'Make A Will And Boost Charities' Says Minister

                                                                                      Tuesday October 15 2019

A CHURCH of Scotland parish minister with a keen interest in funeral poverty is calling for people to make a will before it is too late.

Speaking in support of Will Aid, the charity will writing intiative which takes place in November, the Rev Bryan Kerr, minister at Lanark: Greyfriars and the Church of Scotland representative on Funeral Poverty Working Groups, said: “It is important that people are able to deal with losing a loved one with as little stress as possible. In my experience having a will in place is something that allows families to know they are acting within the person’s wishes rather than trying to second guess what they would like. Without a will there can be some tension within the family after someone dies and property and money can be argued over or may unwittingly go somewhere the person did not intend.”

He emphasised that it was easy to meet with a professional to create a will, which he described as "an easy, but an essential document" and urged readers to make a will and "do some good for charity at the same time".

“Alongside a Will it is important that people talk about what they would like to happen in the event of their death, for example, what sort of service would they like, what hymns, what colours should be worn. The Church of Scotland has been working with the Scottish Government and other partner agencies to develop the ‘Planning Your Own Funeral’ form available from the Scottish Government website for this purpose,” said Mr Kerr.

Will Aid Month, in November, encourages people to get a professionally written Will with the help of a solicitor.

Law firms volunteer their time and expertise to write basic wills, waiving their fee, with clients being invited to make a voluntary donation to Will Aid instead. Donations support the vital work of the nine partner charities.

Last year Will Aid raised more than £1 million for its charity partners – ActionAid, Age UK, British Red Cross, Christian Aid, NSPCC, Save the Children, Sightsavers, SCIAF (Scotland) and Trocaire (Northern Ireland). The suggested voluntary donation for your basic Will Aid will is £100 for a single will and £180 for a pair of mirror wills.

Those who wish to book a will can make their November appointments from now onwards via the website or by calling 0300 0309 558.

For more information click here

More information is available at www.willaid.org.uk/

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