Leaving a gift in your Will

Leaving a gift in your Will to a charity can be one of the most impactful and rewarding ways to support a cause that means a lot to you.

Bristol Museums Development Trust rely on gifts in Wills to care for and expand our collections, educate and inspire our visitors and bring world-class exhibitions to Bristol. 

For Bristol Museums Patron Linda, leaving a gift in her Will was a way to support a place that has brought her joy, inspiration and a lifelong connection to culture and history.  

Hear her story… 

Why do you support Bristol Museums?

I grew up in Preston, and one of my favourite places to go was The Harris Museum. I was always asking to go and visit there, it was like my spiritual home. When I moved to Bristol for university, I, of course, went to visit Bristol Museum & Art Gallery and fell in love with the collections there.

Later on, when I retired, I found myself spending more and more time there. Through my interactions with staff, becoming a Patron and discovering more about the fantastic collections, it felt like I had my spiritual home back.  

Why have you decided to leave a gift in your will to Bristol Museums Development Trust?

I signed up as a Patron a couple of years ago and after attending so many fascinating curator-led tours, I knew this was something I wanted to give back to. It’s important to me to give back to things that are important to me and legacies are a great way to do that. Bristol Museums have provided me with some incredible experiences and hopefully this will help someone else in the future to continue to enjoy the collections and have the same amount of fun that I have! 

St James’s Fair by Samuel Colman. K353

What’s one thing you wish people knew about leaving a gift in their will?

That it doesn’t have to be sad and dower. It can be fun and that anyone can do it. Once I had made sure the people that mattered to me were looked after, it was enjoyable to think about all of my passions and interests, and how I could make an impact there.  

Culture and history are clearly important to you. Why is that?

As a Curator now myself at University of Bristol Spelæological Society, I can see the full impact of understanding our collective history. Its really important that people continue to engage with arts and history. If you don’t understand your past, you can’t understand where you are going.  

Lastly, if you had to pick one object in the collection to see, what would it be?

Right now, I would have to say St James’s Fair, by Samuel Colman. I have stared at that painting for hours and I am still not done looking. However if you ask me next week I could well have chosen something else, there’s so much to see and discover.  

You can find out more about leaving a gift to Bristol Museums Development Trust in your Will and our free Will writing service at Leave a gift in your Will | Bristol Museums.