Would your family be prepared if something happened to you today?

For first responder family members, the fear of a loved one never coming home is real and is something that is thought about every single day.  Most people don’t think about how to be prepared just in case something happens.  People become comfortable in the thought process that things like that happen somewhere else.  Not in our state.  Not our town. Not our department. Not our house.  Having “things” together in one spot is a great way to be prepared.  Instead of calling this a-things-went-bad-at-work folder, we are calling it The Phoenix Folder.  The information would be a helpful starting point for not only first responders, but for the general public as well.

The Phoenix Folder is something you would create in your own home to serve as a centralized location for important documentation.  Think about your spouse, your parent, or your underaged child that is listed as the beneficiary to your estate should something happen. Would they know who you have insurance policies with?  Would you want life saving measures preformed?

Before you start this, have the hard conversations.  Decide on, and file for, a legal Medical Power of Attorney.  Talk about if you would like to be an organ donor. Talk about what you would want if you were on life support or were in a vegetative state.  Talk about what you would want your funeral to look like.  Would you want to be buried or cremated, and what you would like done with your remains.  Talk about who would become the guardian of your minor children.  Have the hard conversations… don’t leave someone guessing on what they think you would like.

Your Phoenix Folder should include the following things at a minimum:

  • Certified Birth Certificates for you, your spouse, and your children
  • Social Security Cards for you, your spouse, and your children
  • Certified Marriage License
  • Adoption Paperwork for your children
  • Divorce Judgement for any prior marriage you OR your spouse has been in, regardless of the time that has passed
  • Military Records/DD-214
  • Healthcare Power of Attorney, Last Will & Testament, Power of Attorney, Trust, and/or Advanced Directive
  • DNR paperwork
  • Insurance Policy Information (policy location, policy number)
  • Banking Information (banks used, types of accounts)
  • Passwords for accounts, phones, computers, email, etc.

Every year, or every other year, review your policies and make sure your forms are updated.  Have there have been changes in your life that necessitate the need to change your forms as far as listed beneficiaries such as marriage, divorce, a new child, death in family, etc.

While it doesn’t happen often, line of duty deaths do occur.  If your department has a member that is eligible as a LODD, you will need to provide the following:

  • To clarify eligibility, the deceased must be on a fire department’s membership roster. If the deceased member has been on for more than one year of service, they must be on the most recently filed NCSFA membership roster validating your 36 hours of training for that year.
  • You will need a letter from the Department Fire Chief affirming the membership and the length of service with the department.
  • Payroll documentation for the deceased from the department. If the department is a volunteer department, you will need the deceased’s position number, title, and date of hire.
  • An organizational chart.
  • Copies of and news media releases if the deceased was killed at an emergency event.
  • Copies of deceased’s drivers license if they have one.
  • Copy of the deceased’s medical records, particularly if the deceased did not die in a traumatic accident on the job.
  • If you are filing for LODD cancer or any other presumptive diagnoses, make sure they are covered by the state. If the deceased had one of those, make certain the death certificate uses the exact language as the is in the state statute.
  • Organization charter information

REACH OUT TO THE OFFICE OF STATE FIRE MARSHALL to assist in reviewing the information and creating an application packet.

Please note that depending on what state you reside in will determine what information you will have to provide.  Our prayer here at The Phoenix Project 780 is that you never have to use this packet for a LODD but should something happen to you or a family member, we hope that your family will find comfort in having already had the hard conversations and decisions made.