“A book is a gift you can open again and again.” – Garrison Keillor
A few weeks ago, I was contacted by a friend from high school to see how I could help her with a new project she was working on with the Pediatric Cardiology Unit at Levine Hospital in Charlotte, North Carolina. The project is to provide BRAND NEW books for pediatric cardiac patients at Levine Hospital in Charlotte, NC. I was drawn to working with this organization for many reasons – obviously literacy is my passion but I was also born with a congenital heart defect (a VSD – a hole in my heart which thankfully closed on its own without surgery). So after talking with Hayley, the founder of The Gordon Owino Foundation, partnering with the Gordon Owino Heart Foundation in order to provide BRAND NEW books for pediatric patients in the Cardiac Unit at Levine Hospital was a no brainer! The hospital sees between 400 and 500 pediatric cardiac patients every single year and that number is growing!
1 in 100 children are born with congenital heart disease.
This makes it the number 1 birth defeat in the United States! Some of these children will have developmental delays, learning disabilities, or special education needs. We know how important early literacy is to a child’s development and putting books into the hands of these patients will help build the skills they need.
The Gordon Owino foundation strives to provide Hope, Care, and Support services to children and families affected by congenital heart defects.
Providing books for these patients and families will provide bonding experiences for the patient and families as well giving them the tools they need to support a love of literacy!
If you are able, please donate HERE today! Your donation will be matched by 50%!
If you would like more information about The Gordon Owino Heart Foundation, please check them out here or on facebook!
