New Yorkers: We Need YOUR Help!

   Attention, New Yorkers! The CPR in Our Schools Bill is posted for a hearing in the Assembly Education Committee TOMORROW! The American Heart Association needs YOU to call Speaker Sheldon Silver at 518-455-3791 as soon as you can today (June 18, 2012) and thank him for championing this legislation. This change to school curriculums can help SAVE MANY LIVES! Thank you!

XOXO,

Sarah

CPR in Our Schools Bill in the Senate

   Good morning everyone! Yesterday I learned that the CPR in Our Schools bill, a piece of legislation that other American Heart Association Advocates and I worked to hard to advocate for in Albany, passed in the Senate and is currently being brought to the Assembly! This is a HUGE advancement in Heart-Healthy legislation in New York State.
   For many years, the American Heart Association has made it a point to certify as many people as possible in CPR. I first heard of CPR in Our Schools when beginning with my youth advocacy work at the American Heart Association a few years ago. I learned that the CPR in Our Schools bill would require high school students to be trained in CPR before they graduate. One of my many jobs was to ask Heart Walk attendees to sign a petition that would be sent to Albany. Let me tell you, many people were surprised to hear that CPR was not a requirement to graduate high school! I also spoke with Fred Thiele (who I hope will continue to support the bill in the Assembly and fight hard to convince his fellow Assembly members to pass it, as well) and Ken LeValle (who co-sponsored the bill) about the bill during Lobby Day in New York State.

Other Youth Advocates and I with Senator LaValle during Lobby Day in Albany!

   This is great news for New York and for the American Heart Association. A special thank you goes out to Senator LeValle for being a huge supporter of the CPR in Our Schools bill! Also, thank you to Assemblyman Thiele, who I hope will fight for the bill as well!

XOXO,
Sarah

Southampton High School's Eighth Annual Science Research Symposium

   I was so excited to be apart of my high school's eighth annual Science Research Symposium on Monday, June 4th. The Science Research class is a program designed for science loving students! The class is an optional extra science class where students can design and carry out their own research projects, based on their interests. This past school year was my first year in the program, and I had been eager to start the research process. 

   At the Science Research Symposium, my classmates and I were able to present our year's worth of work for our research. As a first year student, I was given the task of presenting a poster and research paper based on one of the many scientific articles that I have read. My topic, which is very closely associated with Heart U, is The Effect of Physical Fitness on Academic Achievement. I will eventually be researching how physical activity affects the memory and academic achievement in elementary school students.

Presenting my topic to everyone who attended the Science Research Symposium!

My classmate, Natalie, and I receiving awards for our research work at Brookhaven National Lab this year!

   Thank you so much to my Science Research teacher, Mrs. Milton, our school librarian, Ms. Liss, and all of the Science Research Students for allowing the Symposium to run as smoothly as possible!

XOXO,

Sarah

How YOU Can Help Spread Awareness!

   The official Heart U Facebook page has 78 "likes" already! We need YOUR help to spread awareness! Heart U is trying to boost its "likes" to 100 by midnight on Sunday, June 3! You can help by liking the page, and encouraging your friends and family to do the same! Together, we can spread awareness and help to defeat heart disease!

XOXO,

Sarah

Heart Ride for the American Heart Association

   On Saturday, May 19, I gathered some friends together to help be volunteers at the annual Hamptons Heart Ride for the American Heart Association. Throughout the day we manned the first water stop and gave out sandwiches, snacks, and drinks to the riders. I can't tell you how much I admire them, considering many of them rode 60 miles on their bikes, and all for a good cause!

My friends and I volunteering!

The volunteers hard at work!

My friend, Johanna, and I!

   I was beyond excited to be a part of the Heart Ride for the second year in a row! I can't wait to volunteer at the Heart Ride again! Thank you to the wonderful staff of the Hamptons Heart Ride, the American Heart Association, the Heart Ride participants, and my mom, for driving my friends and I to the water stop!

XOXO,

Sarah

Zumbathon to Benefit the American Heart Association!

   On Saturday, May 5, from 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM the Ed & Phyllis Davis Wellness Institute at Southampton Hospital will be hosting a Zumbathon to benefit the American Heart Association! Come on down to 230 Elm Street, in Southampton, New York to participate in this fun-for-all event!
   If you haven't heard about Zumba yet, it's time you found out what exactly the program is! Zumba is a specialized fitness program that focuses on dancing and having fun to get exercise. If you can't dance, don't worry! Zumba isn't meant to be a "dancing" program. It is designed to help participants get exercise while having fun at the same time! No experience is necessary!
   For the past two weeks, my gym class has been participating in Zumba classes! While it is very intimidating at first, it is a great alternative for staying healthy and being active! I encourage everyone to come out to the Zumbathon for a great time, and a great cause! If you would like more information, click on the link below:

Party in Red Zumbathon to Benefit the American Heart Association

XOXO,
Sarah

Safe Routes to Schools Fly In

   On Tuesday, March 6, I was honored to be given the chance to fly down to Washington, D.C. to meet with some of New York's representatives for the American Heart Association. I was able to speak with, Senator Schumer's staff, Heather Loneck (Legislative Correspondent of Senator Gillibrand), Andrew Brady (Senior Legislative Assistant to Congressman Hanna), and Congressman Bishop himself! And the best part was hearing how most of New York's representatives were in favor of funding for Safe Routes to Schools! Here are some pictures that I took throughout the day:

Giving a folder of information on Safe Routes to Schools to Congressman Bishop (who just so happens to live in my hometown!).

