Service Over Self: Leaving a Sustainable Legacy | Wendy Taylor | TEDxNewport

Baby birds need to be hand-fed every 15 minutes, from sunup to sundown. It’s hardly a job for a law firm. Wendy Taylor taught her paralegal and secretary to feed the rescued birds she brought to work while she took depositions all day. “My colleagues and my partner thought I was crazy, and looking back, it was,” says Wendy. “I was in the process of discovering my true passion.”

15 years ago, Wendy lost her house and all nine of her pets in a fire. In the aftermath, she needed to do something to make her world right again. Wendy began rehabilitating injured wildlife as a way to regain a sense of purpose and honor the lives of her lost four-legged friends. Soon after, she gave up a 20-year law practice to open a non-profit animal sanctuary. Today, Wendy’s non-profit, West Place Animal Sanctuary, has grown into an 8-acre farm that rehabilitates injured wildlife and farm animals rescued from cruelty cases.

“Becoming a lawyer and defending clients was a good goal, but becoming a defender of those who can’t speak for themselves was the right goal,” says Wendy. She believes that one of the ways to work through personal tragedy is by volunteering. West Place provides a home, not only for rescued animals but also for a host of volunteers finding fulfillment in service. “Our volunteers needed our rescues as much as our rescues needed our volunteers,” says Wendy.

Wendy’s TEDx Newport talk, “Service Over Self: Leaving a Sustainable Legacy” is a call to action to move people to volunteer, to give “service above acquiring stuff,” as a means to empowerment and purpose. “What you’ve done in this world is gone when you’re gone, but what you do for others is going to remain as part of your legacy.”
Animal Advocate, Volunteer This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx