NORTON

Is it always the case? No, sometimes those quick or rash decisions work out. I have had a few of those over the years where my instincts took over and I went with my gut, meeting with tremendous success. However, I can share with you that I have also made many bad decisions to take an immediate action, being brave or courageous at the absolute wrong time, and well, those turned out as you would expect, some injury, heartache, and metaphorically

About Letters To The Editor

Colorado Community Media welcomes letters to the editor. Please note the following rules: for a situation and helping to facilitate positive change.

• Email your letter to letters@coloradocommunitymedia.com. Do not send via postal mail. Put the words “letter to the editor” in the email subject line.

• Submit your letter by 5 p.m. on Wednesday in order to have it considered for publication in the following week’s newspaper.

• Letters must be no longer than 400 words.

• Letters should be exclusively submitted to Colorado Community Media and should not submitted to other outlets or previously posted on websites or social media. Submitted letters become the property of CCM and should not be republished elsewhere.

• Letters advocating for a political candidate should focus on that candidate’s qualifications for o ce. We cannot publish letters that contain unverified negative information about a candidate’s opponent. Letters advocating for or against a political candidate or ballot issue will not be published within 12 days of an election.

Many people become frustrated when they cannot make progress toward their nancial goals or may not even know how to set realistic goals. It is crucial to have the right mindset before you begin yournancial improvement journey. Speak to your advisor about the psychology exercise to help you progress, especially if any of these sound familiar:

• Squandering nancial windfalls

• In denial about spending, lack of saving or investment knowledge

• Enabling others or controlling others with money

• Over or underspending

• Extreme anxiety around nancial matters

• Unrealistic expectations

• Feeling guilty for having or receiving wealth

• Fear of losing money or making the wrong decision a lot of lost golf balls and high scores in life.

Normalizing irrational behavior helps decrease anxiety and shame.

I love this quote from Matt Damon’s character in “We Bought a Zoo”: “You know, sometimes all you need is 20 seconds of insane courage. Just literally 20 seconds of just embarrassing bravery. And I promise you, something great will come of it.”

Using Shakespeare’s quotes to temper enthusiasm in the heat of the moment, with the thought that God hates a coward, and all I need is 20 seconds of insane courage, has helped keep my balance. Do you know when and how to choose wisely? I would love to hear your

• Publication of any given letter is at our discretion. Letters are published as space is available.

• We will edit letters for clarity, grammar, punctuation and length and write headlines (titles) for letters at our discretion.

• Please don’t send us more than one letter per month. First priority for publication will be given to writers who have not submitted letters to us recently.

• Submit your letter in a Word document or in the body of an email. No PDFs or Google Docs, please.

• Include your full name, address and phone number. We will publish only your name and city or town of residence, but all of the information requested is needed for us to verify you are who you say you are.

• Letters will be considered only from people living in Colorado Community Media’s circulation area in Adams, Arapahoe, Clear Creek, Denver, Douglas, Elbert, Je erson and Weld counties.

• Do not use all caps, italics or bold text.

• Keep it polite: No name calling or “mudslinging.”

We are not often taught how to handle nancial a airs so when pressed to do so, we lack the con dence and knowledge to make good decisions.

We often quote George Kinder, CFP,* a pioneer in the early 1980s in nancial planning, by asking three main questions:

1. Imagine you are nancially secure, and you do not need to worry about money. How would you live your life?

2. Imagine your doctor tells you that you only have ve more years to live, but you will not feel ill or be in pain. What will you do with your remaining time?

3. You only have one day left to live. Ask yourself, “What did I miss?” “Who did I not get to be?” “What did I not get to do?” e idea of these questions is to help prioritize what is most important so you have no regrets, don’t waste any more time getting started, and are able to enjoy your passions.

Kinder states that these answers don’t reveal the desire to make more money, work harder or receive a promotion. ey typically relate to one of these ve categories:

1. Family or relationships

2. Authenticity or spirituality story at gotonorton@gmail.com, and when we nd that balance between discretion and courage, it really will be a better than good life.

Michael Norton is an author, a

3. Ful lling creative goals

4. Giving back and leaving a positive legacy personal and professional coach, consultant, trainer, encourager and motivator of individuals and businesses, working with organizations and associations across multiple industries.

5. A sense of place such as travel to special places or living in a certain environment.

All of these exercises are designed to help you create a more meaningful thought process around your nancial goals and challenges. While it may be uncomfortable, few things in life bring immediate gain without a little pain. You can think about these questions before your next planning meeting and even discuss them with your family to gain perspective. en let your wealth advisor help you discover what is important and how to create a plan that is e ective for you. You will be less worried about things out of your control, such as the stock market or interest rates, and more concerned about your nancial impact on your family and other passions you have.

* George Kinder, CFP, e Kinder Institute of Life Planning.

Patricia Kummer has been a Certied Financial Planner professional and a duciary for over 35 years and is managing director for Mariner Wealth Advisors.

Make-A-Wish Colorado alumni, volunteers celebrate its 40th anniversary

BY CORINNE WESTEMAN CWESTEMAN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

2023 h as already been a big year for Make-A-Wish.

Wish Week fundraisers have been in full swing at local schools this winter, and basketball legend Michael Jordan donated $10 million — the largest individual donation ever — to the national organization last month. And spring 2023 could be even bigger.

Make-A-Wish Colorado celebrates its 40th anniversary this year and is hosting an anniversary celebration and fundraiser in April in Denver.

Since it started, Make-A-Wish Colorado has granted more than 6,000 wishes for children with critical illnesses as a way of giving them hope and something to look forward to during their treatment.

Golden’s Ben Bontrager, 10, went to Hawaii for his wish last spring. He was diagnosed in early 2020 with Burkitt’s lymphoma and was sick for almost a year, with his mom Sarah saying, “We almost lost him a couple times.”

Ben, who’s now in remission, said going to Hawaii was “the rst thing idea that popped in my head,” because he wanted to get out and do something fun.

“I was sick of being home,” he continued.

Now, Ben and his family are becoming Make-A-Wish ambassadors so that they can help other families through the same process.

Dad Je Bontrager said Ben’s wish was a “bright spot” to think about during those long days at the hospital, adding, “ e thought that (Make-A-Wish) has done it over and over for people, it’s really pretty amazing.”

For Jennifer

Joan Mazak has been the proverbial fairy godmother for thousands of Colorado children after she founded the organization in 1983. She started it in honor of her daughter, Jennifer, who died at 7 years old of a liver disease.

Mazak recalled how, about a week before Jennifer’s death, she was granted an uno cial wish to meet local radio mascot KIMN Chicken. He stopped by the family’s house, walking around the entire property hand-in-hand with Jennifer. Many of the neighborhood children stopped by to see KIMN Chicken, but he was focused on making Jennifer feel special.

“It was great for her to be able to have that,” Mazak said.

After Jennifer’s death, Mazak used funds that people had raised for a liver donation to start MakeA-Wish Colorado. ere were only three other chapters in the country and no national organization yet, she said.

e local chapter was all volunteers working out of their homes, helping to create memories for children who needed them.

Mazak said the very rst wish was to catch a sh, so they set up a shing trip at Dillon Reservoir.

Longtime volunteer Gary Aboussie recalled wishes to meet the pope and the Broncos. One of his favorite stories was sending a guitar to Bruce Springsteen to sign, him keeping that one,