Dr. William and Minden Nester
Rooted in service, guided by heart
For Dr. William and Minden Nester, giving to the American Heart Association is more than a charitable act. It’s a reflection of their values, their upbringing, and the world they want their children to grow up in.
Both grew up in large families with deep roots in medicine, where service wasn’t just encouraged, it was lived.
Will grew up in the Midwest watching his physician father care for patients. He remembers joining his father on hospital rounds as a child, greeted by nurses who offered him chocolate milk and turkey sandwiches. Those moments, filled with quiet compassion, shaped his calling to medicine.
Minden’s childhood in New Jersey was rooted in service modeled to her from a young age. Her great-grandfather, a physician, would treat patients through the front porch of the family home, while her great-grandmother served soup out the back porch. Her grandfather, Jeremiah, received Man of the Year honors from The American Heart Association in Long Island, NY. That spirit of generosity inspired her path as a teacher and lifelong volunteer.
The Nesters involvement with the American Heart Association began when they were each just children. Will was CPR-certified at 13, working as a lifeguard and swim instructor. Minden started fundraising for the Association in second grade through Jump Rope for Heart, holding the top fundraiser spot for five consecutive years. “We knew what we were raising money for,” she says. “It made a difference.”
Their shared values brought them together at Creighton University, a Jesuit school in Omaha, Nebraska. They first met while tutoring local children - Will taught math and science, Minden taught reading - and that moment was the spark of a life rooted in service to the community.
Following years of medical training in Chicago and Rhode Island, and the birth of their first son in 2021, the couple returned to Omaha to raise their family.
Their connection to the American Heart Association deepened in February 2022, when they attended their first Heart Ball in Omaha. Minden, pregnant with their second child, was deeply moved by the story of a child who underwent heart surgery at Methodist Children’s Hospital. “It reminded us what really matters,” she says. “Getting families back to normal life. Getting kids back into classrooms. That night, we saw a room full of people who wanted the same thing.”
Recognized as members of the American Heart Association’s Cor Vitae Society through their support of Go Red for Women and the local Heart Ball, the Nesters want to help their community be as healthy as possible. As Minden puts it, “giving is a way to extend yourself as a person to a larger community - by partnering with a larger organization to help more people.”
Will, now an interventional cardiologist at Methodist Health System, echoes that sentiment. “In a perfect world, you’d never need a cardiologist. My passion is prevention and helping people avoid meeting me at 3 a.m.”
Today, Minden spends her spare time in volunteer leadership. She’s the president-elect of Methodist Volunteers In Partnership (VIP), serves on the Methodist Hospital Foundation’s Women’s Connect Steering Committee, and is a passionate advocate for Go Red for Women.
Their giving is a continuation of a lifelong commitment to service. “It’s how we were raised,” Will reflects. Now raising three young children - William (4), George (2), and Mary (8 months) - the Nesters are nurturing the next generation to live with purpose, compassion, and community at heart.