Fingerprint Legacies

Fingerprint Legacies The heart of Fingerprint Legacies is about honouring your one-of-a-kind story and saving it in the f

*Sharing with permission*I had the honour of writing his story a few years ago. “Papa Joe,” as he’s affectionately calle...
02/10/2025

*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.

When I’m working with clients, I often do research to supplement their stories – to add historical context for readers, ...
02/10/2025

When I’m working with clients, I often do research to supplement their stories – to add historical context for readers, or to try and find relevant documents. One time, a gentleman told me that he’d been a passenger on the Kasztner Train. I’d heard about this rescue operation beforehand – how it saved many Hungarian Jews during Nazi-occupied Europe – but I’d never met any of the passengers.

After our session together, I began searching archives, determined to find something official, something from June 1944 when the rescue operation began. It didn’t take long before I stumbled across them – pages and pages of now yellowed papers that list the original train passengers’ names. After combing through hundreds of them, I found his: fifth from the bottom of one of the pages, Dr. Albert Kohn.

Historical records are gifts, true wealth to pass on. I love the way they bring history to life and connect us to our past, bridging the generations.

*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 A...
01/27/2025

*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.”

It's never too late to save a story or discover where you come from.It was a privilege to work on this book, which is a ...
09/15/2023

It's never too late to save a story or discover where you come from.

It was a privilege to work on this book, which is a moving account of my client's quest to trace her roots and unearth what was buried by family members who survived the Holocaust but never spoke of their experiences. In an effort to break her family's "conspiracy of silence," my client is hoping to share her story in schools, to teach students valuable lessons from history and honour her family's legacy.

*Sharing with permission*As a kid, I was an avid sticker collector. Most of my favourite stickers were manufactured by S...
08/15/2023

*Sharing with permission*

As a kid, I was an avid sticker collector. Most of my favourite stickers were manufactured by Sandylion Sticker Designs. Oh, how I dreamed of collecting all of their unique and fabulous designs! Over the past year, I had the great honour of meeting the visionaries behind this amazing business -- Sandy and Lionel -- and writing their incredible story. They say if you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life. It's a true privilege to help others save their stories. To me, it's the other "half" of legacy planning.

Your story is your greatest legacy.

It’s amazing to witness my clients’ dreams come to fruition. Here, Sam Mercanti shares his book on CHCH TV. It was a pri...
01/11/2023

It’s amazing to witness my clients’ dreams come to fruition. Here, Sam Mercanti shares his book on CHCH TV. It was a privilege to write Sam’s life story, which includes 50 business lessons from his remarkable career as a Canadian businessperson and icon. All book proceeds are going to Cystic Fibrosis Canada, a charitable corporation near and dear to Sam’s heart.

It’s been such a career highlight for me - working with Sam Mercanti, and writing his amazing story. The lessons I’ve le...
12/20/2022

It’s been such a career highlight for me - working with Sam Mercanti, and writing his amazing story. The lessons I’ve learned from his entrepreneurial journey are invaluable and will stay with me forever.

I’m excited to share that Sam’s book, RISEN From The Shop Floor: Lessons From An Entrepreneur, is now available on Amazon.ca and sammercanti.com

If you order the book now, you can get it before the holidays! In true Sam fashion, all proceeds from book sales will be donated to Cystic Fibrosis Canada.

Enjoy the read - Sam is inspirational!

Your Story is Your Greatest LegacyIf you’ve had the privilege to meet Sam Mercanti, founder of CARSTAR Automotive Canada...
09/15/2022

Your Story is Your Greatest Legacy

If you’ve had the privilege to meet Sam Mercanti, founder of CARSTAR Automotive Canada, you know truer words have never been spoken.

Last night, we celebrated the launch of Sam’s book, Risen From the Shop Floor: Lessons From an Entrepreneur, in the most perfect setting: on the body shop floor, at a CARSTAR franchise in Hamilton.

For the past 16 months, I’ve had the honour of helping Sam write his book. It tells his amazing life story — how he came to Canada as a young Italian kid with nothing, had a tough go, dropped out of high school, worked in his family’s body shop sweeping floors, and went on to revolutionize the car collision industry. The lessons I’ve learned about business and life will stay with me forever.

Sam’s inspirational story, full of business tips and hard-earned wisdom, will be available on Amazon soon. In true Sam fashion, all profits will go to Cystic Fibrosis Canada, a charity near and dear to Sam’s heart. To learn more, please visit: https://sammercanti.com

“I think I’ve learned everything I know off old people. They’re wise. Some people think they’ve got nothing to say ‘caus...
02/17/2022

“I think I’ve learned everything I know off old people. They’re wise. Some people think they’ve got nothing to say ‘cause they just sits there and they’re quiet. But they only sits there and they’re quiet ‘cause people thinks they’ve got nothing to say, so they don’t talk to them. But if you take the time to talk to them, and ask them things, they tells you stuff. It’s brilliant.” - Ricky Gervais, in his brilliant role as “Derek"

Many of my clients are in their nineties. There aren't enough words to describe how rewarding it is listening to them tell their stories, and share a lifetime of hard-earned wisdom.

Here is a picture of one of my clients, signing copies of his book for excited family and friends.

The legacy we leave behind can be much more than just our "things."

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...
01/02/2022

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.

Well, it was supposed to happen in June 2020, at a hotel in Niagara Falls, but it finally happened today, over Zoom. So ...
03/11/2021

Well, it was supposed to happen in June 2020, at a hotel in Niagara Falls, but it finally happened today, over Zoom. So very grateful to have been given this opportunity to present at the Elder Planning Issues Conference (EPIC).

Never underestimate the value that comes from saving your loved ones' stories.

And they’re ready! 8 packages for 8 residents at a special long-term care home, who are ready to participate in an 8-wee...
03/01/2021

And they’re ready! 8 packages for 8 residents at a special long-term care home, who are ready to participate in an 8-week life story program… over Zoom!

I typically run the program as a group, but for everyone’s safety, the program has been modified and will include individual, structured interviews.

Like so many residents, these 8 people have been isolated in their rooms due to COVID for far too long, so they can’t wait to actively reminisce about their lives and have their stories written.

Address

Toronto, ON

Telephone

416-997-8383

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Fingerprint Legacies posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Practice

Send a message to Fingerprint Legacies:

Shortcuts

Share