Nefertiti Carney

Nefertiti Carney has lived in North Philadelphia her whole life, most of it in the same house her parents purchased in the 1930s. She has a long history with the house, countless birthday parties, easter egg hunts, and holidays. When her father passed away in 2009, it was no surprise that Nefertiti moved in again to make the house her own. Except that the house was not left in her name. “My father and mother worked hard to own this house,” Nefertiti said. “They never missed a day of work or took a day off. They earned this house, there was no way I would let it go or sell it.”

Nefertiti had worked with legal aid agencies before and knew that there were people who could help her. She reached out to VIP, where she connected with attorneys to draft a new deed. “I went to their office prepared to pay for their help,” Nefertiti said. “But they walked me through all of the documents and I didn’t have to pay for anything.”

With the house in her name, Nefertiti wanted to ensure the house stayed in her family. She made her first will with a VIP volunteer’s help in 2019. And last year, when Nefertiti decided that there were changes that needed to be made to the will and the estate, VIP matched her with a new volunteer attorney, Dan Tann.

Dan Tann not only walked Nefertiti through the process of changing her will, but he also helped her decide which other planning documents would be best for her. Together, they created a will, a power of attorney, and a medical directive. Thanks to her volunteer’s work, Nefertiti has set up her future and her family’s future. “I grew up in this neighborhood and house with my siblings,” Nefertiti said. “I wanted to take care of this house and ensure that everyone in the family would have a roof over their heads if they needed it. And because of these documents, I have.”