In the News

Valley Baptist Raises $64,000 for Heart Research; Amount to Increase After Upcoming Heart Walk in Brownsville

HARLINGEN - Valley Baptist Health System has raised $63,963 for the American Heart Association following a massive turnout for the 2005 Wes Lepard Heart Walk on Oct. 8 at Texas State Technical College in Harlingen. Now, Valley Baptist is gearing up to top the $100,000 mark in donations as it prepares for a second Heart Walk to be held Nov. 5 in Brownsville.

Valley Baptist is the very first organization in a mid-metropolitan area to commit to raising $100,000 for the American Heart Association.

“Across the nation, representatives with the American Heart Association say they wish they had more health care systems like Valley Baptist who are so committed to caring for their community,” said Rebecca Taylor, Corporate Market Director for the Heart Association.

Some of the Valley Baptist employees participating in the three-mile walk actually ran the entire distance. Amazingly, the joggers included Mary Cavazos --- who underwent surgery this April to remove a tumor from her heart. As a monitor tech and project coordinator at VBMC-Harlingen’s Cardiac Rehabilitation Dept. and the Heart Corner at Valle Vista Mall, Mary went from someone who helped heart patients to becoming a heart patient herself.

Now, at age 39, Mary is a survivor of heart disease -- thanks to research that led to life-saving surgical techniques.

“Heart disease affects every single one of us – whether it’s a family member or friend,” Mary said. “We wouldn’t have the technology we have now without the American Heart Association – and at some point we’re all going to need that.”

Many of the Valley Baptist employees who participated in the Heart Walk went above and beyond the call of duty in raising large amounts of money for the Heart Association. The top walker was Lesley Freeburg, who raised $2,480, while the top walk team was the Valley Baptist Health System Administration, which raised $5,385.

Valley Baptist employees who raised between $500 and $1,000 for the Heart Walk were as follows:

Barbara Disbennett

Cesar Garcia

Erin McBride

Andrea Chavez

Kara Hamby

Lucy Zuniga

Frances Quintero

San Juanita Cespedes

Myrna L. Caharian

Mary Ann G. Santos

Clay Lassiter

Valerie Arizmendi

“The amount that Valley Baptist raised is incredible and I can't thank the employees and (VBMC-Harlingen CEO) Shane Spees and (Executive Assistant) Freddie Deerman enough for all of their hard work and encouragement,” Ms. Taylor added. “I have said it many times and I will say it again, the American Heart Association is truly blessed to have a partner like Valley Baptist!”

The Harlingen Heart Walk is named in honor of Wes Lepard, former Chairman of the Board for Valley Baptist Health System, who died April 10, 2004 following a heart attack. Mr. Lepard’s wife Doris Lepard, thanked all the participants in the walk.

"This walk is a wonderful way to honor Wes’ memory," Mrs. Lepard said. "All the money raised at this year's event will go to heart attack research. That's what we need -- more research to save more lives."

Indeed, the funds raised by Valley Baptist employees, board members and volunteers will help combat what is the leading cause of death in the United States. In the U.S., someone dies of cardio-vascular disease – including heart disease and stroke -- every 34 seconds. That represents more than 949,000 deaths per year, according to the Heart Association.

In Texas, about 150 people die of heart disease every day, according to State Sen. Eddie Lucio, who also spoke at the Heart Walk. “That is an unacceptable statistic," Sen. Lucio said. “People need to start taking care of their hearts at a young age … you need to walk to build up your cardio-vascular system."

Sen. Lucio, who himself is a survivor of heart problems, urged those attending the heart walk to “contact your doctor right away if you're not feeling right.”

Some of those participating in the Heart Walk, such as Dr. Ivelisse Lugo, walked in memory of a specific person … in Dr. Lugo’s case, it was her father, who died of heart disease seven years ago.

"As a physician, I know a lot of heart disease survivors,” Dr. Lugo said. “I couldn't put all of their names on a sheet, but I'm here as a reminder to people to maintain their health and support the research that fights the disease."

For more information on how you can help fight heart disease through the annual Wes Lepard Heart Walk in Harlingen, please go to the following link:

http://heartwalk.kintera.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=96246.

If you would like to participate in the upcoming Brownsville Heart Walk on Saturday, Nov. 5 at the University of Texas at Brownsville campus, please go to the following website:

http://heartwalk.kintera.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=96370.