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THE STORY WE LEAVE™
LEGACY ACROSS GENERATIONS INITIATIVE™
Bringing Generations Together Through the Power of Story
One story. One conversation. One legacy at a time.
Every community is filled with remarkable people whose stories deserve to be remembered.
The Legacy Across Generations Initiative™ brings teens and older generations together through meaningful conversations, guided storytelling, and legacy journaling.
Through the initiative, teens can become trained Teen Legacy Facilitators™, learning how to listen, ask thoughtful questions, and help another person preserve the stories, memories, experiences, and wisdom that have shaped their life.
The result is more than a completed journal.
It is a meaningful connection between generations—and a lasting record that can be treasured for years to come.
WHY PARTNER WITH US?
The Legacy Across Generations Initiative™ gives organizations an opportunity to create meaningful connections between younger and older generations while giving teens a purposeful way to serve their communities.
For young people, the experience can build communication, listening, leadership, empathy, and service skills.
For older adults and other storytellers, it provides an opportunity to share memories, experiences, values, and life lessons with someone who is willing to listen.
For families and communities, it helps preserve stories that might otherwise be lost.
Teach a teen to listen.
Give someone a chance to be heard.
Preserve the story.
IDEAL COMMUNITY PARTNERS
The Legacy Across Generations Initiative™ can be adapted to work with a variety of organizations and community settings.
We welcome conversations with:
High Schools
Homeschool Programs
Alternative Education Programs
Military Youth Programs
Youth Organizations
Community Service Programs
Libraries
Senior Centers
Assisted Living Communities
Retirement Communities
Hospice Organizations
Veterans Organizations
Faith-Based Youth Organizations
Other Community Organizations Interested in Intergenerational Connection
Each partnership can be shaped around the organization's existing programs, schedule, resources, and community needs.
HOW THE INITIATIVE WORKS
STEP 1: TEENS BECOME TRAINED FACILITATORS
Participating teens complete the Teen Legacy Facilitator™ training provided through The Story We Leave™.
They learn how to listen actively, ask thoughtful questions, encourage meaningful conversations, and respectfully guide another person through the legacy journaling process.
STEP 2: A COMMUNITY PARTNER IDENTIFIES PARTICIPANTS
The participating organization identifies older adults, veterans, family members, or other community members who would like to share their stories.
Participants may be connected through a senior community, school, veterans organization, community group, family program, or another approved setting.
STEP 3: TEENS MEET WITH STORYTELLERS
Teen Legacy Facilitators™ meet with participants for scheduled storytelling sessions.
Using guided prompts from The Story We Leave™ Legacy Journal, teens encourage participants to share memories, experiences, important life events, family traditions, lessons learned, and other meaningful stories.
The teen's role is not to counsel or provide therapy.
Their role is to listen, encourage, and help preserve memories.
STEP 4: STORIES BECOME A LEGACY
As the sessions progress, participants create a personal legacy journal containing stories and memories from their lives.
The completed journal becomes a tangible keepsake for the storyteller and their family.
THE TEEN LEGACY FACILITATOR™ PROGRAM
The Teen Training Component of the Legacy Across Generations Initiative™
The Teen Legacy Facilitator™ Program prepares students to participate in the Legacy Across Generations Initiative™ as trained story facilitators.
The program teaches teens how to approach another person's experiences with respect, curiosity, patience, and genuine interest.
They learn that sometimes one of the most meaningful things we can give another person is simply the opportunity to tell their story—and to know that someone cared enough to listen.
WHAT STUDENTS LEARN
Through training and participation, students develop skills in:
Active listening and communication
Interviewing techniques
Asking thoughtful questions
Empathy and compassion
Writing and storytelling
Organization and project planning
Digital organization and documentation
Respect for personal experiences and family history
Professional and ethical conduct
These skills can extend beyond the program and into school, work, relationships, and everyday life.
WHAT DOES A TEEN LEGACY FACILITATOR™ DO?
A Teen Legacy Facilitator™ helps another person tell and preserve their story.
During storytelling sessions, teen facilitators may:
Ask thoughtful questions
Listen to memories and experiences
Encourage participants to continue sharing
Help organize memories and stories
Guide participants through the legacy journal
Help preserve important family and community history
Provide a respectful and supportive presence
The facilitator does not provide counseling or therapy.
The facilitator's role is to create a safe, respectful opportunity for someone to be heard.
Listen. Encourage. Preserve.
WHO CAN PARTICIPATE?
The Teen Legacy Facilitator™ Program is designed for students ages 15 and older who have an interest in serving others, connecting across generations, and helping preserve family and community stories.
Parent or guardian permission is required for participants under 18.
