I'm participating in the American Heart Association Heart Walk because heart health and lifesaving response are personal to me. I was born in 1997 with a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD), which doctors discovered at 18 months old after hearing a heart murmur and noticing I wasn't growing as quickly as my twin sister. They found a hole in my heart about the size of a dime, and I had open-heart surgery to repair it. It wasn't fully closed due to the heart's electrical pathways, so I still have a murmur today. Because of that experience, I understand how quickly heart situations can become serious and how important CPR training and fast response are. I'm grateful for the care I received and proud to support the American Heart Association in helping more people learn lifesaving skills and access better heart care.