At the American Heart Association headquarters in Washington, D.C.

Standing with the famous American Heart Association Red Dress, which shows that heart disease is the number one killer of women.

   I would like to thank everyone at the American Heart Association for allowing me to be the only Youth Advocate at the Safe Routes to Schools Fly In. A special thanks also goes out to Kristy Anderson at the American Heart Association for keeping things running smoothly!

XOXO,

Sarah

How do YOU Eat Heart Healthy?

Great news! The American Heart Association has created a competition! Participants are asked to make a video showing how they eat heart healthy each day. The winner will receive $500 to use in the American Heart Association merchandise store. What a great way to spread awareness! For rules and how to enter click here.

Happy recording!

Sarah

Let's Move!

Did you know that Michelle Obama supports the Let's Move! campaign? The Let's Move! campaign is solely about promoting physical activity and living healthy lifestyles in order to eliminate obesity. Sound familiar? Heart U may not be about eliminating obesity, but it sticks to the same values as the Let's Move! campaign! Maybe through living healthy lifestyles, we can eliminate BOTH obesity and heart disease!

Click Here to view the official Let's Move! website.

XOXO,

Sarah

CPR and AED Workshop!

Have you heard?! The Rogers Memorial Library is holding a CPR and AED instructional course for parents and caregivers on Saturday, April 28, from 10:30 am- 12:30 pm! If you live in the Southampton or Tuckahoe school districts, call the Rogers Memorial Library at 631-283-0774, or stop by the library to find out how you can join in on this workshop!

XOXO,

Sarah

Safe Routes to Schools Video Update

As you may know, I have been asked to make a video to show to Senator Schumer in March about Safe Routes to Schools funding. Im happy to say that, with the help of my mom and sister, all the filming is finished and the video is currently being edited! When the video is done, I will be posting it here, as well as on the Heart U Facebook page! Stay tuned!

XOXO,

Sarah

Such a Beautiful Day!

Spring is just around the corner, and the weather is starting to get nicer and nicer! Make great use of these beautiful days by taking a walk, going skating, playing your favorite outdoor sport, or even walking around an outdoor shopping mall! You can even grab a friend or two for some extra heart healthy fun! What are you waiting for?

XOXO,

Sarah

Heart U Facebook Page

If you haven't already, check out the Heart U Facebook page! It's a great resource, in addition to this blog, to get updates on Heart U and tips on how to make your life just a little heart healthier! Just click the little "Like" button, and you'll instantly be able to follow the page and Heart U's progress!

XOXO,

Sarah

Taking a Walk While Making a Difference

Hello again! I'm so excited to be able to attend the American Heart Association's national lobby day again, on March 7! This year, I have the honor of meeting with Senator Schumer to talk to him about Safe Routes to School Funding. For those of you who don't know what that is, Safe Routes to School is supported by the Heart Association. The goal of Safe Routes to School is to ask for funding to build sidewalks and other safe ways for kids to get to school (walk, bike, skate, etc.). This would not only help kids get to school safely, but it would also help kids get daily exercise. Plus it helps save the environment!

However, this year I not only get to speak with Senator Schumer about Safe Routes to School Funding, but I was also asked to create a video to share with him as well. Today, with the help of my sister (who is also a Heart Association Youth Advocate), I will start filming that video. We will walk down to her school, and time how long it takes us to walk there. We will also note how many areas:

• don't have sidewalks
• are unsafe to cross due to highways or busy streets

And if that isn't enough, we are also getting some exercise and fresh (although cold) air! It's a win-win situation! I can't wait to film this video with my sister!

Here is the Safe Routes website with information about the program!

http://www.saferoutesinfo.org/

XOXO,

Sarah

The History of Heart U

Hi! My name is Sarah Pierson, and I am aYouth Advocate for the American Heart Association. I've been involved with the American Heart Association since 2010, when my grandfather suffered from an abdominal aortic aneurysm. Since then I have been lucky enough to attend both state and national lobby days for the American Heart Association. As a youth advocate at the national lobby day, I had to go through a day of training to learn how to communicate with my state's representatives. At this training, I learned a startling statistic. The statistic predicted that mygenerationwill be the first generation to die before our parents. I knew that I wanted extinguish this statistic as quickly as possible.

That's when I thought of creating an event that would raise awareness of healthy living. I was in eighth grade at the time, and I wanted to raise awareness in my school. I spoke with my principal, the student council, and my school's chapter of the

National Junior Honor Society to urge them to help me as I set up an event to take place at my school. I also recruited local businesses, such as yoga instruct

ors and chefs to demonstrate their heart healthy techniques.

On February 4, which is also the day after National Go Red for Women Day, Heart U became a reality. Many of my fellow students an

d their families came to Heart U to learn how to be more heart healthy! I was so excited that Heart U was a huge success! I plan to continue to promote heart healthy living, and I hope that you are just as excited about Heart U as I am!

Here are some photos of things that Heart U has done over the past few years:

Speaking with Senator Gillibrand at the American Heart Association 2011 National Lobby Day:

At the recent Red Out Basket Ball Game:

XOXO,

Sarah