ð? Why I?m Walking for the Tampa Bay Heart Walk
I?m proud to join the Tampa Bay Heart Walk alongside the University of South Florida in support of the American Heart Association ? a cause that is deeply personal to me.
In 2002, I lost my beloved Pop to complications from cardiovascular disease ? a loss that continues to remind me how fragile and precious heart health truly is. Since then, heart disease has touched my family again and again. In 2024, I watched my Dad undergo mitral valve repair and bypass surgery, an experience that brought both fear and gratitude ? fear for what could have been, and gratitude for the medical advances and dedicated professionals who made his recovery possible.
I?m also incredibly proud of my husband, Thomas E. Sharp III , who has dedicated his professional career to cardiovascular disease research as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology at the USF Morsani College of Medicine and a faculty member of the USF Health Heart Institute at the University of South Florida, working every day to better understand, treat, and prevent the very conditions that have impacted our family. His work embodies hope ? hope that through science, awareness, and compassion, we can change the future of heart health.
Supporting the American Heart Association and the USF community is more than just participating in a walk ? it?s standing up for every family who has faced the uncertainty of heart disease, and for every life that can be saved through research, education, and prevention.
As a proud Bull, I also celebrate USF?s recent achievement ? climbing to No. 88 overall among all universities and No. 43 among public universities in U.S. News & World Report?s rankings. This continued rise reflects our shared commitment to excellence, innovation, and community impact ? the same values that drive the mission of the American Heart Association.
I walk for my Pop.
I walk for my Dad.
I walk beside my husband.
And I walk for the future ? for a world free of heart disease and stroke. ð?ð?