How Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation Expanded Its Legacy Giving Reach with Epilogue
Inside the Impact
Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation wanted to:
Make legacy giving more accessible to a broader group of supporters;
Give donors another convenient way to create their Wills; and
Create more opportunities to identify, engage and steward legacy donors.
Since partnering with Epilogue, they have:
Seen 36 confirmed bequests;
Measured $19 million in estimated gift value;
Experienced an increase in donors notifying the Foundation about gifts in their Wills; and
Expanded legacy giving conversations to a broader donor audience.
The Opportunity
Q: What did legacy giving look like at Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation before Epilogue?
We already had a well-established planned giving program supported by an incredibly generous community of donors who are passionate about improving children’s health.
Legacy gifts have long played an important role in our work. Future gifts lead to future cures. Gifts through Wills help fuel groundbreaking research, improve diagnosis and treatment, and support innovations that can improve children’s health for generations to come.
For us, Epilogue was an opportunity to build on that existing program by giving donors another way to create or update their Wills and consider the legacy they want to leave.
Q: What challenges were you trying to address?
One of the ongoing challenges with legacy giving is that many donors prefer to keep their estate plans private.
We completely respect that decision, but it can make engagement and stewardship more challenging. When someone chooses to let us know they’ve included a gift to Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation in their Will, we have an opportunity to thank them personally, learn more about what inspired their generosity and better understand their wishes.
We’re always looking for ways to create opportunities and build relationships that make donors feel comfortable sharing their legacy intentions.
There was also an accessibility challenge. Not everyone is comfortable visiting a lawyer to create or update a Will, and for some people the process can feel time-consuming, costly or overwhelming.
We wanted to provide another option.
The Solution
Q: Why did you decide to partner with Epilogue?
Our goal was to make legacy giving more accessible and inclusive for all supporters.
Epilogue provides an approachable and affordable way for donors to create a legally valid Will at their own pace and from the comfort of their own home.
That allows us to meet donors where they are and remove some of the barriers that can prevent people from taking that first step.
Q: What stood out about Epilogue?
A few things.
As a Canadian company founded by Canadian estate lawyers, Epilogue brings a deep understanding of Canadian estate planning and Will administration. That gave us confidence that we were offering our donors a trusted, high-quality resource.
The platform itself is also user-friendly, which aligned well with our goal of making estate planning feel more accessible and approachable.
And the support from the Epilogue team has been excellent. They’ve been responsive, knowledgeable and collaborative, taking the time to answer questions, provide guidance and help us maximize the partnership.
Q: How easy was it to get started?
It was simple and straightforward.
The Epilogue team made the implementation process easy to follow, guided us through our questions and helped us get up and running quickly.
We were able to start talking to donors about Epilogue right away and introduce online Will creation as another option for them and their families.
Q: Was there anything that surprised you after launching?
We were encouraged to discover that individuals had already chosen to leave charitable bequests to Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation through Epilogue before our formal partnership even began.
It showed us that people were already using online Will platforms and reinforced that partnering with Epilogue was a thoughtful and well-aligned decision.
It has also been meaningful to know that when individuals choose to share their contact information with us, we can connect with them personally to say thank you.
Those conversations give us an opportunity to better understand their wishes and share how their future support can make a lasting difference in children’s health.
The Outreach
Q: How have you promoted Epilogue and legacy giving to your supporters?
We’ve used a mix of donor emails, website content, social media and event-based outreach.
That has included sharing information through our Professional Advisor event as well as highlighting our partnership with Epilogue across our digital channels.
Q: What has worked best?
Email has been our most effective channel so far, and we plan to continue using it throughout the year to engage and educate our supporters about legacy giving.
One thing we’ve learned is that many donors simply aren’t aware that creating a Will online is a legal and accessible option.
Being able to educate donors about online Will-making and offer it as an alternative to more traditional estate planning resources has been valuable. It allows us to connect with a broader donor base and gives people another way to take action.
The Results
Q: What results have you seen since launching with Epilogue?
We started seeing results immediately.
As of September of 2026, we had identified:
36 confirmed bequests
$19 million in estimated gift value
But the impact isn’t only about the number or value of the gifts.
We’ve also seen a noticeable increase in the number of individuals letting us know they’ve included a charitable gift in their Will.
That creates more opportunities for meaningful stewardship and allows us to build relationships with donors who have made an incredibly thoughtful commitment to the future of children’s health.
Q: Has Epilogue changed the conversations you’re having about legacy giving?
It has allowed us to have more meaningful conversations about legacy giving with a broader audience of donors.
Epilogue provides a simple and accessible way for people not only to create a Will, but also to think about supporting a cause they care deeply about.
It has helped us expand our communications and raise awareness about the different ways people can support children’s health.
Q: What has been most valuable for your team?
The dashboard has been especially valuable.
It gives us strong data and tracking capabilities that support KPI monitoring and strategic planning, while providing a more comprehensive view of donor activity.
We’ve also really appreciated the responsiveness of the Epilogue team. They’re available to support us and our donors whenever questions arise.
What’s Next
Q: How does Epilogue fit into your broader legacy giving strategy?
We’re continuing to approach legacy giving in the same way we always have. Epilogue gives us an additional tool to offer donors so they can decide what approach is right for them.
In the short term, it has strengthened our ability to raise awareness and start more conversations about legacy giving across a broader donor base. It gives us a practical and accessible way to introduce the concept and show donors that leaving a gift in their Will can be both meaningful and attainable.
Longer term, we see it as an important part of growing and sustaining our legacy pipeline.
By increasing awareness now and making it easier for donors to take that first step, we can build stronger relationships and create more opportunities for future support. It also allows us to engage donors earlier in their journey and have more thoughtful conversations about their intentions and how their legacy can make a lasting impact on children’s health.
Q: What would you say to another charity considering Epilogue?
We would recommend considering Epilogue as part of your legacy giving strategy.
Our experience has been positive. The platform is simple and accessible and provides a valuable entry point for donors who may not otherwise engage in traditional estate planning.
It has allowed us to reach a broader audience and start more conversations about legacy giving, while giving donors a practical and approachable way to take action.
The support from the Epilogue team has also been excellent, making implementation and ongoing engagement easy to manage.
Overall, Epilogue is a meaningful tool that can complement and strengthen an existing fundraising and stewardship program.
