BellaOnline Forums Relationships Married No Kids legacy?

I was thinking this morning about how people have kids as a legacy, and then started thinking about what I want my own legacy to be. So I am considering setting up a scholarship fund. Have any of you done this? If so, where do I start (aside from calling my financial advisor), what should I consider, etc.
Another option I'm considering is naming a charity as a beneficiary on life insurance - have any of you done that?

What are other ways in which CFs can leave a lasting legacy?

I've always hoped that the work I do to preserve history will be some kind of legacy...

With my English degree, I had always hoped to either be published or leave a cache of material behind for posthumous publication. Unfortunately, I haven't written much since college (that pesky job...) As of now, that is how I dream of spending my retirement.

My students are my legacy. Some have even eclipsed their generalist teacher in specific areas of musical achievement --- and are attending prestigious classical and contemporary conservatories. One of them came back to campus today; she and I were both yelping, we were so happy to see each other!

I love the scholarship idea. It's really something to think about.

You have no idea how much I relate to this. Although I am writing more now than I ever have. Just nothing at this point that will make me immortal.

I had kind of hoped to do this through documentary, editing, or filmmaking.

I have also been considering making my nephew my "heir." Leaving money for scholarship or charity also sounds very appealing - I would probably leave it for The Whale Museum in Washington State and maybe to encourage female filmmakers. Assuming, of course, that at some point in my life I'd ever have money. :-)

Our wills specify percentages to all our charities. Now our money will go to help out causes that would have otherwise been sucked away by those stupid roller tennis shoes and college tuition!

Elise, I am hoping to do the same thing with the kids I work with in Big Brothers Big Sisters...I try and get them involved in things that are going to allow them to figure out who they are and the value they have as individuals. lngilbert, we must have similar backgrounds....one of the projects I am working on with our teens is a documentary project, where the kids will be involved in the process from the research to the shooting and editing of the film.

Though I have no money to offer at this time, I would love to do a scholarship fund if I ever had money. There are so many kids that could do so much if they had the opportunity--but they don't. Scholarships could be for school but also for extracurricular activities. We read articles constantly about overscheduled kids. The kids I work with don't get to participate in anything--they have no money and no available transportation. They sit around and get into trouble. I always think that if I could get them involved in some sort of daily activity, they would be using that time constructively, rather than painting graffiti.

This is something I definitely think about. My DH and I haven't made up wills yet, but I would like to contribute to my nieces' educations- whether we're alive at the time, or not (anything is possible, however unlikely). That's one facet of the legacy thing. Another possibility is to help girls get into science, through volunteer work or the scholarship idea, which I hadn't thought about until I read this thread (so thanks for the idea!).
My definition of "legacy" is putting something positive into the world that wouldn't have existed if I hadn't existed- and it can be as small as a new idea, or contribution to the betterment of society. I'm always looking for new ways to do this.

When we first started having nieces/nephews, I thought then that we'd like to help with their college education, but that was before there were too many of them for this to be practical. I'd still like to help them to some extent, but I like the idea of the scholarship because it would help more kids than just the few I know.