My connection to Camp del Corazon is deeply personal.

I was born with a bicuspid aortic valve, a congenital heart defect that I knew would probably require surgery someday. That “someday” arrived in 2013, when I underwent open heart surgery to replace my aortic valve. Just a few months later, I developed endocarditis, a serious infection that damaged the new valve and led to an emergency second open heart surgery. I came out of that experience with a mechanical heart valve, a lot of scars, and a very different understanding of what it means to live with a heart condition.

Six months after that second surgery, I volunteered at Camp del Corazon for the first time.

I thought I was going there to help kids. I had no idea how much Camp was going to help me.

For the first time, I was surrounded by people who understood parts of my experience without needing an explanation. I watched kids compare scars, encourage one another to try things that scared them, and show an extraordinary amount of empathy toward each other. They weren't defined by their heart conditions; they were funny, brave, ridiculous, compassionate kids getting to be kids.

That week became an important part of my own healing, and Camp has been part of my life ever since.

Today, I’m a high school science teacher and continue to volunteer with Camp, including supporting young adults with congenital heart disease as they navigate the transition into adulthood. Camp has given me an opportunity to turn some of the hardest experiences of my life into something meaningful; to be there for the next generation of heart kids and to help build the kind of community I wish I had known when I was younger.

That's why I'm fundraising for Camp del Corazon. I know firsthand that what happens here matters.

-Goat

Begun in 1995 by a pediatric cardiologist and a cardiovascular nurse, Camp del Corazon provides a free-of-charge residential summer camp on Catalina Island off the coast of California to 300+ kids (ages 7-17) living with congenital heart disease. Over the past 30 years, Camp del Corazon has grown to include year round programming, including virtual camp, an educational symposium for heart families, and a young adult program (ages 18-25) to support former campers as they transition to adulthood and take ownership of their health. BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE! Camp is more than all these awesome programs, camp is a FEELING! Camp has become a community and a FAMILY to so many kids and families who thought they were alone.