Everyone Has a Story

Real Life Legacies creates one-of-a-kind narratives and books, preserving life stories now and forever.

The Benefits

Sharing your story allows you to pass on your wisdom to future generations, while strengthening family bonds and improving your own sense of well being.

What We Offer

Whether you choose to write a book or a simple legacy card or letter, we'll help you every step of the way to bring your project to completion.

How It Works

We start with a free consultation to discuss your ideas, what parts of your legacy you want to preserve and what the possibilities are given your budget.

What Others Are Saying

My  mom worked with Pat on the book, Stories of Esther Hutt-Robson… from Normandy and Quebec to Oswegathchie and Eldred. It’s a tremendous tale of faith, hope and love. I’m very proud of what they have done and blessed to be part of this story.

Pat was able to help my mom put together stories that I’ve heard my whole life, and many I’d never heard before. The tales are told in a way that highlights Pat’s skills in storytelling, her attention to detail, and her gift for drawing stories out of another person. Even thought I was there for some of the events at the time they happened, the beautiful retelling gave me a whole new perspective on the events!

My mom is so pleased with the book and what makes it especially beautiful is how we now have a story that is still being told and everyone in the family can add their tales to the unfolding narrative that we all share.

Rob Robson, Greece, NY

"Miracle Marcia" is the story of my lovely wife’s journey and battle with cancer over 17 years. As the ghostwriter, Pat provided the foundation, which transformed my words into an inspirational and loving book.

From the interviews to writing the final manuscript, Pat’s creativity brought out Marcia’s love, laughter and kindness and allowed me to preserve her story and keep my wife’s legacy alive. Thank you so much, Pat!

Kim Rambacher

Author, "Miracle Marcia"

Thank you for everything, Pat. The book turned out beautiful and it’s a beautiful tribute to Jen that will be memorialized for many generations to come. 

Bill Uhl, Ashville, NY

I first met Pat at a writers group in Sinclairville, NY. She was giving a presentation on her memoir work for Chautauqua County, NY residents. As part of that presentation, my name was selected to win a legacy card, which Pat created. The topic we chose was titled ‘When Rocks Speak,’ involving my interest in the petroglyphs and pictograms of ancient Native American artists, and my own creative art products from personal experiences visiting rock carving and painting sites. Her beautiful card was a strong motivator for me to finish writing a personal memoir focused on my work with American Indian communities and living a Lenape (Delaware Indian) life.

In a later meeting of the Write Circle writers, Pat offered to review one of my completed memoir chapters. She took a personal interest in helping me complete the memoir by becoming an editor for the entirety of book’s chapters. Her editing was exceptional in that she made key comments, suggestions and offered questions making the document of significantly greater interest to future readers. Here is one example of her key questions: Pat asked, “how do you deal with the conflicts of Native American (Lenape) spiritual beliefs and your Lutheran Christian religion?” This was not a topic already included in the twenty-three chapters previously written. My answer to her question is in the book now.

Pat is a mentor to my writing. She will always be held in special regard. Without her encouragement, editing skills, support, and sincere interest, completion of my memoir, On Indin Time would never have occurred. My children, grandchildren and others would never have the opportunity to know the challenges Lenape men of my vintage faced wearing two shirts every day. One shirt is buttoned down at the collar for the main society and the other is a ribbon shirt for the Indian heart.  

George Clever, Clemmons, NC

Thank you for meeting with Lois and writing a beautiful story of her life. It will be treasured by many family and friends. She was a special sister and lady.

LuAnn Civiletto and family, Jensen Beach, FL

I have had three recent occasions to work with Pat to complete legacy projects for Hospice patients.  Pat has a gentle demeanor and a thoughtful means of interviewing clients to make them comfortable.  She is timely in setting up and implementing appointments, as well as in delivering the completed projects.  The families with whom I am affiliated have been very pleased with the process and their finished product.

Carna Pierce, LMSW

Medical Social Worker, Hospice Chautauqua County

Patricia’s series, “Lost Places” is an amazing group of stories about forgotten or never-known places throughout Chautauqua County. When a new article came out each week in the Chautauqua Star, I was amazed at the amount of information I didn’t know or had forgotten about. The amount of in-depth research that needed to be done EACH week was amazing. A historian’s responsibility should be to both educate an individual about his or her past and to inspire them to want to learn more. Pat has succeeded in doing just that and I always finish reading one of her stories with the thought, I didn’t know that.”

John Paul Wolfe

Chautauqua County Historical Society

Pat first wrote a local newspaper article several years ago about us and our life living in South Africa. She was a delight to work with and the article was outstanding. Then she wrote another article a bit later. It was also very informative and fun to read...even for us. Now she has completed a third article on our organic farming for Edible Western New York culinary magazine. Again she was easy to work with and she is a talented writer. We couldn't be happier.

Kathleen & Alan Ramm

Ribbon Road Farm

When we made the decision to sell the farm and home after a half century, I wanted to trap some of its history because I realized that nothing is forever. I tried to focus on how to connect history with the future in a way that might have some value to those younger than me (which is quickly becoming almost everyone)! I discovered a book titled Lost Places of Chautauqua County by Pat of Real Life Legacies. Along the way, I began to realize that I would need a professional personal historian to stand a snowball’s chance of successfully documenting and organizing my thoughts between the front and back covers.

Pat’s skills interviewing my entire family and editing the results were phenomenal! Her expertise with layout and design and the selection of a high-quality printing and design company in our county was also a cornerstone of our book.

What I originally envisioned as a few pages to trap the history of the old barn evolved into a 182-page book, which included much input from our family. The words to describe Pat’s role include guidance, patience, and tolerance—tons of tolerance!

This project would have never happened without Pat and I along with my family will be forever grateful for her continually pushing me toward the finish line.

Pete James, Chautauqua, NY

“Despite our seemingly ordinary lives, we will leave behind extraordinary stories…a priceless gift for current and future generations.”

--Patricia Pihl, Personal Historian

It's never too early to start, but it can be too late.

Contact us today for a free consultation and to see which type of written legacy is right for you.

About Us

Patricia Pihl, owner and personal historian at Real Life Legacies, knows the importance of recording life’s experiences, both for the storyteller and for the generations to come.

Contact Us

Patricia Pihl
Real Life Legacies
Mayville, New York
(716) 753-0987
pat@reallifelegacies.com

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PHNN Personal Historians Northeast Network