Gransnetters share the legacy they'd like to leave when they're gone with Cancer Research UK

I have never thought of it before, but now the seed has been planted, I am thinking of changing my will and leaving a small amount to a charity, then the rest split between my 4 children.

We have decided to leave everything to charity as our daughter and grandchildren have already been giving as much as we are willing to give to them and we are pleased that we are leaving it to a charity close to our hearts

What have you thought about leaving behind?

I need to do one, but me and my partner are not married and I am not sure how it would work as I would want to make sure my children are included and do not loose out, who is my NOK, if he survives me, does it mean his children get my estate too - all very complicated

Have you detailed this in a Will?

I have written this in rough, just need to get it made legal - but how ?

Would you consider leaving a gift to charity in your Will?

Yes definitely, there are several charities close to my heart

Would Cancer Research UK be a consideration?

Yes, sure.

How would you like people to remember you when you’re gone?

As someone that could be relied on, had time for everyone, was a good friend, and was a good person.

I have given to charity all my life. My children need my legacy and it is up to them to give to charity when they are able.

I would like to leave some money to Cancer as 3 members of my family have died from Cancer, I will definitely think about it when I make my Will

Ironically enough, we have had to write English wills, as our previous French/Begian/Australian/South African ones are of course no longer valid. These were signed last Monday.
10% of the residue of our estate will go to charity of which we decided 90% of this [whatever] sum will go to Cancer Research and the remaining 10% to the RNLI. However, we do realise that donations to charities are a very personal decision

I was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma in December 2017 and endured 6 months of chemotherapy, I am happy to say I'm currently cancer free. It has been a struggle and at times I wanted to give up. I stuck in there and I'm happy to announce I am currently cancer free. Surviving cancer has given me a new outlook on life.
I would like the money I leave behind split between the Cancer Research UK and the Macmillan Cancer Charity . Both of those charities have kept me alive which I know means more to my children than any money I leave behind.

Having watched the life savings of my elderly mum-in-law quickly disappear each month due to the high cost of care home fees it has made us realise that her cherished hope of leaving money to close family and some of her favourite charities is very unlikely to happen - something which distresses her and upsets her greatly.
I now believe that should you wish to ensure that you give to those you love and charities you support, do so in life, don't wait until circumstances stop this from happening. Give what you can - when you can!

What have you thought about leaving behind? Have you detailed this in a Will? I recently brought my Will up to date and organised Power of Attorney, with my two children as executors. Draft versions were agreed with them and both know what is involved. I'm also gradually getting rid of 'stuff'. I don't want to leave a guddle for them to deal with and, at 75, it seemed timely to get all my ducks in a row!

Would you consider leaving a gift to charity in your Will? Would Cancer Research UK be a consideration? Yes, and yes. That said, I've contributed to several charities over my lifetime, both financially and as a volunteer, and have opted to leave most of what I have to support my family.

How would you like people to remember you when you’re gone? As strong, supportive, flawed but fun

We have both made wills leaving everything to my son. We have also included some charities that we have support over the years, League Against Cruel Sport and a very small grass root charity that lend money to women to set up a business to help support their family.

I am spending my retirement helping charities with my time and money so thats it.

Forgot to say that I would hope I would be remembered as being kind, helpful and fair as well as beautiful

Our daughter will recieve whatever we leave , and if she chooses to donate to a charity she has our full blessing . Whilst we remain alive we support charities which affect our family Cancer (mum and sister ), The Deaf Blind(grandad ) , M/E & Diabetes (myself ), and Prostate Cancer (hubs ). Not with regular subscriptions as we don't want to be inundated with literature , but largish anonymous donations as and when we can afford.

My legacy would be always remember the glass is half full not half empty

I would leave what little I have to my son as it is hard for young people to get on the property ladder .

We have made a will each but I was seriously shocked when I read about an unfortunate case recently where a certain charity was bequeathed a percentage of some person’s will who had recently passed away. The house was to be sold to release money but unfortunately for the remaining family members, the charity refused the offers on the house sale due to it not being as high as they had hoped, meaning they wouldn’t benefit from as much cash. The poor family had to wait quite some time to benefit from the deceased family member’s will, due to the greed of the charity. I donate to small local charities regularly and had mentioned specific sums of money in my will, but when I update my will I am going to review this point after reading about the greed aspect which had been highlighted a few months ago. Nobody even gives this a thought when they are drawing up their will.

My husband and I created our will 15 years ago and everything is left to our son. I'm not sure how often it should be updated however if I thought that my son was financially secure at that point I might give a portion to charity too.

Not everyone will have anything to leave to any charity when they die. I currently give a monthly donation to cancer research which comes out of my pension now that I am retired. I am also happy to donate small amounts on an ad hoc basis , as and when I have some spare cash.
When I die anything left goes to my two children

I'll leave whatever i have to my sons, i try to do my bit when / if i can, for kama & compassion.

We have written a joint will every time we have sold and bought a new house. However, I'd like to think that my legacy, apart from the obvious house, cars, money is that I taught my daughters (and granddaughter) to be free thinking independent women who make their own way in life. I'm proud of who they are, and so are they. I'd also like to think that my friends would miss my warped sense of humour {grin] 25 years in the NHS I'm afraid..........

I have left all my goods to my sister and her family. I support several charities already by direct debit but want my family to have my savings at the end.

We have already done it. We already had a will but it needed updating after the birth of our two granddaughters and this spurred us on to do it. I think it is a wonderful idea that benefits others and as my sister in law has stage 4 lung cancer and is fighting cancer at the moment if feel strongly that this is the tight thing to fo

There will definitely be something left to at least one charity. Whether this will be in the form of goods or money will depend on the circumstances at death, which hopefully is some time away. An awful lot can happen in a very short time as we have seen recently in our own family. I hope I will be remembered as kind, caring and giving.

When our mother passed of cancer in a local hospice my brother & I decided to donate an amount to the hospice that our mother had left in her will to a childless cousin of hers who had sadly died before her. We thought it was a nice gesture for the care they had provided for her in her last days & our father 20 years previously.
Personally my husband & I have a son with learning difficulties & I think our other son will benefit from having our estate left to him so he can make sure his brother is well looked after when we’ve gone so in this respect we haven’t made provisions for a charitable donation in our will but do donate regularly whilst we are here to numerous causes.

We've made a will, with everything to our children, but do try to support charities now as much as we can. My mother died recently - aged 95 - after suffering from dementia and pancreatic cancer - so we currently support charities linked to both these illnesses, making donations regularly and supporting fund-raising events.
After my death, it would be nice to know that any bits of me worth having could be 're-cycled' - so I'm perfectly happy with organ donation if anyone can make use of working parts.
I would certainly want any money remaining after my death to go to a charity rather than the taxman, so would donate money to prevent vast inheritance tax bill for my children - although somehow I don't think this will be the case, especially if we need to pay for care at any stage.
I'd like to be remembered as someone who was generous, kind and thoughtful, and who enjoyed life and the company of others.

I have a will in which I am leaving everything to my only child. I have chosen to do this as I don’t want my house to have to be sold to cover bequests, I want my family to have the choice of living in it, should they wish to do so.
However, I do support a number of charities financially on both an ongoing and one off basis, as well as volunteering for Marie Curie.