. ” Beth said.

Visit https://www.statefarm.com/ and https://lifehappens.org/ for more information.

Although he was only 24, the Puerto Rican native who lived in Connecticut had an old soul. He preferred spending time with those more mature than he, and always enjoyed family gatherings.

“Raymond had an infectious laugh and was always thinking of others,” Sabrina says.

That’s why Sabrina believes Raymond’s decision to get life insurance was “a simple act of love.”

The couple had talked about the need to protect loved ones from a loss after the family had a loss. They weighed the need against the relatively small monetary cost.

Sabrina was surprised to learn that a week after that discussion, Raymond went to State Farm® Agent Jon Racow’s office in Wallingford, Conn., to get auto insurance and, after speaking with an agent team member in Jon’s office, Raymond also purchased life insurance.

The couple continued living their lives, looking forward to the family time the holidays always bring. Celebrating Christmas Eve together, Raymond realized he had forgotten one of Sabrina’s gifts at his apartment. Always selfless and attentive, he insisted on going back to get it.

Sadly, he would not return.

On the way, Raymond’s car crashed head-on with another vehicle, with tragic results. Raymond died from his injuries.

Our days are often filled with simple acts of love, one after another, that over time create a better future. Purchasing life insurance is like that, too. It’s a simple act you can take today to ensure your loved ones are protected financially tomorrow if the unthinkable happens.

The Insure Your Love life insurance campaign, held every year in February, was created by the Life Happens organization as a way to highlight the basic motivation behind purchasing life insurance -- protecting the ones you love. State Farm is a member of Life Happens.

Here’s to appreciating all the little things we do and those everyday moments that shape our lives and give it meaning. Protect those everyday moments with life insurance, just like Raymond did.

Sabrina was so grateful and appreciative of the care and attention Jon and his team gave her during the claim process.

“Thanks to them,” she says, “Raymond’s ‘simple act of love’ made it possible for his remains to be sent to his mother in Puerto Rico, so she may lay him to rest in his homeland.”

Prentiss Bullard of Atlanta, Georgia, grew up knowing three things:

• Treat people with respect.
• When life gets you down, laugh.
• A college degree is a must.

"I learned it all from my dad," smiled Prentiss. "He's a people person, and that rubbed off on me. His dream, for me to pursue higher education, has too." Instead of going to college, Prentiss’s dad joined the workforce, serving as the primary breadwinner for Prentiss and his mother.

"Dad taught me the value of hardwork, and always reminded me to stay in school," said Prentiss. "He wanted me to go farther than he did."

The years passed. The Bullard family kept busy. Life was happy. Then, in 2016, everything turned upside down. “I was walking to school when I got an urgent call from my mom,” said Prentiss. "I’ll never forget her words: “Your dad’s been hit by a car.”

"We rushed to the hospital. Dad's injuries were so severe. He passed away a short time later." Prentiss Bullard senior was just 49 years old.

With grieving hearts, Prentiss and his mother were left to figure out how to move forward. But without an adequate life insurance plan, questions about how to pay for bills, make rent, or even plan for college remained unanswered. “We hardly had time to process everything,” said Prentiss. “It was so stressful. On top of it all, I was worried I might not be able to go to school.”

Prentiss got a job and started applying for scholarships, including the Life Lessons Scholarship from the nonprofit, Life Happens. With the support of State Farm, Life Happens helps educate families with insurance and financial planning. “I did everything I could to take the load off my mom, while also making sure my dad’s wish – that I go to college – came true.” In 2018 Prentiss got a phone call that left him beaming from ear to ear...

“I learned I was the grand prize winner of the Life Lessons scholarship. I was thrilled! The happiness I felt that day, I still feel now. My life is changed.”

Today, Prentiss is a student at George Washington University, pursuing a degree in fine arts. “Whenever I’m taking a test, doing homework, or studying for exams – I think of dad. I think of how much he and my mom love me. I want to make them proud, so I work hard. I’m aspiring to be a photojournalist. The opportunity to go to college is truly a gift.”

