A Life Well-Lived: Winifred Petty
If youve ever doubted your ability to make a difference in the world, consider the true story of Winifred Petty of Eldora, Iowa, born in 1900.
Winifred worked as a bookkeeper with the Boyt Harness Company in Des Moines. Her boss impressed upon her the importance of saving and investing her money. She followed that advice and spent a portion of each paycheck to buy one or two shares of stock. She worked hard, purchased a modest brick home, and lived frugally. She also never married.
When she died in 1998, she left more than $1 million to 18 Iowa charities. Her money funded organizations serving children with disabilities, the poor, her church, the sick, a hospice, a music education program at a university and a childrens hospital where she volunteered, among others.
In many ways Winifred lived a very ordinary life, yet her impact beyond her time on earth is extraordinary. Living a life well-lived, her generosity continues to impact thousands of lives today and into the foreseeable future.
Most people are regular folks living lives the world never notices. But many of those common, ordinary people choose to live lives that impact others far beyond their earthly lives.
What about you? What will be your legacy? What will people say about you when your earthly life ends? Choose today to leave this world a better place because you were alive.
Dr. Steve Lake is a retired educator with over 30 years experience in the American public schools. He has served in a variety of position, including teacher, elementary school principal, junior high principal, Associate Superintendent, retired from public education as Superintendent of Schools in Lincolnwood, IL. He has his Bachelors, Masters and Doctor of Education degrees from Northern Illinois University. For the past 25 years Steve has attended and been a member of Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington and Northfield, IL. At Willow Creek Steve has taught adult classes on spiritual gifts, life purpose, and spiritual disciplines. He has ministered overseas in Angola, Zambia, Honduras, Germany, and Russia. Steve is co-founder of Designed to Serve, a ministry that equips Christians to live out their unique God-given calling. Steve is married and has two adult children who are married.
