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| APHH QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER |
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| Volume 5, Issue 2 |
April - June , 2008 |
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 Dear Members and Supporters
Hope you are all enjoying the summer! We always want to know and share your summer fun activites with other family members and supporters. Drop us an email with pictures and we'll share your stories with everyone in our next newsletter.
The Heart House remains open over the summer months. This is our time for planning activities and programs for the next several months. We invite our family members to give us your input on activities and services that you would like Angel's Pediatric Heart House to offer. Our goal is to help meet the nonmedical needs of the CHD community.
Have a safe and fun-filled summer!
Sonia Perez | |
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 Help Our Mission
Our congenital heart defect (CHD) family membership is growing! At Angel's Pediatric Heart House we're bringing CHD families together, helping them build networks of friends facing similar challenges, bringing smiles to children undergoing heart surgery at area hospitals, and providing CHD families with other helpful resources. We want to do more for these families, but we need your help. Did you know that CHD is the number one birth defect in the U.S.? It affects three times as many children as children with childhood cancers and pediatric AIDS combined and nearly twice as many children die from CHD as children with all forms of childhood cancers. We receive many calls from families experiencing almost unsurmountable financial hardships due to their mounting medical expenses or limited financial resources. With your support, we can expand our services to include financial assistance to needy CHD families who are having difficulties paying bills, rent, groceries, gasoline or lodging away from home in order to be close to their child during heart surgery. An expectant mom (her unborn child has been diagnosed with a heart defect), whose child will be transported immediately after birth to another hospital for open heart surgery and the family will have to temporarily reside away from their home so that they can be close to the baby, recently wrote, "I just want you to know how much I appreciate you taking the time to stay updated with our situation and to write me such encouraging notes...thank you so much for giving me the hope I need to get through this! This experience so far has really shown us just how big peoples' hearts really are--both family and friends but mostly the unbelieveable kindness of strangers. Your thoughtfulness and support will never go unappreciated to a family like ours."
Partner with us--whether it's through a contribution, monthly financial commitment, corporate sponsorships, volunteering your time and expertise, or raising awareness. People often think and feel that to be called a philanthropist one must give thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars. If you've ever given five dollars here or there to help an organization or someone in need and not expect anything in return, then consider yourself a philanthropist! Your dollars, whether it's five dollars or 100 dollars goes a long way. Help us be leaders in the CHD community, so that we can expand our services and continue providing free, quality nonmedical services. Make every heartbeat of a child matter!
For more information or to make a donation, please contact:
Angel's Pediatric Heart House
151 N. Nob Hill Road, Suite 139
Plantation, FL 33324
954-318-2020
Your gifts can also be made online by going to our website at www.aphh.org and clicking on the Donate Now button.
HELP RAISE AWARENESS BY FORWARDING THIS EMAIL TO A FRIEND, COLLEAGUE OR YOUR EMPLOYER'S COMMUNITY RELATIONS DEPARTMENT.
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 Heart House Happenings
Families came from as far as Coconut Creek and Miami and dusted off their bowling shoes to have fun, greet old friends and make new friends. I think we have some avid bowlers! It was great serving our families and watching everyone enjoy themselves. This was our third annual summer kickoff bowling event and every year it gets bigger and better. To view more pictures from the event click on the following link www.flickr.com.
Feel free to enter your comments (or add photos) about the event when viewing the photos on the Flickr website. |
 Max's Meters Fund at Angel's Pediatric Heart House
(By Robert Brabb) Our son, Maxwell John Brabb (a twin to Benjamin Paul) has had 15 surgeries, including three open heart surgeries. Max is doing extremely well--you won't even be able to tell what he has been through when you meet him! Max was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (hlhs). After his Fontan surgery, we learned that he would need to be on Coumadin therapy. We also learned that we would have to frequently have his blood tested, which meant driving 35 minutes to the hospital, check in at admitting as an out-patient, and go to the ER room to have his blood drawn. (Max, as with a lot of little ones, was a tough stick, which meant they would strap him on all four extremities and then pick a place to stick him to draw blood. Meanwhile, Max would be traumatized from the time he would arrive--screaming at the top of his lungs.) We would then have to wait for the results and possibly retest a day or two apart. The whole process would take two to three hours.
We were informed that there was a meter (Hemosense Meter)that was less invasive; but, we couldn't get the meter fast enough, while we fought with our excellent insurance company for three months. Fortunately, we were able to use our money to purchase the meter. As a result of our determination to avoid the trauma and pain, Max only had two visits to the hospital for the blood draws. Now Max has a whole new outlook on doctors, hospitals and his treatment. I believe part of this transition is due to the ability to manage his therapy from home with the HemoSense meter. 
The purpose of Max's Meter Fund at Angel's Pediatric Heart House is to raise funds to provide CHD families access to a HemoSense Meter to the less fortunate. If you would like to make a donation to this fund, please go to www.aphh.org and click on the Donate Now button. Indicate Max's Meter Fund on form. Thank you for your support.
In addition, the Brabb Family is seeking assistance to (1) create a website to promote Max's Meters Fund; and (2) create a video with testimonials and editing existing footage of Max using his meter to promote the fund. |
 The Heart House Families' Corner
New to the APHH Quarterly Newsletter is the "Family Corner". This section is dedicated to CHD families who want to share a special event in their child's life or to announce their child's upcoming surgery or medical procedure (many times families want to share this information to keep their friends at APHH updated on their child). You can e-mail, mail or call us to include your information in the quarterly newsletter.
Pictured above is Cody Weitzman during his Make A Wish Disney Cruise. Mom says "I want to thank APHH so much for nominating Cody for Make A Wish...we had no idea what an amazing experience we were about to encounter! Make A Wish is such an incredible foundation and everything was above and beyond our expectations! Thanks again for everything APHH does for our heart kids and their families"
 The Canessa Family learned about Camp Boggy Creek at the APHH annual picnic and applied to attend the Heart Family Weekend Retreat. Here's what Maria, Luis' mom wrote, "We had a blast! Luis just loved it and the people were so nice! I was not expecting to have the chance to rest a little, but I did. The pals took really good care of the children. It was a great experience that we are hoping to repeat. Thank you!
To view additional photos shared by the Weitzman and Canessa families, just double click on the images.
 The Farese family would like you to keep them in your thoughts and prayers as Kayla is scheduled to have heart surgery on August 1st. If you would like to send them a message, please send it to sperez@aphh.org, and we will forward it to them.
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SAVE THE DATE!
FEBRUARY 14, 2009
CONGENITAL HEART DEFECT AWARENESS DAY EVENT
Miles and Millas, our resident heart Shadow Buddies(tm) want you to save the date for an exciting event sponsored by Angel's Pediatric Heart House.
More details to follow in the coming months. Stay tuned!
Shadow Buddies are a registered trademark of the Shadow Buddies Foundation.
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Despite a grim prognosis at birth, 47 year old Kim Russell survived a single left ventricle with complexities. In her book, In A Heartbeat, Kim shares her amazing story of family love, a little girl's courage against the odds, and the Lord's grace at work in her life.
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APHH Chosen As Charity of Choice
The Millionaires Business Wealth Club has chosen Angel's Pediatric Heart House as their charity of choice. We would like to take this opportunity to thank Michael Poggi, President of the club, for his commitment to support our mission and promote awareness amongst the club's members. APHH will have an exhibit table at the club's monthly meetings, held every fourth Thursday at the Signature Grand in Davie. Join us to learn more about APHH!
If you are a small business owner or employee, or a member of a club and would like to select APHH as the charity of choice, please contact us so that we can make a formal presentation of our mission to your business or club.
954-318-2020 or
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