Help a Child’s HeartBeat

There are so many tragedies in the world, but the biggest ones are the ones that could have been prevented. The ones that happen under our watchful eye. We live in an unjust society, plagued with prejudice but it doesn’t have to be that way.
Picture this: a baby born with congenital heart disease that may take his life before he turns one is turned away at a hospital because his parents can’t afford the surgery that would save his life. Fact: there are 600 of these babies born in Lebanon each year.
Now picture this: Had his family had the funds to treat him, he would live. Fact: 95% of these babies get cured with the right treatment.

I’ve always felt empathy towards children, but I’m not going to deny the fact that motherhood has awakened a new level of compassion I’ve never knew I had in me. The mere joy my baby boy has brought into my life, even before he was born, is immeasurable. But to just imagine that joy overridden with feelings of fear, grief and despair because of a medical condition that may risk his life reduces me to tears. So thinking about all the unfortunate mothers who hold the little hands of their babies and pray for funds to help their babies live, that’s just traumatic.

But it doesn’t have to be like that. We can give sick children a happy ending. And that’s what Heartbeat is doing, an organization formed with the sole mission of providing the highest level of advanced surgical technology to treat children with heart disease in Lebanon. The network of Heartbeat doctors perform state-of-the-art medical procedures on over 300 children each year at Hotel Dieu de France Hospital. All this with $0 overhead costs. That means they don’t have some fancy salaries that they charge donors in order to pursue this noble cause, rather Heartbeat consists of over 100 volunteer doctors, artists and organizers who altruistically work towards saving lives of the most innocent and helpless. If that doesn’t make you want to pull out your wallet and donate I don’t know what will.
So how do they fundraise?

Heartbeat throws annual concerts and galas with proceeds that go towards funding the treatments of children. And this weekend, Heartbeat will take us on a journey Around the World, inspired by a young boy with heart disease and a huge imagination, who wanted nothing but to travel around the world and discover different cultures. More than 100 singers, dancers, musicians and comedians will be coming together to perform live on stage doing just that. And you can join, on Saturday 23 of April and Sunday the 24th at BIEL. Get your Tickets at Virgin Ticketing Box Office starting from $25.

I hope you have it in your heart to help out a young heart in any way you can, because inaction makes us culprits. But if you can’t make it to the concert, or live abroad, you can always donate to Heartbeat Bank Audi, Sofil Branch. Account in LBP. Account Number : 325179/01. IBAN Code : LB81 0056 0003 2517 9462 0010 0901. Account in USD.