Heart Ball raises $425K

SEVERAL 2015 HEART BALL guests play Queen of Hearts lawn chess recently on the grounds of the Marble House in Newport at the fund raiser, which raised $425,000 for the American Heart Association. / COURTESY AL WEEMS
SEVERAL 2015 HEART BALL guests play Queen of Hearts lawn chess recently on the grounds of the Marble House in Newport at the fund raiser, which raised $425,000 for the American Heart Association. / COURTESY AL WEEMS

NEWPORT – The 2015 Heart Ball raised $425,000 for the American Heart Association at its June 13 fund raiser at the Marble House.
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, the 1865 novel written by English author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll, served as the theme for the ball, which featured costumed characters from Wonderland, Queen of Hearts lawn chess and White Rabbit croquet before dinner. There also was a live auction and dancing.
Three hundred of the region’s business leaders, medical professionals, and donors attended to raise funds and awareness to fight heart disease in children.
Seven-year-old Annika of East Greenwich, born with five major heart defects and named a “little Heart Hero Ambassador,” and her family shared their story about Annika’s lifesaving open heart surgery and the trials of congenital heart defects.
Annika is one of the roughly eight in 1,000 children born with a congenital heart defect each year in the United States. The affliction remains the U.S.’s most frequent birth defect. The American Heart Association is working to change that, by raising awareness, advocating, and funding cutting-edge research to save and improve lives.
Dr. Rajiv Kumar, founder and CEO of ShapeUp, served as the 2015 Heart Ball chairman, leading all fundraising efforts. ShapeUp was an event sponsor.
The realization that led Kumar to take a leadership role in the fund-raising campaign, he said, “is that, while so much work, focus, and investment is now being channeled toward a national wellness and prevention movement, the majority of these resources go to adults. But children are our future, and we must do more to ensure that the right resources are being invested in their health.”
To donate in support of research and education through the Heart Ball, visit sneheartball.heart.org or call 401-228-2326. To learn more about congenital heart defects or to make a donation, visit www.heart.org/SNE.

No posts to display