Leaving a Legacy

Everyone leaves a legacy. Your legacy could be the values and skills you’ve passed on to future generations with your teaching or parenting, or it could be a home you built, a stone wall you laid, a garden you nourished, a salmon creek you restored, a tree you planted, or a story you wrote. You may choose to consciously leave a legacy, by developing and passing on something of great significance and meaning to you, or you may have already made a lasting difference in someone’s life simply through something you said or did.

With increasing age, many people express a desire to give back to their community, to share what they have learned or accumulated, and to leave a legacy of meaning and purpose. Finding meaning and purpose in one’s life is the basis of spiritual well-being, which has been associated with lower levels of anxiety and depression.

The following resources provide ideas about different types of legacies:

The New Horizons for Seniors program provides federal funding of up to $25,000 for projects by seniors for seniors who want to make a lasting difference in their communities.

• New Horizons for Seniors Grant Program

You may want to make a difference in your community through improving its safety, for yourself and others, by starting an elder block watch.

• Block Watch British Columbia

Or you may want to make a difference through volunteering.

• GoVolunteer

Your legacy may be a memoir. Many colleges, universities, seniors’ centres and various community programs offer courses to help with memoir writing. Most universities waive tuition fees for students over the age of 65.

• Education and Lifelong Learning

Your legacy may be your art, a garden, or your collection. Many fine museums started with someone donating a collection.

• First Nations Legacies in B.C.
• Museums
• Historical Gardens in BC