YLD ‘WILLS FOR HEROES’ PROGRAM NEEDS VOLUNTEERS

According to the Oklahoma State Firefighters Association, there are 164 Oklahoma firefighters on record as having died in the line of duty. Similarly, as of April 3, 2006, a total of 385 state and local law enforcement officers in Oklahoma were on record as having been killed in the line of duty. On average, one law enforcement officer is killed somewhere in America every 53 hours.

“These statistics serve as a stark reminder of the extraordinary sacrifices firefighters, police and emergency medical technicians make for their community every day. They are prepared to pay the ultimate price in the line of duty,” said OBA Young Lawyers Division Chairperson Chris Camp. “The YLD wanted to find a way to give back to these brave men and women.”

Thus, “Wills for Heroes” was born – a free service that, once up and running, will utilize volunteer lawyers to prepare wills, powers of attorney and advance medical directives for county firefighters, police, sheriff’s deputies and other emergency personnel.

“We’ve found no other program currently in place to offer this service in Oklahoma,” Mr. Camp said. “Our goal is to provide peace of mind to these heroes should the unthinkable occur. Ideally, we hope to reach all first responders in this state.”

During the initial stage, some of the project participants will be busy contacting local law enforcement and emergency personnel agencies throughout the state to determine their specific needs, while others will be working on the development of the basic will and medical directive templates. After laying this groundwork, the YLD will host an introductory training seminar for volunteer attorneys, explaining the document templates and the logistics of the program. Project participants will then distribute intake sheets to the various agencies, followed by the coordination of local presentations to educate first responders regarding the benefits and effects of estate planning and the specific documents being offered. Finally, volunteer attorneys will meet with the emergency personnel to prepare and supervise execution of the documents.

YOUR help is essential.

“We are going to need a lot of volunteers,” said Project Coordinator Lindsey Andrews. “This will be a time-consuming project, however, only for the people implementing it and notforthe volunteers wanting to help finalize the wills.”

Ms. Andrews estimates that a typical volunteer will spend approximately one to two hours in training, with another four to five hours actually performing legal services, likely making a maximum of two trips to the precinct, firehouse, etc.

“I really encourage the young lawyers out there wanting to get involved in something to lend a hand with Wills for Heroes. It’s just an honorable way to show appreciation to those who spend so much time thinking of us that they forget to think of themselves,” Ms. Andrews said.