Prentiss continues to live out the lessons his father taught him. He says they’re lessons everyone should remember. And, there’s one more piece of advice he wants to share:

“Protect the ones you love, make sure they’re provided for with a life insurance plan. Everyone should make this a priority,” said Prentiss. “Life has a lot of twists and turns. Accidents happen. Knowing you’re covered means peace of mind - so you can keep enjoying your journey.”

Saving for the Future¹

Saving money helps you achieve your goals. Establish a budget, manage debt and plan for  st8.fm/3steps

Save for the future by learning about basic savings accounts, retirement accounts, and how to make compounding interest work for you. Use this calculator to help determine how much you should consider saving to meet your financial goals.

Health Insurance

Are you happy with your current health plan? Health status, premiums, deductibles, and even regulations may change over time. Be sure your health care coverage meets your needs. Take steps to reduce premiums with wellness discounts that may be available to you. And if you're on Medicare, consider options for a Medicare Supplement that's right for you.

Life Protection

Life insurance is the foundation of financial planning and security. It helps your family recover from financial risks and unexpected costs and lets them plan for tomorrow.

Thinking about financial protection and retirement can seem overwhelming, but as your life changes, so does your financial situation. Key life events such as marriage, moving or buying a home, children, job changes and retirement are important indicators that signal changes that might need to be made.

Disability Insurance

Car insurance? Check. Home insurance? Check. But have you protected one of your most valuable assets? Your paycheck

Among Americans’ top financial concerns is maintaining one’s standard of living in the event of a serious illness or accident. Disability insurance may help address this concern.

Liability Insurance

Safeguard yourself in case an accident results in injuries to someone or a loss to their property. It's possible that your primary policies may not be enough to protect you or your business. A  State Farm liability insurance policy may provide the additional liability coverage you need  to protect your financial future.

¹ State Farm Bank, F.S.B., Bloomington, Illinois (“Bank”), is a Member FDIC and Equal Housing Lender. NMLS ID 139716. The other products offered by affiliate companies of State Farm Bank are not FDIC insured, not a State Farm Bank obligation or guaranteed by State Farm Bank, and may be subject to investment risk, including possible loss of principal invested. The Bank encourages any interested individual(s) to submit an application for any product(s) offered by the Bank. We also encourage you to obtain information regarding the Bank’s underwriting standards for each type of credit or service offered by visiting statefarm.com® or by contacting the Bank at 877-SF4-BANK (877-734-2265). If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or do not use your voice to communicate, you may contact us via 711 or other relay services.

Product availability may vary by state. Please contact an agent for more information.

“I met Katie when she came over to meet my roommate’s pup, Cole. We hit it off right away and I asked her to the movies.”

The relationship blossomed - and in 2011 the pair wed.

“Marrying Katie was a packaged deal. I got a wonderful wife and her Labrador border collie mix, Riley,” smiled Stephen. "I became an instant dog dad.”

Life marched on. Stephen worked as a contractor. Katie, an accountant. “Great with numbers, wise with money - that’s Katie.” So it didn’t surprise Stephen when Katie arranged a meeting for the couple to discuss their financial goals with State Farm® agent Rose Goheen.

“I knew Katie before she met Stephen, because I helped write her homeowners insurance,” said Rose. “She was analytical, logical, and practical. She wanted to ensure they had a strong financial foundation.”

During the meeting, they discussed life insurance. That didn’t sit well with Stephen. “I thought the whole thing was a waste of time and money,” he said. "I told Katie, ‘We’re young! We’re healthy. We don’t need this.’”

Katie won the debate. They took out two term policies. Life marched on.

In 2014, the Millers celebrated the birth of their first child, a son named Chase. Shortly after, they met Rose for another financial review.

“Stephen and Katie did it right. Life insurance matters. It is important to look at policies to determine a comfortable figure for your budget and changing circumstances,” said Rose.

Three years later, the Millers welcomed their second child, Reid. “It was an exciting, busy time,” said Stephen. “But we had health concerns about Katie.”

