In our profession, we see people from all walks of life and backgrounds, whose debt is overwhelming their lives. That debt may be the result of things completely beyond their control — serious illness, death of a spouse, disability of a loved one, divorce, loss of a job. On the other hand, it may be the result of simply overextending themselves financially over a period of time. After a few years of that, the debt is suddenly unmanageable. Could that have been prevented? Maybe — if you can see into the future, which most of us cannot. Whatever the reason, people come to us needing a solution to a problem that, to them, seems like an impossible mountain to climb.
Because we see a lot of people, and their problems are all unique, we have seen some pretty exceptional situations. The common element to all of them, though, is that there is always a solution. In Canada, we have remarkable resources to help people who have stumbled into serious debt. As a country, we are well beyond debtors’ prisons. We know that giving people an opportunity to turn things around makes for a healthier individual, a better community, and a more prosperous nation.
The solutions we provide are not an easy way out. There is an honorable way to turn the situation around and move forward again as a contributing member of society. Changing your name and moving to another province or country would be the dishonorable solution. Filing a Consumer Proposal or a Bankruptcy is the honorable solution. With either of these solutions, the debtor is putting all their cards on the proverbial table, and saying “Here, this is the best I can do.”
For that reason, it seems particularly tragic when someone becomes so overwhelmed with a debt problem that they feel it is hopeless. They forget — it is only money. Their lives, their family, their community, are all far more important than mere money. I had a very sad situation a few weeks ago that has really brought this home again for me.
I had a meeting scheduled for a Monday morning. The debtor’s accountant had called me to set the meeting up for him. Business setbacks were making his financial situation impossible. Monday morning came. The client didn’t show up.
Later that morning, I received a call from the accountant who had referred him. He sadly informed me that the reason the client had not come in for his appointment, was that he had taken his own life on the weekend. Despondent about the debt, the loss of his business and the loss of his self-respect, he had done the unthinkable.
This was sad on so many levels. The loss of a husband and father was terrible. And all the more tragic because the cause – financial problems – was solvable.
So often, the prospect of financial ruin and bankruptcy is seen as the end of everything. But Bankruptcy is not the problem, it is the solution. If we could have met this man, I am confident that we could have solved his problems and gotten him started on a new financial life. Instead he lost his life, and his family lost him.
If only that meeting had been on Friday.
There is help out there if you seek it. Let’s go seek it together today. Please contact us. Your debt is manageable.
Leigh C. Taylor, LIT
