American Heart Association
National Estate Planning Awareness Week
National Estate Planning Awareness Week is October 19-25, 2026. It’s an annual reminder that everyone – no matter your age or your assets – should have a plan for the future.
A thoughtful plan brings peace of mind today and provides security for tomorrow. It ensures your loved ones are protected, your wishes are honored, and your values live on through a meaningful legacy.
Whether you’re just beginning to think about your estate or looking to update an existing plan, this week is the perfect time to pause and prepare for the future.
What makes up an estate plan?
Everything that you’ve worked hard to build—your retirement savings, investments, pets, home and belongings—make up your estate. Deciding in advance how your assets will be distributed after your lifetime, or if you become unable to make decisions for yourself, is your estate plan. Common components of an estate plan include:
- Will or Trust – outlines how your assets will be managed and distributed after your lifetime.
- Powers of Attorney – authorizes a trusted person to manage your financial or healthcare decisions if you’re unable to.
- Healthcare Directives – documents that express your wishes for medical care if you cannot communicate them yourself.
- Beneficiary Designations – certain assets – like life insurance and retirement assets – pass independently of your will or trust in accordance with a beneficiary designation form.
- Your Legacy – the values you hold closest to your heart can be passed on to future generations by including the charities you love in your estate plan.
Having an up-to-date estate plan is essential for ensuring that your personal and financial goals are met, avoiding lengthy legal processes, reducing tax liabilities and providing clear guidance for your loved ones.
Join us for a free webinar during National Estate Planning Awareness Week!
Register now to attend Your Legacy, Your Way: Estate Planning for Peace of Mind, on October 20 from 12:00–1:00 CT for a practical, approachable conversation about the essentials of estate planning. Whether you're creating your first plan or revisiting one you already have, you'll learn about the key documents, decisions and next steps that can help protect your loved ones, honor your wishes and give you peace of mind.
Take the next meaningful step toward a plan that protects what matters most and reflects the legacy only you can leave.
Seven Days, Seven Ways to Secure Your Future!
It can feel overwhelming to know where to begin, so we created this simple checklist to help you make the most of National Estate Planning Awareness Week. Each small step you take brings you closer to peace of mind today and a secure legacy for tomorrow. By checking off just one action each day, you’ll start building a plan that protects your loved ones and reflects what matters most to you.
- Request your copy of Legacy of the Heart: Your Will and Estate Planning Kit. It includes an overview of key estate plan components, guiding questions to help you set your goals, and more than 15 worksheets to help you organize your assets and intentions around your plan.
- Explore additional National Estate Planning Awareness Week tools and resources on this page. Don’t miss reading “Estate Planning Made Simple: A Guide to Wills, Trusts, and Final Wishes,” written by financial advisor Susan Olson, CFP®, MS, MA.
- Hear from the experts! Don’t forget to join us for our upcoming webinar: Your Legacy, Your Way: Estate Planning for Peace of Mind on October 20 at 12:00 CT to help you understand the fundamentals of estate planning.
- Make a list of goals that you wish to accomplish with your estate plan. Consider how your estate plan can protect your future, help your partner, dependents, pets or other loved ones, and fulfill any philanthropic intentions.
- Have heartfelt conversations with your loved ones about your plans so that they understand your intentions. (Legacy of the Heart includes tips and prompts to help navigate these sometimes-difficult conversations!)
- Take time to reflect on what truly matters to you and how you wish to be remembered. One of the most powerful things you can do with your estate plan is to create a personal legacy, representing your values and lasting impact on the world.
- Ready to take action? You can create a legal will or revocable living trust in just 20 minutes using our online platform powered by FreeWill!
National Estate Planning Awareness Week Resources
Will Planning Workbook
Request a complimentary workbook designed to help you plan your future with heart.
Legacy of the Heart: Your Will and Estate Planning Kit
This workbook includes 15 worksheets to help you organize your intentions and your assets. It’s an important first step to protecting your future.
Gift Planning Solutions
There's more than one way to make a lasting impact with your estate plan. Download free digital guides to learn more about different ways you can create your legacy while protecting your loved ones.
- Charitable Bequest
- Charitable Trusts
- Beneficiary Designations
- Protecting Your Pets
Create Your Free Plan
The American Heart Association offers a suite of simple, free online tools through FreeWill to help you plan for the future. In as little as 20 minutes, you can create a legally valid will or revocable living trust to ensure peace of mind and security for you and your loved ones.
You can also use the free beneficiary designations tool to plan and organize beneficiaries for your financial accounts. These tools allow you to save time, money and stress for you and your loved ones so you can focus on the present.
Get started today at no cost or obligation!
Your Heart Can Shape the Future
Your estate plan is a powerful opportunity to shape the future with intention. One of the most meaningful things you can do with your plan is create a personal legacy, defining how you will be remembered. Your estate plan can be a powerful tool for change, ensuring that the fight against heart disease and stroke continues.
When you make a gift to the American Heart Association through your will, trust, or another type of estate plan, you become a member of the Paul Dudley White Legacy Circle in the Cor Vitae Society. Legacy members embody commitment to a world of longer, healthier lives by ensuring their impact continues for generations to come.
Words from the Heart
“I don’t think there’s a single person who can say they don’t have a family member or a friend who hasn’t had a cardiovascular or stroke event, or they’ve been diagnosed themselves. We all have a personal connection.”
– Juli Stone Moran, Champion’s Circle member and Paul Dudley White Legacy Circle member
“I believe in the American Heart Association because of its science and how the organization is bettering people’s lives. With my family history of heart disease and stroke, I wanted to help find a way to cure it. This is my legacy and I want to inspire others.”
– Heidi Roth, Cor Vitae Society and Paul Dudley White Legacy Circle member
“Each person in my family that has heart disease has a different form of heart disease - no two are alike,” Lindsay said. “Heart disease also caused my sister to have a stroke. While the AHA has led the way for many advances, there is still so much we don't know. I hope my gifts pave the way for future advancements.”
– Lindsay Brooks-Shriver, Paul Dudley White Legacy Circle member