True wealth isn’t just in what you pass down – it’s in the impact you leave behind.
Your legacy grows stronger when your success helps shape the world around you.
Andrew Carnegie built libraries across America. Bill Gates funds global health initiatives. Warren Buffett pledges much of his fortune to charity.
But you don’t need billions to leave a mark.
Real legacies are built in local communities, where even small acts of giving create ripple effects for generations.
A business owner might fund a scholarship for students at their old high school.
A family might sponsor the local sports team, ensuring kids have opportunities to learn teamwork and discipline.
Even renovating a park bench or planting trees in your neighborhood can become part of a lasting story.
Philanthropy works on many levels.
Yes, it can reduce estate taxes.
It can build a family’s reputation and influence.
Most importantly, it teaches the next generation responsibility and stewardship. When your children see you giving, they learn that wealth carries not just privilege – but purpose.
Your Scale of Giving
- Support local causes: Fund a scholarship at your old high school, sponsor a community sports team, or help renovate a park. One small-town family set up a $1,000 annual scholarship for students pursuing trade school. Twenty years later, dozens of young people had launched careers in welding, carpentry, and mechanics – all because someone gave them a chance.
- Donor-Advised Fund: Begin with just a few thousand dollars. It grows tax-free and you control when and where the money goes.
- Family Giving Match: Encourage your children to donate to causes they believe in and match their gifts to instill lifelong values. This not only doubles the impact but sparks conversations around the dinner table about what matters most.
- Start Small Foundations: Even a modest family foundation can direct charitable giving year after year, creating a lasting presence in your town.
Legacy isn’t just about money.
It’s about meaning – and when you use your wealth to lift others in your own community, you multiply the impact of everything you’ve built.
And in the end, people are often remembered not for what they owned, but for the passions they pursued and the good they shared along the way.
Find your Legacy Project and get the ball rolling now.
To Your Legacy,
Chris Witmer
