Fingerprint Legacies

*Sharing with permission*

I had the honour of writing his story a few years ago. “Papa Joe,” as he’s affectionately called, grew up in the 1930s and 40s in a well-known immigrant neighbourhood in downtown Toronto called “The Ward.” He went on to live an extraordinary life, which included working in the music industry, selling and distributing records, and taking care of celebrities, including Ray Charles, the Jackson 5, and Ella Fitzgerald. In addition to his story, there are beautiful reflections and life lessons sprinkled through his book.

“I’ve learned that success in life is measured in many different ways. To some people, success is defined by having endless amounts of money and fame; to others, it’s measured by happiness, family, and a good, stable home. It depends what plateau you want to be on. I might have travelled the world as an opera singer and enjoyed that life path, but I’m very proud of the plateau I chose. I didn’t want to be running from pillar to post forever. I had seen that kind of life too often in The Ward. Instead, I decided to marry the girl I loved, have children, and be rated as a good family man. And I still had a marvellous career!”

Your core values and hard-earned wisdom are part of your legacy. Don't forget to transition them to the next generation.

*With my real-life hero on my wedding day*

A 123 67 was the number tattooed on my grandmother’s arm when she arrived in Auschwitz at 17 years of age. Today, on the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, I honour her memory, her courage, her indomitable strength, her will to live on after all that she’d survived.

People ask me why I do what I do, why I’m so passionate about writing people’s life stories. “So they don’t get lost the way my family history did,” I always answer. “And because the most precious gift you can leave behind is your story. It is your greatest legacy.”

91 years young! What an honour it was to work with this incredible man and write his life story! His words took me on an amazing adventure through the streets of downtown Toronto in the 1930s and 40s and into an exciting, decades-long career in the music industry. Are you consciously transmitting your intangible assets too? Our stories are our greatest legacies.