A few months after giving birth to Reid, doctors found a tumor near Katie’s stomach. Following surgery and testing, it was determined to be Ewing’s Sarcoma. The rare cancer, which occurs in and around the bones had metastasized to other parts of Katie’s body.

“The word cancer…it’s numbing,” said Stephen. “But Katie never lost her light.”

With the help and support of family, friends and her medical team, Katie fought the disease hard. But the cancer continued to spread. On July 28, 2018, Katie passed away at the age of 30.

Her final request was to remember the good times, remember her.

“We continue to do that every day,” said Stephen. “I started a nonprofit called ‘Katie’s Crew.’ Its purpose is to raise awareness and support for cancer research. We will win this fight.”

Stephen says Katie’s legacy is all around him. And, her forward thinking, to ensure they had life insurance means the family is secure and protected.

“Chase, Reid, Riley and I can stay in our house. I’m so grateful for that sense of the familiar during this unbelievably hard time,” said Stephen. “Because Katie thought ahead, Chase and Reid can go to college. Their education is taken care of. We also have the financing to take vacations, and do fun activities. I know Katie would want that. Because of life insurance coverage, our boys are protected. My wife was right all along.”

And, as life continues to march on, Stephen says the joy Katie brought to the world continues to be recognized and celebrated by those near and far.

“She taught us so much. Taught us how to appreciate the small things, laugh whenever possible and love always,” said Stephen. "Her legacy will never be forgotten.”

The money raised from the ride helps a local family care for the young child of two of Jess’s friends killed in a crash three years ago. The funds also helped pay lingering medical costs and final expenses.

Jess is an agent team member for State Farm^® Agent Thomas Klann, Fort Madison, Iowa. She’s worked for two insurance agents for the past seven years, and is hoping to be a State Farm agent someday.

“I used to feel a little uneasy asking people about life insurance, but not now,” Jess says. “This was a wake-up call. I have seen what happens, and I know what life insurance can do for families.”

Jess says it’s not just about whether you have life insurance or you don’t. It’s about the type of policy and how much coverage, as well as what kind of life insurance – for example, sometimes group life insurance through work might not be adequate. It depends on each person’s individual needs.

“I also talk with people about their beneficiaries, including survivor beneficiaries – meaning if you and your beneficiary both die – so loved ones are protected,” Jess says.

For her friends’ families, they dealt with overwhelming medical expenses and had to wait more than a year to purchase a headstone for one of their loved ones. In addition there are financial challenges of family members joining together to raise a young child.

This year, about 50 people participated in the benefit ride. Though concern for the family is still there, each year the number of participants decline as other events happen and take center stage in a small town. However, the family’s financial needs and expenses continue.

“It’s so difficult to sit with a person who has just lost a loved one,” Jess adds. “But I see how life insurance can ease financial worries so they have time to grieve rather than worrying about returning to work in order to pay the electric bill.”

When Jess thinks about the difference she can make in other people’s lives, she says, “It’s never a good thing to deliver a claim check for a life policy, but I know I’d like to be the one delivering it.”

September is Life Insurance Awareness Month. Find more resources on life insurance on statefarm.com^®.

“I couldn’t believe he dialed 911 and then reached a neighbor,” says Vicky. “He knew what to do because he recalled the training. He asked me two simple questions. When I couldn’t answer them, he knew I needed help. It could have been much more serious if he didn’t know what to do in that situation.”

As a retiree, Paul, who lives in Bayside, Calif., still reaches about 3,000 children a year with the 911 simulator. He has also helped schools purchase Fatal Vision goggles to teach students about impaired driving and a Seat Belt Convincer to stress the importance of wearing seatbelts.

Several years later, the family – which included Vicky, her husband, Lee, and their son, Isaac – moved from California to Wyoming.

At 16, Isaac was an adventurous teen who loved the outdoors. He and a friend were in a remote mountainous area of with family. The teens wanted to stay a little longer. When they didn’t return at dusk, Vicky and Lee became worried. They reported the boys missing and a search began.

