GREATER BOCA RATON ESTATE PLANNING COUNCIL

Greetings GBREPC Members:

Welcome to the 2024-25 Council year!  I hope everyone is having a fantastic summer and that this email finds you and your family, friends and colleagues in good health and great spirits.  It is an honor and a privilege to serve as your President of the Greater Boca Raton Estate Planning Council (GBREPC).  With the leadership of our passionate Board Officers and Directors, we have planned an exceptional year of events that will enlighten you on cutting-edge estate planning topics and deliver networking opportunities to grow your practice.

In setting the stage for the coming season of the GBREPC, I would like to remind all of our Members that the mission of the GBREPC, in essence, is twofold:  1) to create opportunities for members to collaborate and network with other members and 2) to provide information and resources that will help our members best serve their clients.   As we get ready to kick off our 2024/2025 season, your Board and I wanted to tell you how excited we are about the plans that we have to further pursue the above stated mission and enhance the value that you receive from your membership in the Council. 

Our Members will find tremendous value from our vast array of Membership benefits, some of which include:

• Nationally recognized speakers presenting on topics that affect all of our practices and clients at our five dinner meetings (see full slate of dinner meeting dates below).  After three years of offering a hybrid option, we are transitioning to exclusively in-person meetings this year.
• Excellent networking with members of our Council at every dinner meeting and social event (Kick-Off Event, Holiday Event, Spring Social, and Year-End Event to name a few).
• Opportunity to invite professional colleagues as a guest to one of our dinner meetings.  This year, we will be offering members the chance to invite one guest to our opening October dinner meeting on a complimentary basis.  Thereafter, there will be a cost of $100 per guest.
• Biography, headshot, and listing by name and by discipline category in our GBREPC Digital Member Directory located on our website at www.bocaratonepc.org.  I encourage all members to participate in this opportunity to “personalize” your profile for others to see.
• Ability to present to our Council through our “Member Speaker Forum”, which we plan to hold before our November and February dinner meetings this season.
• Complimentary access to the Leimberg Information Services, Inc. (LISI) resource, which is included in your membership free of charge (a $360 value!).
• Access to many benefits and resources provided by the National Association of Estate Planning Councils (NAEPC), including access to the NAEPC Journal of Estate & Tax Planning, access to a vast array of substantive and relevant webinars and the ability to obtain the Accredited Estate Planner (AEP®) designation.  The full list of benefits and resources provided by the NAEPC is available at www.naepc.org.

I would also like to inform you that there will be an increase in membership dues to $450 this year.  This adjustment is necessary due to the high cost of inflation, which has significantly impacted our operational expenses, especially food costs.  By making this change, we can continue to provide you with the high quality of services, benefits and dining experiences you expect.  The entire Board and I appreciate your understanding and continued support.

Mark your calendars now with the following 2024/2025 Dinner Meeting dates.

1. October 16, 2024 – Joshua Rubenstein, “Heads I Win, Tails You Lose: Advising the Wealthy in Times of Protracted and Unprecedented Political, Economic, Cultural and Scientific Change”
2. November 12, 2024 – Lester Law, “Taxation of Trusts”
3. January 21, 2025 – Steve Parrish, “Current and Timely Uses of Life Insurance in Estate Planning”
4. February 25, 2025 – Kevin Matz, “Heckerling Update”
5. April 22, 2025 – Paul Casperson, “The Charitable Gift Planner’s Guide to the Secure Act”

In addition, you will not want to miss two special events this fall.  First, our Season Kick-Off event will be held on Tuesday, September 17, 2024 at Northern Trust.  Second, our Inaugural Wealth & Wisdom Symposium for the public will be held at Florida Atlantic University on October 23, 2024 in recognition of National Estate Planning Awareness Week.

As you can see from the above, the 2024/2025 GBREPC season is one that you will not want to miss!  So please log on to our website at www.bocaratonepc.org right now to renew your membership and please encourage your friends and colleagues to do the same.  Our Board will do its best to make sure that your membership in the GBREPC will be one of the best investments you will make this year. 

I encourage all of our Members to feel free to reach out directly to me and/or any of the Council Board Members to give us your input on how we can better serve your needs.  We welcome and encourage your suggestions.

Here’s to a fantastic GBREPC season and we look forward to seeing everyone soon!

All the best,

Bill Miller, President