Court develops guardianship program

In response to the increased number of indigent county residents in need of guardianship assistance, Shelby County Probate Judge William R. Zimmerman and his staff, Chief Deputy Clerk Patricia Rosengarten and Deputy Clerk Carla Busse, have developed a volunteer guardianship program.

A guardianship becomes necessary when an adult becomes incompetent and no longer is able to make medical and personal decisions. The volunteer program will assist these individuals by coordinating appointment of guardians. To be eligible, the incompetent adult must be indigent, a resident of a local nursing home, and have no family members available to be a guardian.

The Probate Court has recruited local attorneys and social workers to serve as volunteers in this program. All volunteers have completed a BCI and FBI background check. To date, the following attorneys and social workers have agreed to participate in the program: Rich Wallace, Jim Thieman, Tonya Thieman, William R. Zimmerman Jr., Joseph Chrisman, Curtis Henschen and Kathy Lindsey.

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Court develops guardianship program