Tom Newman, a member of the search and rescue crew, assured the families they would not stop looking until the boys were found. Tom and another member of the rescue squad found the boys, unharmed, on the third day.

Tom is also a State Farm agent in Lovell, Wy.

Nine months later, in July 2017, tragedy struck the family. Isaac, then 17, was killed in a crash. He was driving his car too fast on a dirt road and failed to navigate a sharp turn. He was not wearing a seatbelt.

“As parents you never want to think about losing your child,” Vicky says. “We were grieving and we were scared. We had to make plans to return to California for the funeral services, and the expenses from medical bills and the funeral arrangements were adding up.”

Paul, their former California agent, called as soon as he heard the news. He reminded Vicky they’d purchased life insurance on Isaac before they moved. That policy was now with the local agent, Tom. They wouldn’t realize until later it was the same person who helped find Isaac when he was lost in the mountains.

“Paul called Tom and the two worked together to get us a check for life insurance proceeds in a little over a week, which was about $34,000,” Vicky says. “I honestly don’t know what we would have done without it.”

Today, Vicky is looking for ways to get involved and reach students about seatbelt safety.

“Vicky and I have talked about how we can visit schools and educate teens about the importance of wearing a seatbelt,” Tom says.

Vicky also doesn’t miss a chance to tell friends and family about the value of life insurance.

Looking back, she reflects on how State Farm has been there for her family over the years.

“Paul’s involvement saved my life because Isaac knew how to call 911,” she adds. “Tom’s participation in search and rescue saved Isaac’s life and gave us nine more months with him. After the accident, life insurance helped ease our financial worries during an incredibly painful time. Even if relieving some worries only makes it a small percentage better – it is better than 100 percent awful.

“I tell my friends, ‘Call State Farm and someone will help you.’ I am grateful for the role State Farm has played in our lives.”

The untimely death of a parent can be an overwhelming loss. But for some young people, it can also mean struggling to put food on the table or keep a roof over your head. It can also make the idea of attending college seem like a fairy tale.

“If it wasn’t for the kindness of friends, my brother and I would’ve been homeless after our mom died of cancer,” said Rachel Tang, a University of Southern California student originally from Bozeman, Mont.

Our parents teach us many lessons as we grow and become adults. They are there to catch us when we stumble and help us back up again. Sometimes there are lessons that are never taught. It’s then left to us to learn those lessons and share them with our own families.

Topher’s story

I was a freshmen at the University of Missouri and the first in my family to attend college. Everything was going as planned. Even though my best friend, my mom, was 400 miles away, we couldn’t be any closer. She was my mentor and a true companion.

A Tough but Valuable Lesson

Then it all changed when I got that call. My mom was traveling to see me for Parent’s Weekend but suffered a heart attack on the way. Later that night she passed away. The days, weeks, and months after proved to be the hardest of my life. In addition to the extreme emotional, intellectual and physical pain that comes with the loss of a parent, I was caught in a very difficult financial situation. She didn’t have life insurance.

I was forced to move out of my college dorm room and get a job that offered housing and a meal plan, as well as a job serving tables to pay for school expenses and bills. I worked 50+ hours a week while attending school full time. Now I was worried whether I would be able to afford school next year.

Passing along what I have learned

This experience has changed me in ways that I can’t even explain. But it has taught me the importance of planning for my financial future. Life Insurance would have eased the transition to a life without my mother. This is a lesson I will be sure to share with those around me, especially my own family as I plan for my future.

Life Lessons

The emotional strain of a parent’s death can be devastating to children and young adults. And for too many families, an untimely death also brings financial stress, making recovery all the more difficult.

Life Happens sponsors the annual Life Lessons Scholarship Program for college students and college-bound high school seniors. Qualified entrants who submit essays or videos about how the death of a parent impacted their lives are eligible for scholarship money.

Last year, Topher Otake received a Life Lessons Scholarship sponsored by State Farm. The $12,500 scholarship has given him the financial support to focus on his studies. He is a junior in college now, pursuing a degree in Music Education. He hopes to become a teacher after graduation.

