Leaving a Meaningful Legacy
Robin Williams recently passed away, leaving behind an important legacy through his movies and comedic performances. Because Williams was famous, his legacy is recorded and will touch the lives of generations to come. However, we all have our own legacies that we can pass on to those who come after us, but we may need to do more to ensure that they are recorded. While our families may know some things about us, few of us do a good job of leaving behind the most important information about us that we want to leave for posterity. Legacy planning can be important to you descendants.
Legacy planning allows you to pass your values, stories, and history to those who come later. Most of us know the names of our parents and their stories. We usually know our grandparents’ names, and we often know some stories about their lives. But, how many people know their great-grandparents’ full names and histories? Legacy planning is a great way to pass down our favorite stories and memories to our children, as well as important values, lessons, recipes, skill techniques and more.
Legacy planning doesn’t require a lawyer, but it does require you to put some effort into organizing the information in some form—whether it’s a journal, pictures, movies, songs, a scrapbook, or even a video. Today, it’s becoming increasingly easier to use technology to record videos for future generations. All of us have something of value to leave our families. For example, you may have family recipes, medical histories, family traditions, family music, or stories that you may want to preserve. These are examples of teachings that we want to pass on to our children. Recording these to video, or writing them down, are great ways to pass on your legacy. Leaving a legacy allows our grandchildren to know that they are part of something much bigger, as well as commemorates the meaningful lives of those who came before them.
If you or your loved ones have questions about legacy planning, or would like to know more about government assistance programs such as Medicaid, Veteran’s Benefits, or other Special Needs programs, consider W.G. Alexander & Associates – we are experienced attorneys who offer a unique blend of asset protection, Elder Law and estate planning. You can also attend our free seminars, learn more through our website at www.wgalaw.com, or call us at (919) 256-7000.
Attorney Bill Alexander discusses these issues and more every Tuesday morning on W.G. Alexander & Associates’ radio program, “Asset Protection Today,” on TalkRadio 850 WPTK (AM). Be sure to listen from 9:00-10:00 AM.