The Power of Legacy

Family History:

My dad is a bit of a history buff, and he is also one of the most knowledgable family historians in my family. He is THE guy that researched our family's ancestry, put together long and extensive family trees, and could most likely name my great-great-grandfather's-sister's-aunt's-cousin-twice-removed on both his side and my mom's side if I asked him.

I am fascinated by my family lineage and I give Dad the credit for that. I think it's cool seeing the history of my ancestors' journies from Western Europe and linking that to how I came to be a product of the Midwest. My mom's side of the family are Europeans who in the past couple of centuries have moved from the Northeast U.S. and settled in the St. Louis region of Missouri. My dad's side of the family, while mostly European lineage, has been here a little while longer, first settling around South Carolina in the colonial era and moving around the South, eventually coming northwest to states like Illinois where my dad was born (my dad eventually came to the St. Louis area for work and settled down there after marrying my mom).

The reason I bring all this up is because family history is a family's personal legacy. I am part of the legacy of my branch of the Rollins and Gardiner families (amongst a host of other family names). I am the man I am today because of where my family came from and how the society and culture of my ancient family members shaped them. I think part of the reason why I am thrilled by the idea of traveling to Europe, why I am fond of the natural beauty of the South, and why I am proud to be from my region of Missouri is because I have links to each of those places and my family legacy is connected to those areas.

A Man's Legacy:

Legacy is important to me because it is one of the reasons why I want to become a father one day. I want to be able to pass on the name of Rollins and raise up a funny, strong, cultured generation of Rollinses. I want to pass on my family history to my future sons and daughters and tell them 'You are linked to the ancient kings of England and Scotland' and 'You come from tough mountain folk of the Appalachains' and 'This is where our family gets such weird and interesting names like Keeler and Timlin'.

I always found it interesting that my mom's dad, Bruce Gardiner, had 9 children, 5 of whom were sons, and yet out of his 23 grandchildren, only 2 are men that carry on the name Gardiner. My mom's sisters mostly had sons (My aunt Reggie has 2 daughters and 1 son, the only sister to have daughters) and my mom's brothers mostly had daughters (My uncle Rob has 2 sons and 6 daughters, the only brother to have sons). This is not to say that the rest of us are not proud to come from the Gardiner family. We love our Gardiner relatives dearly and make a point to see each other often to remain connected. However, there's something about being attached to a family by last name that creates a closer link, in my mind, to a legacy.

As I may have said before, St. Charles Borromeo is one of my favorite saints. He came from a rich, noble family in Milan, Italy. The Borromeo name had power in that region at the time. Being a member of the Borromeo family meant that you had great power, wealth, generosity, and kindness. St. Charles, becoming a priest, may not have carried on the family legacy through progeny, but he still had the great qualities that came from being a Borromeo and used those qualities to help those in need. He had a direct connection to the power and legacy of the Borromeo clan by bearing the family's last name.

Personal Story and Witnessing Legacy:

One of the interesting things about switching teams on Reach is that I have gotten a better grasp on the legacy of Reach Youth Ministry. Sure, the ministry's website has a great synopsis of the history of Reach, but actually being in Yakima, WA is a more intense experience. This is where it all began for the ministry and
I have been meeting so many people who have been involved in this ministry over the years. Physically hearing stories about past Reach teams and listening to how Reach has grown and morphed in the Diocese of Yakima is so wonderful. I can understand why people from centuries ago enjoyed swapping stories and storytelling.

You see, Reach has only been headquartered in Helena, MT for three years. I met a couple of youth ministers who did Reach back in the day and I heard some funny stories, but it does not match the atmosphere of Yakima. There are many more people who were involved in Reach, which was started in Yakima in the mid-1970s, and have witnessed the history of Reach, the struggles teams have overcome, and the relationship between the organization, the dioceses it serves, and the communities it reaches out to. This is the first year that so many people doing Reach have come from outside the Northwest and have come from far off places like Virginia, Florida, Alabama, and Kentucky. It's a new chapter for Reach's legacy.

Catholic Legacy:

The Catholic Church in general has a rich legacy. The priests and the bishops that we have today are linked to Jesus Christ's Apostles and the people they baptized and taught. That is a rich history where, because of tradition and the faith of the early Christians, the priesthood and the men involved in that holy brotherhood have a nearly 2000 year old legacy. Take Pope Francis who, because of his position, can look at the history of the popes that have come before him and see a lineage of men that connects him to St. Peter. The martyrs and the saints are also a huge part of Catholicism's legacy in this world. Our churches are named after holy people and that name has a power and impact upon that church's community.

For example, the church I grew up going to was St. Charles Borromeo Parish. That name has special meaning for me and has had an impact upon the whole church community (not to mention the fact that the church is located in St. Charles, Missouri). St. Rose Philippine Duchesne is buried in St. Charles, MO. She came from France with her Community of the Sacred Heart, which has had a great impact on education in the area. The Academy of the Sacred Heart still stands today on the same grounds as the Shrine of St. Rose Philippine Duchesne (where she is buried) and a local high school is named after her. I feel a connection to those names because of the legacy that binds us together.

When I was in college, a few of my friends named their homes after holy men.  The FOCUS missionaries named their place the Frassati House after Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati and a group of guys named their place House Pio after St. Padre Pio. They wanted to name their home after a strong, saintly, manly figure and after I looked into the lives of both those men, I understood that those names were chosen wisely.


I like knowing where I come from and understanding the history of my family. I like being a part of a faith community that celebrates its traditions and emphasizes a family atmosphere, even if I am not directly blood related to any saints. And while it's cool to appreciate the past, I know that I cannot make it my strongest emphasis. I need to live in the present while understanding the legacy that brought me to here today. When I understand that, I can help continue a strong legacy for future generations to appreciate. Eventually my name may only be seen on a grave marker or on a family tree (or my Facebook page cause those things last forever), but I know that when I look at my own family tree and see the names of my ancestors, those names have meaning to me because they had some impact on my own history.