Grand Cayman, 10 February 2023)

The Cayman Heart Fund’s inaugural “Beating Hearts Breakfast” took place on Wednesday 8th February 2023 from 7:00am – 8:30am in the Ritz-Carlton Ballroom where attendees gathered to kick off Heart Awareness Month. Speakers included:

• CHF Patron, H. E. The Governor Martyn Roper who gave an opening address
• Franz Manderson, Deputy Governor spoke about his recent micro heart attack.
• Ailian, Sean, and Ashlyn Evans from Team Nolan, The Paediatric Program of the Cayman Heart Fund also shared their deeply personal story of losing their baby son and brother to a congenital heart defect in 2018.
• Allison Olarou, CHF Coordinator shared the story of Heart Hero Charles Adams who suffered a sudden cardiac arrest at the Cayman Tennis Club in February 2020 but whose life was saved by immediate CPR and use of an AED from bystander hero Stephen Thompson.

At the end of the presentation attendees were invited to support the lifesaving work of the cardiovascular charity with pledges of donations.

Heart Awareness Month is a time to raise awareness of the importance of people’s cardiovascular health. Sadly Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) is still the leading cause of death both in the Cayman Islands and globally claiming 18.6m deaths every year and accounting for 33% of all deaths.

The staff, Directors, and volunteers of the Cayman Heart Fund are dedicated to increasing public awareness of heart disease and stroke – still the biggest health issue in the Cayman Islands. The threat of CVD has never been more urgent and is intensified by age, sedentary lifestyles, poor diets, and more. It’s estimated that 9 out of 10 people have at least one risk factor, such as high blood pressure, obesity, tobacco use, lack of physical activity, and diabetes.

Attendees of the event included:

• CHF Patrons, His Excellency the Governor of the Cayman Islands Mr. Martyn Roper and Mrs. Elizabeth Roper
• The Honourable G Wayne Panton, Premier and Minister for Sustainability & Climate Resiliency
• Honourable Franz Manderson, Deputy Governor and Head of the Civil Service
• Honourable Sabrina Turner, Minister for Health & Wellness
• Honourable Andre Ebanks, Minister for Financial Services & Commerce and Minister for Investment, Innovation & Social Development
• Honourable Katherine Ebanks-Wilks, Speaker of Parliament and Member of Parliament for West Bay West
• Honourable Roy McTaggart Member of Parliament for George Town East and leader of the Opposition.