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Remembrance: When A Loved One Gets Sick and Survives

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By Melissa Hani @ Shutterstock.com

Life comes at you fast. One minute you’re drinking your morning coffee, and the next, you’re in the emergency room after a major medical event. That was the basis of my conversation with a client yesterday, as he told me this weekend was a special birthday for him. He turned 51. This birthday was different than the others. Last year they were worried sick on his 50th, as he was just diagnosed with cancer. Every birthday after that will be different. I asked him how his wife Melissa was doing. “She was my rock,” he said.

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A few years ago, he and Melissa visited me in Newport, and they both looked fit, strong, and were careful about what they ordered. He looked like he played football in high school. Travel was a big part of their life, and during our lunch, we talked about places they’d visited. They told me they loved living in California and that this was their east coast trip to meet me and to see college friends.

And then the cancer diagnosis. And the surgery. And the chemo. And how work was flexible. Thankfully. And how they spent this past weekend away. “It was the first vacation,” he said, “where we looked up where the nearest hospital was before we left.”

Action Line: “It was nice we didn’t have to worry about our finances,” he said. And I remembered what a special relationship I had with Melissa’s mother—who was a long-time, valued client before she passed away. And how it was because of her that I was talking yesterday with her son-in-law. Families are the most important part of life. If you are focused on securing your family’s future and need help, I would love to talk with you.

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E.J. Smith - Your Survival Guy

E.J. Smith is Founder of YourSurvivalGuy.com, Managing Director at Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd., a Managing Editor of Richardcyoung.com, and Editor-in-Chief of Youngresearch.com. His focus at all times is on preparing clients and readers for “Times Like These.” E.J. graduated from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, with a B.S. in finance and investments. In 1995, E.J. began his investment career at Fidelity Investments in Boston before joining Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd. in 1998. E.J. has trained at Sig Sauer Academy in Epping, NH. His first drum set was a 5-piece Slingerland with Zildjians. He grew-up worshiping Neil Peart (RIP) of the band Rush, and loves the song Tom Sawyer—the name of his family’s boat, a Grady-White Canyon 306. He grew up in Mattapoisett, MA, an idyllic small town on the water near Cape Cod. He spends time in Newport, RI and Bartlett, NH—both as far away from Wall Street as one could mentally get. The Newport office is on a quiet, tree lined street not far from the harbor and the log cabin in Bartlett, NH, the “Live Free or Die” state, sits on the edge of the White Mountain National Forest. He enjoys spending time in Key West (RIP JB) and Paris. Please get in touch with E.J. at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com To sign up for my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter, click here.
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