For more information or to apply for a scholarship, please click here.

Want to ensure a family life filled with all the good stuff - adventure, security and love? Gather your loved ones together and pick up a pen.

Here’s a time-honored way to get things done: sit down, write down everything you need to accomplish, then cross items off as you go. A list is a great way to manage the little stuff. But what about the big stuff? Forget about making your dentist appointment or getting the car serviced - what about traveling to Europe, adopting a child, buying a second home? After all, someday when you look back on your life, you won’t be thinking about your forgotten hair appointment. You’ll want to be sure that you accomplished the things that help shape who you are - not just as a person but as a family.

Enter the family bucket list - a list of things you want to make sure get done before it’s too late. It’s like your life’s to-do list, but it’s not just yours, it’s your family’s. And it’s not about getting through the day; it’s about prioritizing your life for years to come. The benefits go beyond planning for tomorrow though; when a family comes together as a unit to pinpoint what’s important, dreams converge, and intimacy builds. We talked to three families who used bucket lists to map out their family’s shared future - and to foster closeness in the here and now.

The Krupickas: Kayak at the Dunes

A couple years ago, Lara Krupicka of Chicago discovered that her then 12-year-old daughter had a natural talent. “She’d had a good first season in track, and people were like, “Wait, she did that well in her basketball shoes?” Lara laughs. “So we bought her track spikes as a Christmas gift.” A few months later, Lara’s daughter announced a goal - she wanted to break the high school track record. Then, lo and behold, she did it - while still in junior high.

Lara is understandably proud of her daughter’s achievements, but she doesn’t see them happening by accident, or in a vacuum. “To see her achieve her goal wasn’t just meaningful to her; it was meaningful to us,” she explains. “It struck me that in our family there was an amazing dynamic happening when one of us went after something particularly important, I saw how some of our goals would stretch across our family and realized we need to embrace that."

So Lara and her family sat down and began brainstorming - what did they want as individuals? What did they want as a family? And where did these hopes and dreams overlap? Lara says articulating hopes and dreams wasn’t new for her family, but the exercise of writing them down was.

“Last fall was the first time we got this in writing, but using that language and seizing those opportunities - I can’t even pinpoint where that started,” she says. The magic was in the intention - the sense of pride that came with identifying a goal and accomplishing it rather than simply hoping that something would happen.

Thus inspired, Lara didn’t stop there. From her family bucket lists she developed a family bucket list manifesto, with calls for the reader to “Savor the anticipation of a goal,” “Plan to amaze yourself,” and crucially, “Be spontaneous, but plan often.” Out of this grew her book Family Bucket Lists: Bring More Fun, Adventure & Camaraderie into Every Day.

Despite the emphasis on family, Lara advises people to write their own individual lists prior to coming together as a group. “Start your own list first, and have your kids get their bucket list going. There’s a synergy that happens,” she explains. “The family list grows out of that.”

Lara points out that as they cross things off their list, the kids naturally become more engaged. “It’s a push-pull. Writing down our goals allows my husband and I to focus on some deficits with our kids-and our kids learn that we’re serious about it!” One of the items on their list was to go kayaking at Sleeping Bear Dunes-which they made happen last summer. “The more adventures we do, the more we expose them to, the more they’ve grown to embrace it.”

The Thomsens: Travel to Europe

When Kathy Thomsen first married her husband, Jim, they lived in a tiny apartment with no furniture. They’d pull out their jar of loose change, count in the middle of their floor, and that would tell them what they could afford to do that weekend. To say they were cash poor may be an understatement. But they were rich in dreams, which is why they began their own bucket list very early on - on and old-school yellow notepad.

“We wrote it while were expecting our first child,” Kathy recalls. “Jim has heard about this idea of writing down 101 lifetime goals. We both liked the concept of making a list. Where are we going from here? What do we want our family, our life, to look like? The idea was that if you’re intentional about writing things down, you’re more likely to see where it will take you.”

