Woodworking Legacy - What's yours? (Long)

[gMike]

I haven't thought much about this.  I'm one that figures that when you are gone, you're gone and you'll be remembered for how you lived your life, rather than what you left behind.

My legacy will be my son who is a better woodworker than I am.  He used my shop for years and now has his own woodshop to play in.  He generally has better tooling than I do, I tend to hang on to old tools because I'm familiar with them and have good memories associated with them.  Also, I've used birthdays, Christmas, etc as opportunities to improve his tools by buying gifts that he might not spend the money on himself.

I have some of my Grandfather's planes which he will keep, I'm sure.  He will get all of my tools, wood stash, etc when I pass and it will be up to him to decide what has meaning to him.  I have (and will continue) to encourage him to give anything he is not using or going to use to some aspiring wood butcher to provide some incentive for them to stay involved with the hobby.  The pieces I have made are scattered among many folks so that may be a little bit of a legacy.

My biggest concern is what will happen to my guns.  My kid is not a hunter or a shooter so my "collection" of firearms needs a home that will appreciate them when I'm gone.

[®smpr_fi_mac®]

I'm still young at 40. My daughters (13 and 6) both express an interest in ww'ing and motorcycles, because those are my hobbies. The older one has turned a few pens, the younger has sanded a few that I turned. I hope they like it and want my tools, but if they don't, it won't matter to me; I'll be dead. I hope that if they don't want to keep them, that they're able to sell them for more than I paid because I got them all cheap!

[GEB]

Merriam Webster has many legal definitions of legacy, the most common being:
 a gift by will especially of money or other personal property. 
Today’s headlines talk of Obama’s legacy reminds us of another popular definition: how we will be remembered.

Staying with Stuff and/or Money I challenge attempts to attach expectations to how that Stuff or Money is used. To me, it is almost telling my Daughter and Son-in-law how to live after I die. If I were I to fulfill my father’s expectations when he died at 51 very angry at the world with some serious ethical and social issues, there would be no Stuff and a bad memory for my heirs. I know from experience. While we are alive we can cringe thinking, (overthinking?) of their pissing away whatever wealth we leave them, but once we are under the turf we no longer exist so it can’t matter.

[jimmyv21]

Wow gents, lots of heart and thought in this thread.  I usually scroll through these long posts, but I read every word of this one and felt compelled to respond.

My tool collection is still a work in progress.  At 34, I have a great start and look forward to what's next.

I hope my 2 sons have an interest in woodworking when the time comes.  One is 8 and and one is 4, so right now it is hard to tell.

But I just wanted to say this:  As I cut my teeth in the work world, I was an assistant superintendent under an old man.  He didn't like me and I didn't respect him.  Over the years, I learned more from him than I could possible repay, and we became great friends.  What a fool I was for not respecting him from day one.  One of the things that brought us together was our hobby for woodworking.  He had been collecting tools for 60 yrs, but none of his 3 kids shared any interest in the hobby.  Once he retired, his health deteriorated quickly and his shop sat idle.  We talked weekly and he always spoke of getting back in the shop.  He did make a roll top desk as a final project. 

When he passed, he did something that some of you might consider.  He left his woodworking tools to someone not even related to him- me!  He knew I would value, appreciate, and use them.  I imagine he had the same thoughts many have about their 'legacy' and he loved woodworking enough to want to see them in the hands of someone with the same passion- more than to see them placed on the auction block so someone could make a few pennies.

Understand that his family situation was good and his wife and kids knew me and were supportive of his wishes.  Maybe for some of you this wouldnt apply.  But in my mind, if my sons or extended family arent interested, I'd hope to find myself an interested prodigy whose life I could impact for many years, even beyond mine.  The tools mean a lot to me.  But what means even more is the fact that he thought enough of a smart-@ss like me.... I think of him every time I pick up that dovetail jig... Thank you John.

[Hank Knight]

Jimmy V, yours is a wonderful response. Thank you.

[KC]

I get what I need when I need it and use it with no consideration as to what will happen to it when I'm gone.  I'm not a hand tool guy, and not a 'collector' of power tools.  The only thing I can think of that anyone might be remotely interested in is a Bridge City Tool Works saddle square given me by another woodworker.  Or clamps.  

As to sentimentality, I'd rather someone take care of and value something I made with the tools as opposed to the tools themselves.  My father didn't have 'hobbies', so my 'sentimentality' base may have never gotten a start.   My mother's dad was an artist (painter) of some note, and while I'm interested in locating and preserving his work, I don't care even a little bit about his old easels or paint box or anything like that.