' The ability to make it on their own is something I don't want to take away from my grandkids.'

Amen! Totally agree except for me it is my kids, who are still young. I like how my late Dad arranged things. He kept family assets very private, lived frugally, loved the game of investing more than the money. After my brother & I had earned professional degrees (and were in our 30s) and had shown that we were responsible, he discussed a ILIT he and his wealth mgt. team had created that would be directed to each of us upon his death and my mother received the remainder of the assets. She has a revocable trust and we have a generation skipping option. Dad did his charity contributions along the way.

I have arranged something similar for my kids with a family trustee but funds will be received over time & staggered based on age. I plan to direct more towards charity along the way and when my time comes. I realize it is far from guaranteed how they will manage assets but I have started them early with small brokerage accounts and have been reviewing the basics of early investing in productive assets and basic math & compounding. They are well aware of WEB & CTM and hope some osmosis has taken place over the years.