Friends of East Winston-Salem walk to raise awareness and money for heart disease, stroke prevention
Friends of East Winston-Salem walk to raise awareness and money for heart disease, stroke prevention
Submitted article
According to the American Heart Association (AHA), cardiovascular disease, including heart disease and stroke, is the primary cause of death in approximately one out of three deaths in the U.S. each year. That means someone dies from heart disease, stroke, or another cardiovascular disease every 43 seconds in this country. So literally millions of people are at risk of suffering a heart attack or stroke.
Here in Forsyth County, heart disease is the second leading cause of death and stroke is the fourth leading cause of death. Unfortunately, African Americans in North Carolina die from heart disease at a higher rate than any other ethnic group. Likewise, the East Winston-Salem community, like many other urban areas in the U.S., is disproportionately impacted by heart disease and stroke.
The Friends of East Winston has joined forces with AHA of the Triad to try to make a difference in those numbers. The Winston-Salem Heart and Stroke Walk helps to fund innovative research for new treatments, provides programs and services for survivors and their families, and provides programming that helps community members lower their risk of heart disease and stroke.
The Friends of East Winston-Salem team is comprised of partners that live, work, and worship in the East Winston area. The four primary partners are Winston-Salem State University’s Department of Health, Physical Education and Sport Studies (WSSU), Cardinal Innovations Healthcare, Forsyth County Department of Public Health, and the Highland Avenue Primary Care Center. These organizations have united to mobilize, create awareness, recruit walkers, and raise funds for heart disease research.
Denise Price, assistant director at Forsyth County Department of Public Health, and Dr. Cynthia Williams Brown, chair of the Department of Health, Physical Education and Sports Studies at WSSU, are co-captains for the Friends of East Winston team. They are also both board members of AHA of the Triad.
The idea to join forces began during a discussion at an event celebrating the 2018 Heart and Stroke Walk.
Ms. Price stated, “Collectively, we are able to achieve something greater than we are able to achieve individually. The core team often works together to bring maximum impact to events and activities, so walking together at the 2019 Winston-Salem Heart and Stroke Walk was a natural fit.”
Dr. Williams Brown said, “Individually, WSSU has been involved with the walk for several years, so when the Health Department suggested we join forces to improve our impact, it made perfect sense.”
This is the initial year of the partnership; however, the team plans to start immediately to strengthen the efforts for next year’s walk. The goal is to expand the partnership to include faith-based community and business partners located in East Winston. Williams Brown added, “Now that we have a template for the partnership, we can focus our efforts on creating a larger presence in the community all throughout the year, not just for the walk.”
Price agrees that we have created a sustainable model that we can grow from year to year. The mission of AHA is to be a relentless force for a world of longer, healthier lives. The Friends of East Winston partnership is an effort to support that mission in the community where the partners live, work, worship, and play.
This year’s Heart and Stroke Walk is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 29. The walk is a non-competitive 5K or 3.1 mile, family and pet friendly walk. The Friends of East Winston team is looking forward to having a presence by walking, raising funds, and creating awareness, all while setting a solid foundation for the team to be a force in the fight against heart disease and stroke. The team is hoping that their initial efforts will result in at least 50 walkers and a substantial amount of funds raised for this year’s walk.
AHA’s theme for the walk is “Life is Why We Walk.” AHA expects that thousands will show up for the 2019 walk for different reasons: they are a survivor and want to bring awareness to heart disease and stroke prevention, or they want to honor someone who has died from heart disease or stroke. For the Friends of East-Winston-Salem, making a positive impact on our community is our Why!
For more information on the 2019 Winston-Salem Heart and Stroke Walk contact Sarah Fedele at Sarah.Fedele@heart.org, or to walk or make a donation visit: http://www2.heart.org/goto/friendsofewinston.
