Susan Lucci is feeling “grateful” for her latest major accomplishment.
On Thursday, June 19, the All My Children alum spoke out to share her thanks after being named the recipient of a special award from the American Heart Association.
🎬SIGN UP for Parade’s Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox🎬
Lucci, 78, attended the AHA’s National Volunteer Award ceremony in Texas earlier this week, where she was honored with the Voice of the Mission Award.
Sharing a photo from the event on Instagram, the soap opera star wrote, “A great big THANK-YOU in Dallas at the AHA’s Health and Hope Awards!!! I am beyond grateful to the AHA—their research is why so many of us, myself included, are alive today!!!❤️❤️❤️”
“I am beyond humbled and proud to receive their Voice of the Mission Award!!!” Lucci continued in her Instagram caption, adding, “I am beyond thrilled to hear from so many women that they are now taking action to take care of their heart health!!!
❤️❤️❤️”
Lucci had two cardiovascular events of her own in 2018 and 2022, when doctors discovered potentially fatal blockages of her coronary artery, requiring stents to be placed in her heart.
Since then, Lucci has been an outspoken advocate, dedicated to using her platform as one of the most iconic soap opera stars to help raise awareness to fight heart disease.
“Most women, myself included, do not put ourselves first on our to-do lists. We take care of our families, homes and careers, but we aren’t necessarily thinking of ourselves,” she previously said, per the AHA’s website. “But if your body’s not behaving in a way that’s normal to you, you have to act on it.”
Related: ‘All My Children’ Alum Susan Lucci Announces ‘Big News’ on ‘Good Morning America’
