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The mission of the HAVE A HEART FOUNDATION is to

provide comfort, support, education to and for the

benefit of transplant recipients, advanced heart failure

patients, their families; and encourage organ donation.

Critical Heart Disease Statistics

The grim statistics for people with heart disease and heart failure in the United States are astounding. According to the American Heart Association, congestive heart failure affects nearly 5 million people and its prevalence is growing worldwide. Cardiovascular disease causes almost twice as many deaths in the United States as all forms of cancer combined. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 400,000 new cases of heart failure are diagnosed annually and 42,000 deaths are caused by heart disease. The total cost of heart disease in the United States is estimated at nearly $175 billion with approximately 70% of this figure involving hospitalization and nursing home care. To put this huge cost into perspective, the federal government has estimated the costs of relief and reconstruction from hurricane Katrina, the most destructive natural disaster in U.S. history, at $200 billion.

The statistics on the number of people needing life-saving organ transplants are equally grim. On an average, every 13 minutes a new person is added to the organ transplant waiting list and 18 people die each day waiting for a life saving organ from a deceased donor. More than 6,150 people died waiting for an organ transplant in 2004. At the same time, more than 320 people registered for organ transplantation in Illinois died waiting for a life-saving organ. On the other side of the coin, more than 600 people in the upper Midwest have received heart transplants to date.

If you would like to learn more about our cause, our organization, or about how you can help with a donation of your money or your time, Contact Us with any questions you may have.

Heart Support Group

The Heart Support Group is the lifeblood of the Foundation. It supports advanced heart failure patients; heart transplant recipients and their families in several crucial ways. It guides the Foundation in its mission. It provides expert speakers on a variety of topics to disseminate critical information to members at monthly luncheon meetings. Its newsletter and the web site keep members well informed.

Members grow by exchanging with others in a similar circumstance. Various social activities, including: the luncheons, picnics and holiday parties build a strong community of friendship, helping and understanding.

If you or someone in your family is a a heart failure patient or a heart transplant recipient, the Foundation wants to assist you through this difficult time. We encourage you to attend a support group meeting.

Supporting Our Mission

You can support heart transplant recipients, heart failure patients and their families through the Foundation in two meaningful ways:

One way is by signing an organ donor card and asking your family and friends to do the same. All major religions support organ and tissue donations. In Illinois, you can simply complete the Life Goes On, Organ and Tissue Donation Registry by contacting the Illinois Secretary of State Office or by visiting: (www.lifegoeson.com).

The other way to support the Foundation is to make a "charitable choice." The Foundation is a 501(c) (3) charity, so your donation is tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. The Foundation truly believes that "a heart that shares is a heart that cares." Trustees of the Foundation and its advisory staff volunteer their time and receive no financial benefit from its activities and programs. Moreover, each Trustee makes a financial pledge to the Foundation as a sign of their commitment to its mission. The Foundation funds its charitable activities and programs through individual and corporate donations; grants; raffles and memorial contributions. After normal operational expenses and contract obligations are met, all of the money raised by the Foundation's programs is used solely to benefit heart transplant recipients, heart failure patients and their families.

The mission of the Have a Heart Foundation is to provide comfort, support, education to and for the benefit of transplant recipients, advanced heart failure patients, their families; and encourage organ donation.