Abby Connolly
If you’re a parent, have you decided or thought of who will watch over your child if you can’t anymore?
One man recently had to tell his teenage stepson that he would not be listing him as his baby sister’s appointed guardian in his will.
He’s been married to his wife, Denise, for five years. Denise has an 18-year-old son named Michael from a previous marriage. He and Denise recently welcomed their first child together, a baby girl named Sarah.
He and Denise are in the process of updating their wills. This means they’ll have to choose who they want to be Sarah’s appointed guardians in the unlikely event that they both pass away. They settled on his sister and her husband.
They recently sat down with Michael to discuss their wills with him. First, they notified him of a few things related to funds they had put aside for him. Then, Michael asked about Sarah’s guardianship situation.
“We told him our guardian choices,” he said. “Michael straightened up and said that no, he would take on Sarah. I said that was very sweet, but he was still very young. Maybe we’d consider updating it in 10 or so years when he’s older and more established.”
Denise said she’d think about it, but when he pulled her aside to see if she was serious, he found out she was.
Denise pointed out that Michael is great with his little sister; he often volunteers to help take care of her and makes an effort to spend time with her.
However, he still feels uncomfortable with the idea because of Michael’s age and doesn’t want to consider him an option for Sarah’s guardian at all.
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