The American Heart Association, devoted to changing the future to a world of healthier lives for all, will host a free webinar, “Your Legacy, Your Way: Estate Planning for Peace of Mind,” on Tuesday, October 20, at 1 p.m. Eastern/noon Central/10 a.m. Pacific. The session coincides with National Estate Planning Awareness Week, October 19-25, and aims to make the estate planning process easier to understand and begin. The announcement comes as an estimated 56% of Americans do not have an up-to-date estate plan, leaving their financial wellness at risk.
Estate planning helps people protect loved ones, clarify their wishes, and support the causes that matter to them most. The webinar is designed for both first-time planners and those reviewing an existing plan. “Estate planning is about more than financial documents. It is an opportunity to make thoughtful decisions for the people and causes that matter to you the most,” said Lee Shapiro, volunteer chairperson of the American Heart Association and managing partner and co-founder at 7wireVentures. “This webinar will offer clear information and practical steps to allow you to begin or revisit your estate plans with greater confidence.”
Featured speakers include attorney Megan Kelly, with Megan M. Kelly Law, and Trent Grzegorczyk, wealth manager with Corso Wealth. They will explain estate planning fundamentals, including essential documents, key decisions, and practical next steps. The webinar will cover essential documents commonly included in an estate plan, key decisions involved in planning for the future, considerations for people reviewing an existing plan, and practical next steps that can help make estate planning feel more manageable. Everyone who registers will receive a collection of estate planning guides for instant download. Advance registration is required at heart.org/plan.
National Estate Planning Awareness Week is an opportunity to help people understand the importance of creating or updating an estate plan to protect loved ones and leave a lasting legacy. Additional resources, including information about wills and beneficiary designations, are available at heart.org/NEPAW.
Planned giving is a powerful way to create lasting impact and support the causes that matter most. Donations contributed from planned gifts allow the Heart Association to drive breakthroughs and implement proven solutions in science, policy, and care for healthier people and communities. Donors who choose to give a legacy gift through charitable financial planning are recognized for their leadership as members of the Paul Dudley White Legacy Circle, a designation within the Cor Vitae Society, named in tribute to one of the Association’s visionary founders and a pioneer of preventive cardiology.
Legacy gifts are vital to sustain the American Heart Association’s role as the nation’s leading non-governmental funder of cardiovascular research, with more than $6.3 billion invested in scientific discovery since 1949. This generosity fuels lifesaving research and education, helping people everywhere live longer, healthier lives for generations to come. For more information on charitable estate planning, visit the American Heart Association charitable estate planning information page. General heart health resources are available at heart.org and stroke.org.
