Andy and his high school sweetheart went off to different colleges.  One of those four years was hard on their relationship, but they returned home that summer and have been together ever since.

They married after his first year in law school and her first year towards getting her master’s degree.  He interned, passed the bar exam, and got a job an hour away.

They picked up, moved to their new town, and dug in for the next 45 years.

Carol was in high school administration.  As two working adults, they still found the time to have three children.  With their kids’ school, sports, and church, they were well entrenched in their community.  It was hard to find a bleacher or sideline for 20 years where one of them wasn’t in attendance.

Andy was soon to turn 55 and had enough money from his income properties, his future pension, and his savings to make it to, and through, retirement.  Practicing law was high stress, and he wanted to get out and do something else, maybe teach.  Carol loved her job and loved working with the youth coming through.  She and Andy were the same age, but she saw no reason to leave what she loved.

Then the unthinkable happened to Andy: in the fall of 2008, the investment firm his company used had gone all in.  In Andy’s words, “when the market collapsed, our investments went nose over and straight down into the tarmac and never bailed on the way down.”  He was devastated.  The investment firm was well known and well thought of.  His company thought they had the best of breed for their attorneys.

Andy had circled 12/31/2008 on his calendar for years in advance.  That was always going to be his last day, and he did everything he could to set himself up to make that happen…

Read More: https://blog.bgainsurance.com/2021/09/21/peace-of-mind/