For many people the need to leave a lasting legacy is fundamental. The need to know that even after they are gone there lives will have meaning through their contributions and impact on those left behind. At Phinney Estate Law we believe that leaving a legacy is about more than just leaving wealth. It is about the impact that people make on those they love and their community and the traditions they build that live on beyond them. Planning for such a legacy isn’t a onetime event it is a lifetime’s work that can start with simple steps.
Great ways to build a legacy include:
Great ways to build a legacy include:
- Think consciously about how you would want to be remembered and your core values, draft up a “mission statement” and refer to it as you make decisions in your life – big and small.
- Develop family traditions around holidays that match your values and have real meaning to you and your family.
- Create a tradition of community contribution by regularly volunteering for causes you support with your family and close friends.
- Learn & preserve your family’s history by creating family trees and matching photos with stories of who that person was and what they contributed to your family and community.
- Learn & preserve those parts of your culture you want your family to know and understand including language, food, and festivals.
- Draft a Legacy Letter to those you love.
- Include contributions to charities whose work you support into your estate plan or lifetime gifting. Share the motivation for those gift with those you love.
- Prepare an estate plan and disability plan that allows your loved ones the space to grieve and rebuild their lives without unnecessary conflict or legal hassle and expense.
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