As most of you know, February is Heart Health Month. Everyone is donning their red apparel, there is information on how to take better care of your heart available everywhere, and special events are occurring all over the region. Friday morning, February 8, 2013 was no exception. At the Northwest Athletic Club (NAC) in Michigan City, history was being made. The La Porte County Goes Red event began there with a kickoff meeting by the Courtside Café in the NAC. Pretty red decorations were placed on tables that were set up throughout the room. Around the tables sat people (also sporting red in honor of the event) from all over Northwest Indiana. Each came to celebrate this momentous occasion.
“I want thank the amazing institution, NAC, for hosting this kickoff of La Porte County Goes Red,”Diane Kemp, Northwest Indiana Executive Director for the American Heart Association said as she spoke to the red-clad crowd. “You’re going to have a lot of fun today. You’re going to leave here very empowered. Heart disease was not anything that was on the radar for us women for years. And in 2004 when the American Heart Association launched Go Red for Women it was with the objective to raise awareness and empower women.”
Kemp finished her speech by introducing Ian McFadden, President and CEO of Methodist Hospitals. McFadden is one of the driving forces that is making La Porte County Goes Red happen.
“I know that this is La Porte County first Go Red for Woman campaign, but I guarantee you, by this time next year it will be the most popular event in the city. This creates an awareness of how important it is to battle heart disease. Everyone is impacted by heart disease in one way or another. You either know somebody who has heart disease or who has some type of heart ailment or you yourself have been a victim. I can tell you that personally I have been a victim. I’m a victor. I had a heart attack when I was 22 years old. Thanks to the Heart Association, research was done that introduced technology to help us battle and create more heart victors,” McFadden said.
Methodist Hospitals has been in partnership with the American Heart Association for more then a decade and sponsor many programs and events that the Heart Association puts on including La Porte County Goes Red.
Mayor Ron Meer of Michigan City then read a Proclamation which officially proclaimed February 8 as La Porte Go Red for Women Day in La Porte County.
“On behalf of the citizens of La Porte County, I am pleased to join the American Heart Association in asking our community to Go Red for Women on February 8, 2013 to show their support for women, fighting heart disease and raise awareness about the number one cause of death for women in Michigan City, La Porte County and across the nation,” Mayor Meer said proudly as he read the Proclamation.
Perhaps the most moving part of the event was the words that came from Nicole Caylor, the Director for the NAC. She recounted why this event held special meaning for her with the story of her having a heart attack during her time in the military a few years ago. It was in the middle of January 2010 on the base where she was stationed. She started her day normally, but then something didn’t seem quite right. No matter what she did, her heart rate kept going up. Things only got worse and at apex of that terrifying day, Caylor’s heart rate peaked at over 400 beats per minute.
“By eleven o’clock that morning I felt like my heart was literally going to explode out of my chest,” Caylor said gravely. “A drill sergeant said I was just having a panic attack. He didn’t know me. I don’t panic.”
She went on to express how grateful she was to have survived that ordeal and adamantly asked that everyone take care and don’t ignore the signs of heart disease.
Another prominent person got up to speak that morning. Mary Kay Gaboyan, the Mortgage Sales Manager Vice President for Horizon Bank.
“Next year this event will be expanded to an educational breakfast,” Gaboyan said. “I have been involved with the Go Red Campaign for years, and I see first hand how much impact that this has on the local women and men. I want to share with you the goals for the 2014 La Porte County Goes Red. There are three: to have a minimum of 200 people attend our breakfast next year; to raise a minimum of $25,000 for the American Heart Association Go Red for women Campaign; to raise the awareness of heart disease as the number one health threat in La Porte County.”
The event left all that attended in good spirits. Refreshments were served afterward and a special gift of a red cashmere scarf was given to those who were generous enough to donate to the American Heart Association that morning.
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Sponsors for the event: Methodist Hospitals (platinum sponsor), Rowley Bushe, Northwest Athletic Club and Horizon Bank.