Getting a Client Ready for a Life-Changing Move

One of my long-time favorite clients recently decided to make a life-changing move, returning to Ireland after 50 years of living in the United States. She was widowed about 8 years ago and had no blood relatives here. She was living in an assisted living community that was costing far more than she could really afford in the long run. After a warm invitation from her younger sister to live with her, and much deliberation, she decided that it was time to go back to Ireland.
Once she had made up her mind to go back, she wanted to go as soon as possible. As she had spent more than half her life in the U.S. (while keeping her Irish citizenship), we found ourselves with a lot to do and a very short amount of time to do it in! The logistics of such a move are daunting, and take a lot of planning and organizing. As she had no family here, I did virtually all of it for her. Here’s a list what we accomplished in less than 2 months:

• Booked her a flight on Aer Lingus with extra help requested (she uses a walker and wheelchair).
• Gave 30 days’ notice to her assisted living facility as soon as her flight was confirmed.
• Established a Power of Attorney for me at her U.S. bank so that I could pay bills and deposit checks that came in after her departure, and to close the account after she had opened a new bank account in Ireland.
• Emptied her safe deposit box and sold most of the jewelry that she never wore anymore for a great price to Leslie E.Sandler Fine Jewelry (she kept a few sentimental pieces to give to her nieces in Ireland).
• Contacted her doctors to let them know she was leaving, and to get all of her medical records so that she could bring them with her to Ireland.
• Set up on online account for her with  Social Security  and called to ask them to stop deducting Medicare premiums from her monthly Social Security benefits (she will be using Ireland’s national health care system in combination with her existing Blue Cross Blue Shield Federal Employee health plan).
• Started donating any items she wouldn’t need in Ireland, including clothing that no longer fit or suited her lifestyle, as well as household and decorative objects that she would no longer need (since she was moving into her sister’s fully furnished home).
• Arranged (way in advance) for Habitat for Humanity to come and take her furniture once she had vacated her apartment. (here are photos of what we were able to donate)

• Met with her estate attorney to redo her will so that it would be legal internationally.
• Contacted Verizon to turn off her phone line and cancel her plan once she left.
• Sorted through photo albums and decided on which pictures to keep and take back to Ireland with her.
• Made sure she had an adequate supply of her medications for her first couple of weeks in Ireland.
• Drove her to the airport and went with her all the way to security before saying goodbye.

Given that this client was a compulsive shopper and had both a storage unit and apartment jammed full of stuff when I first started working with her 6 years ago, I was very proud of how much she was able to shed over the years – and especially in preparation for this important move. She became more and more eager to get rid of things that no longer mattered to her the closer her departure date came. By the time she was ready to leave for Ireland, all of her worldly possessions fit into two suitcases and a carry-on bag. Now that’s a minimalist!