Help Colleen raise money

As a nurse at Boston Childrens Hospital, in the cardiology department, I am honored to be running the Falmouth Road Race for the Heart Warrior Foundation. Seeing the strength of these patients and their families is nothing short of inspirational. These kiddos fight battles that no child should have to endure, and they do it with grace. They continue to laugh, dance, play, and run as if they did not just have open heart surgery last week. Their families dedicate themselves fully into every aspect of their care, and the sacrifices they have to make on a daily basis to keep their Heart Warrior going are never overlooked. 

Congenital heart disease effect 1 out of every 100 live births. That is a lot. They are more common than pediatric cancer or cystic fibrosis, and they are equally as common as autism spectrum disorders. Congenital heart disease means the child was born with structural issues in their heart. Many children born with CHDs will require multiple open heart surgeries, cardiac catheterizations, echocardiograms, electrocardiograms, chest xrays and CT scans, etc. At some point, some children with CHDs may need a heart transplant. These patients and their families spend countless hours, days, even months in the hospital for inpatient stays and outpatient appointments. Parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts/uncles, etc. are forced to quickly learn medical skills to help care for the child at home. It's always a team effort. 

The Heart Warrior community is an amazing asset for families to support each other. Some leaders in the Heart Warrior community even find the time to give back to other families and start foundations such as the Heart Warrior Foundation. It is an honor to fundraise for such an incredible organization that gives back so much to the community.