This is team athletes4heart led by Nels Matson and supported by Denise Pizzo. This summer Nels will ride his bicycle across the U.S. from Los Angeles to New York City to raise awareness of Congenital Heart Defects and The Children's Heart Foundation. There will be many big stops along the way including Las Vegas, Denver, Des Moines, Chicago, