Special Needs Trust Planning for Families with Sheila Gibson (Ep. 28)
Planning for a loved one with special needs can raise difficult questions about benefits, inheritance, caregiving, and what happens when family members are no longer able to provide support.
In this episode, Kate Duffy speaks with Sheila Gibson, Senior Wealth Advisor at Bryn Mawr Trust, about special needs trusts and guardianships. They explain how a properly structured trust can preserve assets while supporting access to means-tested government benefits. Sheila also covers trustee responsibilities, letters of intent, inheritance planning, family involvement, documentation, and the importance of building a team that understands a beneficiary’s individual needs.
Sheila discusses:
- How special needs trusts can preserve assets while supporting access to means-tested government benefits
- Why leaving an inheritance directly to a beneficiary may unintentionally affect eligibility for public benefits
- How trustees can use trust assets for therapies, equipment, recreation, transportation, and other personal needs
- How families, wealth advisors, trustees, and trust and estate attorneys can coordinate long-term planning
Connect with Bryn Mawr Trust:
- 833-973-7633
- LinkedIn: Bryn Mawr Trust
- Website: Bryn Mawr Trust
Connect with Kate Duffy:
Connect with Jamie Hopkins:
Connect with Sheila Gibson:
About our Guest:
Sheila Gibson is a Senior Wealth Advisor with Bryn Mawr Trust who specializes in special needs trusts and guardianships. She works with individuals and families to help them think through the financial and personal considerations involved in caring for a loved one with special needs, including trust planning, government benefits, trustee responsibilities, inheritance decisions, and long-term care needs. Sheila brings more than three decades of experience to these conversations and emphasizes the importance of coordination among families, caregivers, wealth advisors, and trust and estate attorneys.
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