Benham, Justice.This case involves the revocation of a will due to after-born children of the testator. The probate court determined the will did not contemplate the birth of future children, and therefore their birth revoked the will. The named beneficiary appeals.The record shows that the testator, Alphonzo Raul Hobbs, executed a will in 1989 when he was a 20-year-old serving in the military. The will named Hobbs’s mother as sole beneficiary and personal representative of the estate, and, in the event his mother did not survive him, he named his “grandmother,” appellant Evelyn Hobbs, as the successor beneficiary and successor personal representative. Alphonzo’s mother predeceased him, and Alphonzo died in 2007. He fathered three children out of wedlock, each of whom he legitimated and supported, the oldest of which was born twelve years after he executed the will. In 2008, appellant filed a petition to probate the will. Appellant acknowledged in her filings that she was not Alphonzo’s biological grandmother but represented that she had reared him from infancy. The probate court appointed guardians ad litem for the children. By order dated May 29, 2008, the probate court found that the validity of the will was in question and that the assets of the estate may not have been properly protected, and it declined to appoint appellant as personal representative of the estate. Instead, the court appointed the County Administrator. The following day, the administrator filed a caveat to the will asserting that the will made no provision for the future birth of a child to the testator and that, as a consequence of children being born, the will should be revoked pursuant to OCGA § 53-4-48 and should not be probated. A petition for a year’s support was filed on behalf of each child.After further proceedings, the probate court conducted a hearing on the caveat to the will. The probate court entered an order dated May 3, 2016 in which it agreed with the administrator of the estate and found the will made no provision in contemplation of future children. It further found that because of the birth of the testator’s children years after the date the will was executed, the will was revoked, the testator was deemed to have died intestate, and the three children are the testator’s legal heirs. The probate court set a date for a hearing to determine the assets to be set aside for the children as an award of a year’s support. A notice of appeal was filed in the Court of Appeals, which transferred the case to this Court.[1]1. Generally speaking, the birth of a child to the testator after the making of a will “in which no provision is made in contemplation of such event shall result in a revocation of the will . . . .” OCGA § 53-4-48 (a).[2] In such a case, by statute, the after-born child is to receive the share of the estate he or she would have received if the testator had died intestate. See OCGA § 53-448 (c). Appellant contends the probate court erred in finding the will was not made in contemplation of future children. She points to Item VI of the will, which states as follows:I have served in the Armed Forces of the United States. Therefore, I direct my Personal Representative to consult the legal assistance officer at the nearest military installation to ascertain if there are any benefits to which my dependents are entitled by virtue of my military affiliation at the time of my death. Regardless of my military status at the time of my death, I direct my Personal Representative to consult with the nearest Veterans Administration and Social Security Administration office to ascertain if there are any benefits to which my dependents may be entitled.Appellant argues that future-born children would fall within the definition of the testator’s dependents who would be entitled as a matter of law to Social Security survivor benefits if they met certain age and dependency criteria at the time of the testator’s death. Accordingly, appellant argues, the language of the will clearly demonstrates the testator contemplated future-born children and expressly provided for them by way of the federal survivors’ benefits they may be entitled to collect upon his death.The paramount objective when a court construes a will is to determine the intent of the testator. See Anderson v. Anderson, 299 Ga. 756, 759 (2) (791 SE2d 40) (2016). To accomplish this, “courts must look to the entire will and the circumstances surrounding its execution.” Timberlake v. Munford, 267 Ga. 631, 632 (481 SE2d 217) (1997). Appellant does not assert that the language of the will is ambiguous. Instead, she argues that use of the term “my dependents” clearly demonstrates the contemplation of future-born children. We are unpersuaded.Appellant acknowledges that “dependents” for purposes of determining Social Security and veteran survivor benefits may include more than just children, and may include a dependent spouse, as well. See 38 USC § 5121 (a) (2) (A) (establishing eligibility for veterans benefits to the surviving spouse); 20 CFR § 404.330 (establishing eligibility for Social Security Administration old-age or disability benefits for the spouse of an insured person). In fact, dependent parents may also be entitled to veterans survivor benefits (see 38 USC § 5121 (a) (2) (C)) and Social Security benefits (see 20 CFR § 404.374). Reference to dependents who may be entitled to government survivor benefits no more indicates the testator contemplated future-born children, who would thereby be pretermitted from inheritance from the testator’s estate, than it indicates he contemplated marriage, thereby excluding any future spouse from inheritance. The clear language of the will merely directed the personal representative of the testator’s estate to “consult” with government authorities “to ascertain” whether his dependents were entitled to certain government benefits upon his death.The parties agree that at the time the testator executed this will he was a 20-year-old serving in the military who had not married and had no children. We agree with the appellee that, considering these circumstances, it does not appear the testator intended the reference to survivor benefits under federal law, to which his “dependents” might be entitled, to indicate a contemplation of future-born children or to provide a benefit to them.[3] In fact, it appears that the language of Item VI of the will is a standard clause recommended for use in wills drafted by military assistance lawyers for service personnel.[4] The stated reason for including such language in a service person’s will is to alert the “survivors” (not simply the dependents) of former or retired military personnel that they may be entitled to survivor benefits that are difficult or impossible to recover if not obtained promptly after the veteran’s death.[5]
