Ogunquit News
"On the Edge of Awareness" event a success at The Cliff House
Local residents had the chance to learn firsthand from survivors and medical professionals about the number one killer of women - heart disease - in a non-threatening environment during Go Red for Women's "On the Edge of Awareness" at The Cliff House Resort and Spa. Pictured are Saco residents Cyndy and Joel Bizon, who shared their personal story of survival of heart disease at the event.
Courtesy photo
And earlier this month, at the special "On the Edge of Awareness" event, held most appropriately, on the edge of the Maine coast at Ogunquit's The Cliff House Resort and Spa, more than 200 attendees had the chance to learn about heart disease first hand.
The Nov. 2 event is being dubbed a huge success by its organizers and attendees alike as a tool to raise awareness of heart disease, the leading cause of death for women.
This American Heart Association event, chaired by York Harbor resident Denise Rubin, raised more than $77,000 in net profits through corporate sponsorships and a silent auction to support heart disease and stroke research specifically for women.
Most of the attendees, in fact, were women - many of whom wore red to show their support of the Go Red for Women campaign.
Rubin, who is also the owner of On the Marsh Restaurant in Kennebunk and a pulmonary embolism survivor, was instrumental in working to make the event a reality, as well as this year's earlier hit event in York Harbor, the "Project REDWAY" fashion show to raise funds and awareness for Go Red for Women.
"I am proud to have led our efforts to raise funds and awareness for Go Red for Women," Rubin said in an announcement of the results of the recent Ogunquit event. "Together with local business people, health professionals and volunteers, we have galvanized the Southern Maine community for an amazing awareness event."
The Go Red for Women campaign was launched in 2004 to raise awareness that heart disease is the number one killer of women and to fund research and education to help women reduce their risk and live longer, stronger lives.
During this month's event at The Cliff House, guests were able to take part in cardiovascular disease health screenings and a special workshop entitled "Know Your Numbers Like Your Red Dress Size," presented by Dr. Sherif Labib, senior staff cardiologist at Boston's Lahey Clinic. Labib described how risk factors for heart disease interact with each other, and explained techniques used to decrease the risk.
Also at the event, Saco residents Cyndy and Joel Bizon shared their personal story of survival of heart disease.
As her husband Joel Bizon was recovering from a heart attack he suffered during a non-cardiac surgery, Cyndy Bizon went into sudden cardiac arrest at the hospital. She explained that she believes she may have been a victim of what has recently been identified as "broken heart" syndrome.
"It is believed that women's bodies react differently to stress and a whole cascade of hormones is released in our bodies in response to stressful events. That may have triggered my event," she said. "Some of women's heart disease may occur in the periphery of the heart, areas not commonly tested. We also may have very different symptoms from men. And as caregivers, we may often ignore the needs of our own bodies while tending to others."
Keynote Speaker Dr. Dervilla McCann, a noninvasive cardiologist and partner at Cardiovascular Consultants of Maine, spoke on such issues as the recent progress in research regarding women and heart disease and the importance of the mind-body connection on health.
The program concluded with a surprise presentation of the Crystal Heart Award to Kennebunk's Danie Connolly, who created and directed "Project: REDWAY" in York Harbor last August and designed red scarves imprinted with the warning signs for heart attack and stroke for each guest at the Nov. 2 event. Also for that event, she created a contest in which local florists decorated red shoe centerpieces with dramatic red flower arrangements that adorned each table in The Cliff House's ballroom.
The Go Red for Women: On the Edge of Awareness event was made possible by the event's "Opal" sponsors, including On the Marsh Restaurant: Maine Beverage Company; Moody, Famiglietti and Andronico, LLP, and Wyeth Pharmaceuticals as well as "Red Rose" sponsors Downeast Energy and Building Supply; Goodall Hospital; Kennebunk Savings Bank; KeyBank,;Kos Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Maine Neurology; Martin's Point Health Care; Mary-Jean Huntley and Elaine R. Adams, in memory of Robert W. Huntley and Philip F. Adams; Medtronic; Prudential Prime Properties Bay Realty; Saco and Biddeford Savings Institution; Southern Maine Medical Center/The Maine Heart Center, and The Winebaum Fund of the New Hampshire Charitable Trust - Piscataqua Region and National Sponsors Macy's and Pfizer.
National Wear Red Day for women will take place on Feb. 2, 2007. For more information on how you can get involved, visit www.goredforwomen.org or call the American Heart Association in Maine at 879-5700 or (800) 937-0944.
