Winning With Heart – Local girl celebrates health strides at Heart Walk 2016

One of the highlights of last year’s Heart Walk, hosted by the American Heart Association in Santa Clarita, was the first birthday celebration of heart disease survivor Jasmine Winning.
Born with half a heart, Jasmine has a condition called hypoplastic left heart syndrome.  She spent the first several months of her life fighting to live and has undergone two open-heart surgeries to temporarily fix her heart defect.
This year, as we look to celebrate Jasmine again, she has made significant strides in her recovery, though her battle is far from over.  After a year of physical and occupational therapy, she is free of oxygen and feeding tubes; she is able to eat, walk and play independently like any kid her age.  In about a year or two, she will have a third surgery and is expected to need a heart transplant in the future.
Jasmine will need many more Heart Walks to help her and others like her live long, healthy lives.  We hope you will join Jasmine as she participates in her second Heart Walk with family and friends.
The Heart Walk brings the community together to raise funds in support of heart disease and stroke research, provide community education and outreach, and accomplish other mission-related work in Santa Clarita and the rest of Los Angeles County.  Local companies and community teams raise funds in the months leading up to the event and come together to celebrate at the walk.  Everyone is invited to join in the fun and form a team with family, friends or coworkers.
Bridgeport Park will once again be the site of this year’s Santa Clarita Heart Walk.  The event starts with registration at 7:30 a.m., followed by the opening ceremony at 8:30 a.m.  The 5K walk kicks off at 9 a.m.  The event includes a festival area featuring interactive and fun activities, health information, a Kids Zone, entertainment and more.
The goal of the Santa Clarita Heart Walk, led by committee chair Jocelyn Reyes, is to raise $250,000 in support of the American Heart Association’s mission of building healthier lives.
Heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases claim the lives of more than 800,000 people in the U.S. every year.  On the other hand, regular physical activity, such as brisk walking for as little as 30 minutes a day, has proven health benefits, including increased energy and circulation, as well as reduced risk of heart disease and stroke.  The Heart Walk inspires participants to embrace a renewed commitment to heart-healthy living through walking and other healthy habits.
The Heart Walk is supported by: national sponsors Subway and My Heart My Life; platform sponsors Union Bank and Keck Medicine of USC; presenting sponsors UCLA and Huntington Hospital; and Santa Clarita sponsors Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital, St. Jude Medical and Valencia Pipe Company.
For more information on sponsorship, donations and to join the Santa Clarita Heart Walk, please visit www.HeartWalkLA.org, or contact Santa Clarita Heart Walk Committee Chair Jocelyn Reyes at 661-305-6928 or jreyes98@aol.com, or AHA Business Development Director Kelsey Muir at 818-267-7366 or kelsey.muir@heart.org.

About the American Heart Association
The American Heart Association is devoted to saving people from heart disease and stroke – America’s No. 1 and No. 5 killers.  We team with millions of volunteers to fund innovative research, fight for stronger public health policies, and provide lifesaving tools and information to prevent and treat these diseases.  The American Heart Association is the nation’s oldest and largest voluntary organization dedicated to
fighting heart disease and stroke.

To learn more or join us, call 1-800-AHA-USA1 or any of our offices around the country, or visit www.heart.org. 

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