The response to last week’s article, A Senior Living Learning Journey, has been surprising and overwhelming. Beyond the public comments, a number of readers shared private stories with me about their own families’ struggles navigating the senior living landscape while managing the emotions associated with a loved one’s accident or illness. The topic is definitely not far below the surface for many of us who have not yet had to face it directly, either personally or as adult family members. My conviction grows that researching, planning and talking with family well in advance of an emergency, while likely unpleasant and difficult, will pay off in increased long-term happiness and less overall anguish for all involved.

When I started managing money for people, I genuinely believed that the only connection that mattered between my clients and me was investment performance, and that the quality, or even the existence, of a personal relationship was almost inconsequential. A decade and a half of experience has taught me how very misguided this belief was. My clients, mostly high net worth individuals and families, care about long-term performance but more importantly they look to my firm to help them solve life problems that involve money. Naturally, investment returns are essential to helping solve money related problems, but they are merely a single tool in a world that demands a full toolbox. During the course of this year I have found myself unexpectedly introduced to a problem involving much more than money: the world of senior living and end-of-life care.