Now Kathy and Jim have been married more than a quarter century, and on their 25th wedding anniversary they decided it would be fun to pull out that old list. “It’s funny. Some entries were big like travel to Europe. But some of them were ‘Buy a crib’!” The list was almost like a time capsule, giving a rare window into the concerns that held sway so long ago.

“What was cool was that while we wrote things like, ‘I want to learn how to sail’ or ‘I want to go to these countries someday,’ we also came up with things like ‘I want to paint the nursery.’ Those might seem silly, but they were important - we needed to prepare for the family.”

Some of their entries felt pie-in-the-sky at the time. “We wrote things like, have a four-bedroom home, travel to several countries, spend time in the mountains, have a second home,” Kathy recalls. “We even put down, ‘Have a grand piano,’ well, we have one now!” But they also donate money to their college and church and give generously to benefit others. “Each year we decide ahead of time which organizations we want to give to so we can plan for it.”

They also managed to make it to their travel destination, purchase a second home in the mountains, and live in a large home they built themselves. This was all possible, Kathy says, because peppered among the fantasies on that first list were some nitty-gritty financial goals too.

“Jim made sure to include, ‘Have x amount of money in the bank,”’ she points out. “When we think back to those first few years, when we had so little-just the two of us in this tiny apartment - compared with these last few years, we live a very nice lifestyle now that we never imagined back then.” But because they sat down to write their bucket list, they did imagine it. Now that they’ve achieved it they find themselves looking ahead to the next 25 years. “We still want to be intentional about challenging ourselves and doing stimulating things, but accumulating things is not as important anymore,” Kathy reflects. “Being financially stable is always important, of course, but now, as our kids get ready for college, we’re talking about downsizing. We built this house six years ago, and it’s enormous. Now we’re thinking maybe we can sell this and live somewhere else! We’re more interested in freedom.

What is on your family bucket list? Sending kids to college? Traveling somewhere new each year? Saving for retirement? Make the most of every life experience and those memories that last a lifetime and build a lasting legacy.

Related: The Family Bucket List Infographic

Financial Wellness Tips for a Positive Financial Future - State Farm®

Through their own initiative – including washing cars and soliciting donations – the family was able to make it through. And when Sonia finally woke up, she was also awakened to the need to protect her family from the unexpected.

Thinglink

State Farm Life Insurance Company (Not licensed in MA, NY or WI) State Farm Life and Accident Assurance Company (Licensed in NY and WI) Bloomington, IL LIAM-1010.0

As the years passed, Ron and Kelly were faced with a multitude of challenges. Ron experienced a back injury, forcing him into early retirement from his construction career. To keep the bills paid, Kelly took over the family finances and began pursuing her real estate license. When Kelly passed away suddenly in 2009, it came as both an emotional and financial shock to Ron and their two children.

“Every day you get up and go to work. Every day you get up and start your car. You take that for granted,” Ron said. “You never take [for] granted something unexpected. When Kelly passed away, it was very unexpected. She was worth everything to us.”

Fortunately, they had someone on their side: Their longtime friend (and insurance agent) Steve. It was now, when things looked their worst, that advice Steve had given years before paid off, enabling Ron to keep his family together.

Investing in the future

Many years before, based on Steve’s counsel, Ron and Kelly had chosen a permanent life insurance plan that accumulated cash value, which had allowed them to fulfill their dream of buying a home and paying for unforeseeable costs, like Ron’s medical bills.

But because of his health problems and the state of the economy in 2009, when Kelly had become the primary wage-earner in the family, finances were so tight that Ron told Kelly that he thought they should cancel their life insurance policy. They met with Steve again, who took the time to walk through their financial options and encouraged them to consider keeping their policy.

“The real lightbulb moment was when Ron realized how much Kelly really did for him and the household and family, and the fact that she did bring in income that he would have to do without if something should happen to her,” said Steve.

For most Americans, the death of a primary wage-earner would mean big living changes. According to LIMRA’s life insurance consumer studies, one-third of Americans believe they would feel the financial impact from the loss of a primary wage earner within one month of the wage earner’s passing. Half say they would feel an impact within six months.

