Introducing... Legacy Book Templates
For a child, there is nothing like the magic of a book. Unlike videos, books give the reader a chance to take in information at their own speed and to pause and think about or talk about something. Sometimes, books can give kids the chance to understand and know things outside of their everyday life. Some books help kids feel connected to the characters, and as caregivers, you hear about these characters again and again.
For all of these reasons and more, I love the idea of a Legacy Book. A Legacy Book is a book about a loved one who has died. The book is written in a way that helps kids know and feel connected to their loved one. The book is typically full of pictures of their loved one and can include stories about their childhood, the adventures they went on as an adult, and/or things they loved about their grandchildren.
Anyone can make a Legacy Book, and I will always encourage families to create them for their children. Yet, because grief can be overwhelming and limiting, sometimes families need help getting it done. I have spent the last 4 years creating these Legacy Books for families, and it has absolutely been my honor. I have gotten to hear about so many special people, been able to sort through their precious photographs, and deliver these special books to grieving families. Over the years, I have never doubted how special and important the books are, but I have had some doubts about the process. I have regretted what I have had to charge for this service. I have not loved how long it takes for me to correspond with the family to get a true picture of their person. I have struggled with sifting through files full of photos and finding the best and most important ones. I have wondered about my book assembly methods and whether it will last over the years. So for these reasons and more, I have known that it was time to look at other options. I set this fall aside to work on this project and am so excited to finally share it with everyone.
I am introducing a new product, The Legacy Book Template. This template has a majority of the words already created. Families can fill in the blanks to make the book fit their person. The template uses a known photo book software so that families can easily insert pictures and print copies as they wish. This template will be offered at a minimal price. That price, plus the cost of printing a book, should be much lower than the original Legacy Book cost.
I have put a lot of time and effort into making the template very easy to use, and yet, I know it will still be too much for some grievers. In those situations, I think that it is absolutely something a good friend or family member could put together for the family. At the same time, I will be releasing a workbook that is basically a hard copy of the template. Families can fill out the book together or a child could fill out the book in a grief group, therapy, or with a child life specialist. These workbooks could also be used to collect information that is later used to create a book on the template. The possibilities are endless.
All of these things… templates, workbooks, etc. will be released this November, Children’s Grief Awareness Month. There are many aspects to this process, and it won’t all be rolled out in one day, but by the end of November, all parts should be available. So follow along and check it out!
