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On Sunday, November 3, 2002, nearly 500 participants turned
out on a bright fall afternoon in beautiful Huntington Beach
Central Park, where the trees were showing their autumn finery.
But as gorgeous as they were, it wasn’t the weather
or the trees that drew the public. It was the opportunity
to honor a friend and raise awareness of potentially fatal
cardiac arrhythmia conditions that are often undiagnosed.
"A Walk to Heal Hearts", sponsored by Sparkling
Angel Charities-The Kelly Weaver Memorial Fund, was a cardiac
festival of sorts. Young men and women, families, senior citizens
and kids all had the opportunity to receive, free of charge,
a medically-supervised EKG Cardiac Screen test that was then
evaluated by one of ten area doctors, all whom volunteered
their time and expertise for the event. Then, it was on to
the walk, actually a mile-long stroll through the trees and
around waterfowl-abundant Lake Huntington. Along the way,
the walkers were treated to signposts with inspiring quotes,
sponsor thank-yous and more information about cardiac health
issues. Finally, the by-now tested and exercised participants
were treated to a 'heart-friendly" lunch of barbequed
chicken sandwiches and fresh vegetables.
The event was the brainstorm of the Sparkling Angel Charities
Youth Board, "Kelly’s Friends", who began
looking for a way to honor their friend, 21 year-old Kelly
Weaver, who passed away in September 2001 from what is suspected
to have been an undiagnosed cardiac arrhythmia illness. In
addition to honoring Kelly's memory, the Youth Board wanted
the Walk to Heal Hearts event to raise awareness of cardiac
arrhythmia disease, which can often be easily diagnosed with
a simple EKG test. Since this simple test is often not given,
especially to young people with no history of cardiac problems,
Sparkling Angel Charities arranged for the free EKG screening
during the Walk to Heal Hearts.
By all measures, the event was an unqualified success, with
over 350 people taking advantage of the EKG tests that were
performed during the afternoon event, resulting in a number
of medical referrals for possible cardiac problems.
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