Indiana Estate Planning & Elder Law

Friends Of The Firm Friday - Watch Us Farm

Watch Us Farm is a Zionsville, Ind., nonprofit vocational training program serving adults with special needs. The farm was founded by Janice Agarwal, PT, cNDT, who also serves as executive director.

She shares, "Adults with special needs working at Watch Us Farm take pride in creating excellent quality products and textiles. We would like more people to recognize the value a job provides to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities and the good work our community of adults is doing at Watch Us Farm.  We can’t change a person’s disability, but we can change the way other people perceive adults with special needs."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Long-term, the team hopes to create a self-sustaining community combining jobs, housing, and social engagement for these often-forgotten adults. The nonprofit is supported by foundation, corporate, and private donations and by the sale of its products.  Donations to the farm are tax-deductible.  Watch Us Farm welcomes volunteers and partnerships with local businesses and industries to expand the jobs available to this talented group of adults.

 

These adults are so talented in fact that they recently won an international award - the 2021 Elizabeth and Richard Ashford Textile Award.  Ashford Handicrafts Ltd., based in New Zealand, is a world leader in the manufacture of quality spinning wheels, weaving looms, and textile equipment and offers an annual award to encourage and support textile artists and help them enjoy artistic freedom. Watch Us Farm uses an Ashford loom in their weaving service line and was selected to receive the award after a competitive, worldwide application process. 

The Ashford Award provides international recognition for Watch Us Farm and the design and creation of beautiful rugs, table runners, dish towels, scarves, and baby blankets by local adults with special needs, as well as Ashford equipment, wool, fiber, and yarn with a value of approximately $3600. Watch Us Farm textiles are sold at Zionsville’s Truffles & Creams Chocolatier Back to the Bricks, My Sugar Pie, and online. 

You can learn more about Watch Us Farm at https://www.watchusfarm.com/.

Facebook: Watch Us Farm

Instagram: @watch.us.farm

Phone: 317-590-6496

Friends of the Firm Friday - Epilepsy Foundation Indiana

 

 

 

 

 

We recently met with Ryan Keys, Executive Director of  Epilepsy Foundation Indiana, the local chapter headquartered in Indianapolis, to learn more about the organization. The mission of the Epilepsy Foundation is to lead the fight to overcome the challenges of living with epilepsy and to accelerate therapies to stop seizures, find cures, and save lives. 

Laura Thrall, Epilepsy Foundation President and CEO has been guiding the organization to serve 3.4 million Americans living with epilepsy. Of those, 69,500 are living in Indiana and are actively served by Epilepsy Foundation Indiana. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photo of the Evansville Walk provided by Epilepsy Foundation Indiana. 

As depicted above, Epilepsy Foundation Indiana serves the community in many ways. For families and individuals battling epilepsy, they offer support groups, trainings, camps, activities, ways to share testimonials, and local resources. The chapter offers free education, consultation and support for anyone affected by epilepsy to the best of their ability. For those seeking ways to get involved there are volunteer and advocacy opportunities.

Given COVID-19 there have been changes to the organization's event schedule and offering. Updated policies and procedures can be found on their website. 

Epilepsy Foundation Indiana can be contacted by calling 800-332-1000 or my emailing [email protected]. 

Learn more about Epilepsy Foundation Indiana at:

• www.epilepsy.com/indiana
• Facebook 
• Twitter
• Instagram

Legacy Planning - Your 10 Step Plan

Giving back is about linking passion with action, and it does not have to be complex—but it does have to be well thought out to be effective.

 As many well-to-do but generous Americans can attest, your philanthropy can do more than just help the cause or causes important to you. So why not bless your family as well as your charities as part of your legacy?

To make philanthropy a part of your legacy, you do not have to be a Carnegie to have your name put on this or that building. For most of us, our family is our most important and lasting legacy. Consequently, philanthropy can be what binds a family together and passes down real enduring values to the younger generations, all while doing tangible good today.

This is not automatic. It requires more than estate planning, or even charitable gift planning, but what is called legacy planning. To give you a quick run-down and even a guide, you might consider the ten steps that formed the basis of a recent Private Wealth magazine article titled “10-Step Legacy Planning.”

The ten by title alone are:

1. Identify What Inspires
2. Create A Giving Mission Statement
3. Review Giving History
4. Engage The Next Generation
5. Research Non-Profit Organizations
6. Form A [Family] Focused Team
7. Decide Where To Give
8. Build The Strategy
9. Present Customized Recommendations
10. Implement The Strategy

Be sure to read the original article for the details on these ten steps. In the meantime, there is no time like the present to get started on the first step. So, what “inspires” you?

Reference: Private Wealth (January 7, 2014) “10-Step Legacy Planning”