My Father and Niece

I participate in the Heart Walk because of my father and my niece.

Let's start with my niece—she is now 8 years old. When she was born, the left side of her heart was not fully developed. She was rushed to Children's Hospital where she had open-heart surgery to reconstruct her heart.

She was there for a month and then needed two more surgeries. She has been through so much in just 8 short years—she is truly a miracle. To see everything she went through, and to think that in the past she would never have had a chance makes me want to work to make the future even better for everyone else born with heart defects.

Now moving on to my dad. About four years ago, he had a heart attack. He ended up having 6-vessel bypass surgery. He has since improved his lifestyle and quit smoking after about 30-plus years. Now, every year on his birthday, he counts the years from his surgery instead of his real age because he was given more time with us. This year he is not 60, he is 4.

Evie, Pulaski