Thursday, June 27, 2013

LEGACY - A UNIQUE ORGANIZATION

LEGACY - MARGARET TANNER 
There are certain charities that I will always donate money to, The Red Cross and The Salvation Army, I am sure everyone would have heard of these wonderful organizations and the great work that they do.

The organization that is dearest to my heart you will probably not have heard of.  It is called Legacy. Legacy is dedicated to supporting the widows and children of any Australian service personnel who dies during their war service or after it.  They look after nearly 100,000 widows and close to 2,000 children. Each widow and child is provided with a Legatee, that is a volunteer, usually a veteran or a serving member of the armed forces who will act as a mentor and a friend. A Legatee might have several children and widows that they look out for. It is a voluntary organization that receives no government funding.

Legacy was started after the 1st World War by returning veterans who wanted to help the widows and children of their fallen comrades.  Most of the widows now are from the 2nd world war, Korea or Vietnam, but there are younger widows and children joining the Legacy family because of the war in Iraq, Timor and Afghanistan.

I have personal experience of the wonderful work that Legacy does. My late mother was a Legacy Widow, and they were extremely helpful to her. They fought the Veteran Affairs Department on her behalf and made it possible for her receive a War Widow’s pension from the government.  Her Legatee was a returned soldier in his 80’s, and he used to regularly drop in for a chat, and to make sure she didn’t need anything, he also visited her when she was in hospital for no reward, other than the knowledge that he was helping the widow of fallen comrade.
 

My novel, A Rose In No-Man’s Land, published by The Wild Rose Press, is set during the 1st World War.

Battlefield nurse, Amy Smithfield, falls in love with Captain Mark Tremayne, but he is bound to his dead wife. He can never marry again or tell Amy the truth, unless he wants to risk the gallows for a murder he did not commit.





4 comments:

Judith Ashley said...

Legacy sounds like a wonderful organization, Margaret. You know from your own experience they do important work! It is particularly challenging when grieving to deal with government bureaucracy. So glad you mom had someone to support her.

I've yet to read "Rose" but I have read and enjoyed "Frontier Wife". I've a lot to learn about Australia and am having a good time doing that through your books.

Paty Jager said...

Margaret, Legacy sounds like a great organization. There are so many widows and children who need help when their husbands or fathers don't come home.

"Rose" sounds like another great book!

Sarah Raplee said...

It amazes me how much I learn from your posts, Margaret. I had no idea Australian soldiers were in Timor.

What a wonderful non-profit organization Legacy is! Having a knowledgeable friend to guide you and fight for your rights is a wonderful gift.

Margaret Tanner said...

Hi Sarah, Paty and Judith.
Thank you, it is a wonderful organization, and one that I can personally vouch for.

Regards

Margaret