Lots of ways to distribute an estate. Ours is currently set to distribute 50% to a trust that will then make annual donations to a specific charity and the other half gets split evenly among our kids. If/when there are grand kids, we will set up a generation skipping trust and re-allocate appropriately.Its sad to think about - but my mother in law doesn't really have much in the way of family left. A couple nieces and nephews she hasn't seen in years, a sister in law who is older than her by nine years. My wife and my son are the only living close blood relatives. …