The American Heart Association is setting a high bar for its upcoming Broward Heart Walk on Sunday, March 14. The 27th annual event seeks to raise $1.5 million while celebrating survivors of heart disease and stroke and encouraging physical activity.
The digital event has already received a record-breaking commitment toward its goal. City Furniture has committed more than $300,000, the largest from any corporate sponsor. In addition, City Furniture president Andrew Koenig is chairing the event. The retailer is also raising money in its locations. Through March 31, customers that go through its in-store mattress Test Rest process receive a $25 Mastercard gift card while City Furniture donates $25 to AHA. City Furniture is also displaying videos of Koenig and Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa running on social media and are encouraging customers to make no-contact donations to American Heart Association.
“COVID hasn’t slowed heart disease, and awareness about heart-healthy living is more crucial than ever,” Koenig says. “We’re making it easy for families to get involved by walking their own neighborhood routes or joining the Heart Walk effort in other ways.”
This year’s event is dedicated to the memory of Rick Case, who the AHA says “helped the Walk reach its fundraising goals for many years and helped associates focus on their own health at Rick Case Automotive Group, earning the dealership Gold status for its Workplace Health Achievement assessment.”
“We are grateful for the support from our community to continue funding the much-needed lifesaving research of the American Heart Association, while getting heart health tips about being active even as we are still spending more time at home.” said Jennifer Campbell, Executive Director of South Florida’s American Heart Association. “Many community leaders like Walk Chairman Andrew Koenig and his father, Keith Koenig, were introduced to the Heart Walk through the committed efforts of Rick Case. We are honored to dedicate this year’s walk in his memory.”
Koenig adds, “At the same time that COVID-19 has slashed donations to charities in our communities, it’s made heart healthy living more urgent than ever. Too many people with heart issues are delaying medical care but dealing with crushing stress levels. CITY Furniture is pulling out all the stops to help the Broward Heart Walk reach its record 2021 goal in Rick’s honor.”
The Broward Heart Walk invites participants and teams to walk at home or their neighborhoods starting at 9 a.m. on March 14 and post pictures and videos of their walk on social media with the hashtag #BrowardHeartWalk. Until then, participants can visit American Heart Association – Florida’s Facebook page for healthy tips and more.
Other sponsors of the Broward Hear Walk include the following: Cleveland Clinic Florida, American Heritage School, Florida Blue, FPL, KEMET, MEDNAX, Memorial Healthcare System, One Beat Medical, Rick Case Automotive Group, Schiller Americas, Stiles, Stryker, Truist, Broward Health, Holman Automotive, Holy Cross Health, Call 4 Health, JM Family Enterprises, Lifestyle Media Group, Sun Sentinel Media Group, Univision 23 Contigo, Vision Media, and WSVN.
To register, click here or email SouthFlorida@heart.org for information.
