A Legacy of Hope

ROGER BISHOP

Roger Bishop used his will to make a gift to Help Fill A Dream. Known to generations of UVIC students, faculty, and administrators as RJB, Roger Joseph Bishop, Professor Emeritus was a key figure in the establishment of the UVIC Department of English. When he died on 30 March 2016, Professor Bishop was just 41 days short of his 100th birthday.

Roger was a philanthropist who supported a variety of causes. His connection with Help Fill A Dream is through Dream child Emily and her family. When Emily was seven, Help Fill A Dream sent her on a Dream trip to Disneyland. Following two years of treatment for Leukemia, the trip was life changing for her entire family. It was a chance to destress, to relax, to take a breath. She got to be a kid again and play with her brother.

Roger and Emily’s family developed a deep friendship. Roger saw the healing power and impact a Dream can have through Emily, and he wanted to ensure other children had their Dreams come true as well. He did this through a gift in his will. Years later, when she was in her late 20’s, Emily joined the Help Fill A Dream Board of Directors, providing a unique perspective of how the organization makes a difference.

TINA & PHIL

Tina and Phil from Victoria made the decision to leave a legacy gift in their will. 

“We had been putting off making a will for years, we always thought we were too young. A few sudden deaths of close friends and family make you realise you’re never too young to make a will, and we didn’t want to put it off any longer. You just never know what’s around the corner.”

It was important to the couple that the legacy they left had real meaning.

“We wanted to leave a legacy to not only help out family but those that really need it. We can make a difference to a child and their family by leaving a legacy in our will.

We hadn’t realized that without a will, our estate could be tied up for years and the only real winner would be the lawyers and the government; we worked too hard to have that happen. We don’t have a lot but if that can help a family through some difficult times it’s totally worth it!”

Help Fill A Dream was an obvious choice for Tina and Phil, “We have done some voluntary work with Help Fill A Dream with the Taking it to the Streets event, Heritage Haunted House and the Golf for Kids Tournament – seeing the children and their families, and the look of joy on their faces is priceless. Knowing that we can make a difference when we are no longer here made sense for us.”

Once they had made their decision the process was easy, “Our Lawyer just added Help Fill A Dream with the charity number and we were done!”