Caleb G. Banegas Scholarship

I’ve always known that I wanted to work in the financial education space, but my life’s goals and mission became more clear to me when tragedy struck my family's life. Shortly after we were married in 2018, my husband was unexpectedly diagnosed with ALS, a debilitating terminal illness with no cure or treatment options. We were both young college students with no money and our lives were completely turned upside down when he became confined to a wheelchair, couldn't talk or eat and was unable to go to school or work. He had no disability/life insurance and was not able to obtain any after such a serious diagnosis. We had no idea he would be affected by such a serious illness so young and we were not adequately prepared financially, mentally, or physically. He was only 21 when his symptoms started. I finished school and began working while I cared for him and our daughter who joined us in 2021. Fortunately, we had a lot of family who were able to help us, but things were difficult. As the breadwinner and primary caregiver, I faced the challenges of watching his body decline while striving to help him feel loved and valued. We were newlyweds and faced unimaginable challenges and difficulties together. My beloved husband passed away last month and I have been experiencing just how complicated it is to get affairs in order after the passing of a loved one. Although he did not have many assets, I’ve still found it difficult to make so many financial decisions while facing such immense grief. I’ve often thought that it would be so helpful to have someone guiding me through the estate planning and settlement process and I wish that we had created an estate plan before his illness started. While I would enjoy helping people in a variety of financial settings, I feel that my experiences and perspective could be used to benefit others in the financial planning and estate planning process. I am particularly interested in working with young people who likely have not thought about creating a solid financial plan, let alone an estate plan. I know that it’s common at my age to not want to or feel the need to create an estate plan. Drawing on personal experiences, I feel that I can help educate others about the peace of mind that comes with having a clear financial plan and estate plan at any age. While I hope that others don’t have to experience what I went through, I know that life can throw curveballs and having a plan for those unexpected events can make a big difference. I plan to work in this space in the community, but my ultimate goal is to teach finance and estate planning at the university level as a lecturer. I’m seeking a post-graduate education to further my knowledge and skills in the family financial planning field to better achieve my goal of helping young people understand and develop financial and estate plans. I need to have at least a Master's degree to teach at the university level. I'll be starting my Master's in August. I'm currently 27 years old and am now a single mom to an adorable 18-month-old girl. We have so much uncertainty ahead of us, but I want to use our experiences to help other people. This scholarship would mean the world to me because ALS has been devastating for our family, and we are just trying to get our feet under us after dealing with such a difficult illness.