Ready, set, walk!
By BRIANNA SADLER, Staff WriterArticle Photos
STEUBENVILLE - Volunteers throughout the community got "started" Saturday morning with the kickoff of the American Heart Association's Tri-County Start! Heart Walk.
"This walk is a call to action for all Americans to become physically active and to follow proper eating habits so they can live longer, healthier lives," Donna Ashcraft, division director of the American Heart Association, explained.
Volunteers, who had set out for weeks before the event to gather sponsors for their individual or team walks around the campus, began assembling at Jefferson Community College for registration at 9:30 a.m.
The goal for this year's walk was $57,000.
Although people have been gathering for the American Heart Association's Heart Walk for nearly a decade, event co-chair Becky Jones noted that this is the first year for the Start! Heart Walk.
"It's been fantastic. The community throughout has been awesome. This is, by far, one of the better walks I've been involved in," Jones said, indicating that nearly 200 people turned out for Saturday's event.
The Start! Heart Walk focuses on three areas or "communities," Ashcraft explained.
The first, Creating Hope, focuses on survivors and encourages people to share their stories. The second, Inspiring Change, asks people to pledge to change their daily routines to encompass healthier ways of life, and the third, Celebrating Success, teaches participants about the medical advancements that have been made to better research and treatment of heart diseases.
"The three communities inspire change to continue to do this everyday," Ashcraft said.
There to inspire the day's walkers with his personal story of surviving heart disease was Jefferson County Commissioner Adam Scurti.
"As we walk through this journey of life, some of us make detours that are not always in our best interest," Scurti said. "I am the poster child for doing the wrong thing, but my life has changed.
"Yes, I am a survivor. Yes, I am blessed. And I am truly grateful for all that has been done today and for what can continue to be done."
Walkers lined up at the starting line at 10 a.m.
Paul Carapellotti, a 7-year-old survivor of a ventricular septal defect, broke the ribbon to signal the start of the three-mile walk around the campus.
Participants were also able to enjoy music, snacks, drawings and games throughout the day.
Local sponsors for this year's walk include: Riverside Medical of Ohio, Trinity Heart Center, Ball Corporation, Trinity Echo Fund, American Electric Power-Cardinal Plant, State Park Motors, Open MRI and Ambulance Service, Inc.
"Next year, we want to have it bigger and better," Jones said.
(Sadler may be contacted at bsadler@heraldstaronline.com.)
