Volunteers are our Lifeline
Since our founding in 1924, volunteers have been the driving force behind the American Heart Association. The very first meeting of the AHA was attended by six volunteer physicians who were deeply concerned about the challenges of heart disease.
Today, we have more than 22 million volunteers and supporters. A lot has changed since 1924, but year after year, the passion, creativity and brilliance of volunteers has carried us forward in the fight against cardiovascular diseases and stroke.
Not a day goes by when we don’t reflect on the enormous contributions of our volunteers, but during National Volunteer Week, we give special thanks to those who so selflessly give their time, talent and energy in support of our mission.
Our volunteers have helped us accomplish so much already, and they are leading us as we strive to achieve our 2020 Impact Goal.
In each issue of News from the Heart, we are proud to share the stories of volunteers whose hard work is changing lives for the better. For example, in our weekly Stories from the Heart section, you’ll meet volunteers like Jeff Malehorn, Dr. Lenna Liu, Cam Tipping and family, Leslie and Charlie Irwin, Amanda Salinas and many others.
This week we share the story of Rachel Beall – who died of heart disease at age 34 – and the efforts of her grieving family to honor her memory by building awareness in their community.
We are grateful for the dedication of our volunteers, and furthermore we are humbled by the number of people across the country who continue to express interest in volunteering. In addition, since we introduced our online Volunteer Interest Form in December on heart.org, nearly 3,000 people have submitted the form to express their interest.
To our newest volunteers … and to all who have supported us since we began nearly a century ago: THANK YOU!
