Hundreds of people gathered in Griffith Park for the “Walk for One More Heartbeat,” event to support the Children’s Heart Foundation in raising funds and awareness for congenital heart defects (CHDs).
CHDs are conditions that are present at birth and can affect the structure of a baby’s heart and the way it works. They are the most common type of birth defect, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
The L.A. Congenital Heart Walk hosted fun activities, entertainment, research updates, and a family-friendly walk to help support and make a difference in the lives of those living with CHDs.
“We have babies out here with scars on their chest that have had heart transplants,” said Megan Riddle, Development Manager at the Children’s Heart Foundation. “We have babies that are on heart transplant lists, so CHDs are a wide range of defects that children can be born with. We are here to make a big enough impact with research dollars that one day babies don’t have to worry about CHDs.”
This year’s walk raised nearly $49,000 of their $85,000 goal to help with CHD research.
