Grace on her 2nd birthday

It’s the start of the New Year, yet there are 11 children who are in urgent need of and are in-line for heart surgery. If you are a parent, you know that no parent is happy seeing their child ill. Heart disease has a great impact on families, especially those with little children.  The presence of a serious heart defect often results in an enormous emotional and financial strain on young families at a very vulnerable time. A parent would do all they can to get that child well; because when the child is not well, the parent is not well. Sadly, as this is the start of the year, it is anticipated that as the year progresses, many more children will need the public’s assistance with heart care.  

One patient who benefited and will benefit from the kindness and support of The Heart Foundation is little Miss Grace Cooper.  At one week of age, Grace Cooper was seen at Rand Memorial Hospital in Freeport, Grand Bahama for a newborn baby check-up. This visit changed the life of Grace and her family. A heart murmur was heard and Grace was referred to pediatric cardiologist, Dr. Jerome Lightbourne at his next scheduled visit to Freeport.  At 2 weeks old, Grace was evaluated and examined and it was discovered that she had low peripheral oxygen saturation and a loud heart murmur. Further examinations indicated that Grace had a large ventricular septal defect (hole in the lower chamber of the heart), and small pulmonary vessels i.e. the tubes taking blood to her lungs were too narrow and restricted the flow of blood to the lungs. Grace required urgent medical care and was referred to the Holtz Children Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami. This proved to be very expensive. Her hospital course was complicated and Grace required multiple surgeries inclusive of bowel surgery. Today, Grace is a beautiful cute 2 year old, awaiting one final surgery. She is also the poster girl for The Heart Ball Committee’s ads.

Grace in the hospital

In the words of Grace’s mother:

“We are eternally grateful to the Sir Victor Sassoon Heart Foundation for affording Grace the opportunity to have the necessary medical attention she so greatly needed. The Foundation gives so much and yet asks so little. Honestly, we cannot repay the Foundation for the insurmountable deed they extend to us, but with a collaborative effort with the public this Foundation would be able to continue helping families throughout the Bahamas. When the public donate to the Sir Victor Sassoon Foundation, lives are changed and ultimately, lives are saved. The public would be helping families who cannot ordinarily afford the medical attention to live healthier lives through its united effort with the Sir victor Sassoon Heart Foundation.  Albert Pike once said that “What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for other and the world remains and is immortal.”

The Heart Foundation is a non-profit organization founded by Lady Evelyn Sassoon to assist persons who cannot afford heart care. Today, The Foundation primarily assist children with heart care, particularly those whose parents or guardians cannot afford needed and urgent heart care.  The Foundation thrives on the kindness and generosity of others. To date, The Foundation has assisted over 4,000 patients to date. Over 97 % of all funds raised go directly to heart care. Last year The Heart Foundation raised over $250,000. However, all of these funds have already been spent, helping to repair children’s hearts. As such, The Heart Foundation is calling on the public to assist them as they seek to repair children’s hearts.  

Grace in school

The Heart Ball Committee is the fundraising arm of The Heart Foundation. Annually they host two major fund raisers; The Annual Tea party & Fashion Show and The Annual Heart Ball. Under the theme, “Repairing a broken heart…what a gift”, The Annual Heart Ball will be held on Saturday, February 18, 2012. This event is under the patronage of His Excellency Sir Arthur and Lady Foulkes. It is sponsored in part by TheBahamasweekly.com, Cable Bahamas, Floral Arts, British Airways, Atlantis, Pictet Bank, Insurance Company of The Bahamas, Atlantic Medical, and Bahanime Studios.    

The evening is always exciting and promises to be fun-filled and very entertaining once again. One of the highlights is the presentation of The Lady Sassoon Golden Heart Award to someone who gave selflessly to improve the life of others. The deadline for nominations of this award has been extended to January 27, 2012. In addition to the presentation of this award, there will be live performances by The Royal Bahamas Defence Force Dance Band, The S-G Band and The Ed Brice Orchestra. Also there will be an in-house raffle, table prizes, and an in-house auction with fine jewelry, art and much more.

Image by Luc Lindor