LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — The American Heart Association reaches a significant milestone this year celebrating its 100th anniversary.
Afton Fairchild, AHA Senior Marketing Communications Director, is one of those leading the effort to showcase 100 survivors across Kentucky.
A personal experience was a motivating factor when Fairchild joined the American Heart Association three years ago.
"My father experienced a heart attack when he was 37, and I'm turning 37 next month, so heart disease runs in my family," Fairchild said.
Fairchild is working on an initiative known as the Kentucky 100 Survivors Project, calling on heart and stroke survivors to share their story.
"One of the things that we've been trying to do is to highlight our survivor stories because they're the reason we do what we do," Fairchild noted.
AHA has already received survivor stories from more than thirty counties. Those stories will be highlighted on social media, and part of the goal of the 100 Survivors campaign is to showcase stories that aren't typically told.
"We have somebody who experienced a stroke at the age of 17 and I feel like that's pretty unheard of and most teenagers don't even think that's a possibility," Fairchild said.
Stories like the one about twin girls who were born with congenital heart defects speak volumes, and they were featured at the Heart Ball last year. One had to have open-heart surgery, but fortunately, the two girls made major progress.
"They're both cheerleaders and whenever we were doing interviews, they were both doing cartwheels in the room. They're so full of energy and life," Fairchild added.
That powerful story was one of several Open Your Heart stories.
"I think that's one of the best parts of our events, is that we get to recognize a lot of
our survivors and really highlight them and celebrate their stories," Fairchild said.
The Go Red for Women Campaign Luncheon featuring some survivors is slated for Nov. 1.
