New Family Legacy Fund

For us the seed for giving was planted long ago without a tangible way to bring it to life, until now. The New Family Legacy Fund honours our family’s matriarch, Marian New. Genuine impact happens when people from small towns set their mind to something. Throughout my Grandma Marian’s life, she was subtly (and often not) pushing her family to care for more than just their own inner circle. There are many instances of humble compassion I can remember growing up in our family, rippling well beyond my grandma.

The reason I started this fund is two-fold. Firstly, I have been influenced throughout my life to believe it is vital to help how you can and, secondly, that generosity leads to beautiful connections. There are a million small acts of giving that set Grandma Marian apart (and she’d be mad that I’m glamorizing them), so I’ll just share a few and what I learned.

In her living room she kept framed pictures of her sponsor children beside pictures of her own grandkids, always sharing letters and updates when we came to visit. Her willingness to help children halfway around the world, opened our minds to the big impact consistently (and ultimately persistently) caring can have.

Grandma’s living room was always short a seat because she was busy creating small dolls for children overseas and she lined them up neatly on her green velure armchair. These dolls were used to protect medical supplies shipped across the ocean and were likely the only toy many of the children would have to call their own. She made just shy of one thousand in her lifetime (she kept a tally). This chair full of colourful dolls, showed that using your skills for the greater good is so incredibly valuable.

Lastly, Grandma Marian would gather my cousins for a very important meeting every Thanksgiving. Fiscally responsible as she was, she would give them a budget and the catalogue for an international children’s foundation. They had to decide amongst themselves how to allocate it. In her annual Christmas letter, she would report what was sent. This often sounded like 5 chickens, a goat, 12 soccer balls, school supplies for 10 kids, and a portion of a safe drinking water well in a small community. This ritual lit a spark to share giving with my own young family. I hope for this fund to engage the next generation to give and to help however they can.

Our fund will evolve with our family and will be directed to charities through a joyful kitchen table conversation each year. We are open to new ideas and are here to help!

Cheers!