The program may be a meaningful opportunity for:
High school students
Homeschool students
Youth organization members
Students interested in community service
Students interested in leadership
Students preparing for college
Students completing service-learning or independent projects
Students looking for meaningful volunteer experiences
TEEN LEGACY FACILITATOR™ CERTIFICATE
Students who successfully complete the required training receive a:
TEEN LEGACY FACILITATOR™
CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION
Documentation of participation or volunteer hours may also be provided when applicable.
Acceptance of volunteer hours, service-learning credit, school credit, or other recognition is determined by the participating school, district, or organization.
BENEFITS FOR STUDENTS
The Teen Legacy Facilitator™ experience can provide opportunities for students to develop:
Communication skills
Active listening skills
Leadership experience
Empathy and compassion
Confidence
Intergenerational awareness
Community service experience
Volunteer experience
Writing and storytelling skills
Resume-building experience
For students preparing for college, employment, or future leadership opportunities, the experience can provide a meaningful example of service and responsibility.
BENEFITS FOR OLDER ADULTS AND STORYTELLERS
Everyone has a story.
Participants have the opportunity to:
Share treasured memories
Preserve family history
Reflect on meaningful life experiences
Pass along wisdom and values
Tell stories that might otherwise be forgotten
Connect with a younger generation
Create a lasting personal legacy
For some participants, simply having someone sit down and genuinely listen can be meaningful in itself.
And when those conversations become part of a completed legacy journal, the memories can continue beyond the conversation.
Every completed journal becomes a lasting gift for loved ones.
BENEFITS FOR FAMILIES
The stories preserved through the Legacy Across Generations Initiative™ can become part of a family's history.
A completed legacy journal may preserve:
Childhood memories
Family traditions
Important life experiences
Military experiences
Accomplishments and challenges
Lessons learned
Personal values
Stories about people and places
Memories that might otherwise be forgotten
The finished journal gives families something tangible to keep, read, share, and pass down to future generations.
BENEFITS FOR ORGANIZATIONS
Participating organizations can create meaningful opportunities for:
Intergenerational connection
Youth leadership
Community service
Service-learning
Volunteer engagement
Community storytelling
Family history preservation
Community involvement
The program can also complement existing youth, education, senior, veterans, service, or community programs.
Rather than requiring an organization to create an entirely new program from the ground up, the initiative can be adapted to fit the setting and population being served.
A PROGRAM THAT CAN REFLECT THE COMMUNITY
Every community has its own history, culture, traditions, values, and stories.
The Legacy Across Generations Initiative™ is designed with flexibility in mind.
Partner organizations can help shape the experience so that storytelling reflects the community and the people participating in it.
The goal is not simply to collect stories.
It is to create meaningful connections while honoring the people and experiences behind those stories.
OUR COMMITMENT TO COMMUNITY PARTNERS
The Story We Leave™ provides participating organizations with guidance and program materials designed to help them implement the Legacy Across Generations Initiative™.
Depending on the partnership, support may include:
Teen Legacy Facilitator™ training materials
Facilitator resources
Storytelling and journaling guidance
Program materials
Participant resources
Implementation guidance
Certificates of completion
Ongoing communication and support
Our goal is to make participation as meaningful and manageable as possible for both the organization and the people it serves.
CURRENTLY SEEKING PILOT PARTNERS
Help Us Bring Generations Together
The Story We Leave™ is currently seeking organizations interested in exploring Legacy Across Generations Initiative™ pilot partnerships.
The initiative is currently being developed through pilot opportunities in Hawaii and New Mexico, with plans to expand to additional communities.
A pilot gives an organization an opportunity to experience the program on a manageable scale and explore how intergenerational storytelling can fit within its existing programs and community needs.
We are especially interested in connecting with:
Homeschool Programs • Military Youth Programs • Youth Organizations • Schools • Libraries • Senior Communities • Veterans Organizations • Community Organizations
Whether your organization serves teens, older adults, veterans, families, or the broader community, we would love to explore what a partnership could look like.
COULD YOUR ORGANIZATION BE A PILOT PARTNER?
If your organization is interested in creating opportunities for young people and older generations to connect, share, listen, and preserve stories, we invite you to start a conversation.
A pilot does not have to begin with a large group.
It can begin with a small group of teens.
A few storytellers.
A few conversations.
And a willingness to see what can happen when one generation takes the time to listen to another.
INTERESTED IN EXPLORING A PILOT PARTNERSHIP?
CONTACT THE STORY WE LEAVE™
Let's create more opportunities for generations to listen, connect, and remember.
THE STORY WE LEAVE™
The memory lives where the story is told™
