A family patriarch and widower, and his successful adult children all have relied on Wescott for guidance in managing business and the family’s estate.
Watching businesses and assets grow, playing a central role in the family’s financial and business success and path toward a comfortable retirement—a 20-year relationship between Wescott and this family has traveled many roads through the years.
But it wasn’t without twists and turns.
One of the children introduced his parents to the Wescott team, after his parents had recently been victims of fraud. In his heyday, the father owned a dozen operating companies. Once Wescott became involved, a review of his tax returns revealed the father to be a generous man who couldn’t say no to helping his friends. Through the years, he was victimized by an investment broker who churned his investments to maximize his fees, and by an embezzling employee who skimmed hundreds of thousands of dollars from various businesses. A long, protracted and successful court case followed. Working closely with father and son, Wescott helped reel in the father’s largesse and better organize his holdings.
Today, the father—who lost his wife to illness in the past decade—watches as his three children continue to enjoy successful lives built on the role model he helped create. The trust developed between Wescott and the family is evidenced by Wescott being called in to advise each time an enterprise is bought or sold by one of the family members.
When the mother passed away suddenly, Wescott was there to handle the details for the family. The firm oversaw titling assets correctly to take advantage of estate planning strategies, creating a trust in her name, founding a family limited partnership for business and real estate holdings, and working with liquid assets to maximize the family’s estate planning without compromising the father’s standard of living.
Wescott today is trusted advisor to the father, adult children and grandchildren. From the beginning of the relationship, the couple understood the importance of involving their children in financial matters, and this transfer of skills and values between generations is obvious—and touching to see.
The role of a financial advisor can take many forms. The advisor can guide investments, provide due diligence and be a sounding board for all types of transactions.