I’m proud to be a part of my daughter Charley’s Team for the American Heart Association’s Teen of Impact campaign.
This campaign is deeply personal to me. My baby sister, Georgia, was born with a heart condition that required open-heart surgery when she was 2½ years old. Unfortunately, despite a world-class medical team, they weren't able to save her. Georgia passed away on August 27, 1987. Losing Georgia was a defining moment in my life. It shaped my childhood, my family, and my understanding of grief.
In her memory, my parents created a fund to support pediatric heart care at Sick Kids Hospital, believing that if research, treatment, and awareness could advance, other families might be spared the loss we experienced. At the time, they had no way of knowing just how far those investments would reach.
Years later, when I was pregnant with our first child, Charley, our lives came full circle. What should have been a routine ultrasound turned into devastating news: our baby girl had Transposition of the Great Arteries (TGA), a life-threatening congenital heart defect.
Because of decades of medical research, innovation, and funding, the very kind my parents supported in Georgia’s name, Charley had a cure (20 years before, TGA had no cure). At just 10 days old, she underwent open-heart surgery at the same hospital, in the same cardiac wing Georgia was in, and survived. Today, she is an amazing and healthy teenager using her voice to help others.
Watching my daughter’s life be saved by advances that didn’t exist when my sister died is both miraculous and humbling. The medical profession performs miracles every day, but miracles require research, funding, and awareness. They don’t happen by chance.
That is why I’m standing alongside Charley in this campaign. Heart disease doesn’t discriminate by age. It affects babies, children, teens, and families every single day. And while I can’t change what happened to Georgia, I can help ensure continued progress so more families experience hope instead of loss.
Through the Teen of Impact campaign, we are raising awareness and critical funds to support:
- Lifesaving heart research
- Education around heart health and prevention
- Advocacy for healthier, more equitable communities
- Training in lifesaving skills like CPR
This is more than a fundraiser for our family. It’s a full-circle moment, honoring the sister I lost, celebrating Charley's health, and investing in a future where more children get the chance to grow up.
Click the Donate button and join me!