Wills for Heroes Still Going Strong After 16 Years
Bianca Simmons was a 10th grader at Southwest High School near Jacksonville when the North Carolina Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division hosted its first Wills for Heroes Clinic in October of 2007.
But Simmons, who now serves as pro bono programs coordinator for the North Carolina Bar Foundation, is quickly making up for lost time after assuming oversight of Wills for Heroes last fall.
Combined with the excellent work of Alex Rogers, who now serves as director of programs, the NCBF will hold 15 Wills for Heroes clinics this bar year, which runs from July 1 to June 30. Better still, some 200 volunteer attorneys, paralegals and notaries public will produce approximately one thousand end-of-life documents at no charge for hundreds of North Carolina first responders and their families.
Bianca Simmons, left, leads a recent Wills for Heroes clinic at Campbell Law School with the assistance of numerous volunteers, including Samantha Gordon.
“As the Wills for Heroes coordinator, I enjoy seeing firsthand the impact of the Wills for Heroes program,” said Simmons, who had a head start in this role as a North Carolina Certified Paralegal and North Carolina Notary Public. “Having a passion for pro bono services and helping those in the community, this program has allowed me to exercise my vision.
“Along with myself, I get to see the passion of the attorney, paralegal and notary volunteers. The patience, the effort, and the smiles they provide to the clients are unmatched. What truly makes the difference is, twice a month, I speak with individuals who express their gratitude for this program – how it brings comfort knowing that they have completed the necessary steps to protect their loved ones.”
And, as anyone who has seen Simmons in action will attest, she absolutely loves speaking with first responders.
“I enjoy learning why they became a first responder and what it means to them to be a first responder,” Simmons said, “but even more, how they all share the same passion for serving their community. The Wills for Heroes program has not only served first responders this year, but we have also expanded the program to offer services to the North Carolina Bar Association and Foundation employees, Commonwealth, a non-profit serving low-income wage earners, and lupus survivors.
“Wills for Heroes is a program that provides service to those who bring service to others, and that is what pro bono is all about – the public good.”
That too, is what Simmons is all about, so stay tuned. She’s just getting started!
Russell Rawlings is director of external affairs and communications for the North Carolina Bar Association.