After loss, some relief

Ron was in the group that would feel the impact immediately, and he feared what it could mean for his family. “With Emmet being a minor and Jamie just getting out of school and my serious back problems the last year that Kelly was alive, I’m afraid to think of what would have happened to all of us without our life insurance policy,” said Ron.

In the wake of Kelly’s death, Ron had to take over financial responsibility for the household. He reached out to Steve again, who reminded him they had kept their life insurance policy. In fact, he told Ron, they had actually increased their coverage, a decision that provided the necessary funds for Ron to remain with his sons and keep his home.

“It was a great relief when Steve told me we weren’t going to lose our house, and I was going to be able to stay here with the boys,” said Ron, “[Without insurance] I would have had to instantly liquidate everything or look to my relatives for help. Life insurance takes care of that unexpected stuff.”

State Farm Life Insurance Company (Not licensed in MA, NY or WI) State Farm Life and Accident Assurance Company (Licensed in NY and WI) Bloomington, IL LIAM-1009.0 

What came next, though, was unexpected.

When Claire’s only child, Jude, was born, she instantly fell in love. As the weeks went by, Claire and her mother, Liz, started to notice that something was wrong. Jude cried often and wouldn’t gain weight. Then one day, after five seizures, a call to 9-1-1, and hospitalization, Jude was diagnosed with epilepsy.

Typically, people with seizure disorders have difficulty qualifying for an affordable life insurance policy, but thanks to Jude’s grandmother, he is protected for life. When Jude was 20 days old, Liz purchased a whole life insurance policy for him with a Guaranteed Insurability Option (GIO) rider. It will not only allow Jude to purchase additional insurance in the future without proof of insurability, but it will also build cash value that might be used for other things throughout his life, including future medical costs or education.

“I got life policies for both of my grandchildren right after they were born,” said Liz. “I had purchased them for my children and then wanted them for my grandchildren as well. I like the policy because it’s affordable, it builds cash value, and it offers the guaranteed insurability. It just seemed like the best life-long policy.”

Claire feels their unique story shows how important life insurance is and that it’s something all families should consider. Although Jude’s epilepsy diagnosis was quite unexpected (there is no family history), the disease is actually rather common – according to the Epilepsy Foundation, 50 million people are affected worldwide and almost 500 new cases of epilepsy are diagnosed every day in the U.S.

“As a mother, we believe that we have the ability to protect our children from everything. With Jude having the seizures when he was little, I realized there are a lot of things I can’t protect him from,” Claire said. “There are things in life moms can’t prevent or control. It’s like if there was a big earthquake, you know what – I couldn’t stop it… I couldn’t make the earth stop shaking. But I feel like Jude’s life insurance is a safety net. I know that no matter what happens throughout his life, he will always have that.”

Liz feels Jude’s life insurance policy is a gift that will keep on giving, probably longer than she’ll be around. “It will certainly outlast any of the other type of gifts that a grandmother could give,” Liz said. “Blocks, toy trucks, whatever will be discarded, but this will keep going for him. Because I took the guaranteed insurability rider, he will be able to continue to add life insurance over time throughout his life – like when he gets married or he has a child. He can add more and it will continue to build cash value.”

Despite Jude’s health issues, he is exuberant, active, rambunctious, and goes nonstop from morning to night. He loves taking things apart and putting them back together, making new friends, and is very loving, especially to his mom and grandma.

“Obviously, as a mom, you fall in love instantly…but as I’ve watched him get older and have to go through so much, and he’s just so amazing…that your heart grows more and more every day,” Claire says.

Life insurance helped prepare the family when the unexpected came their way and they are now in a good place. They are dealing with and overcoming the challenges of epilepsy and are positive about Jude’s future. He’s down to one epilepsy medication, attends a regular preschool program, does everything any other five-year-old child does, and has a very bright future.

“I think it’s going to be really great,” Claire said. “I really hope he’s able to inspire other children like him to reach for the stars…because there’s nothing that he can’t do, not with that smile!”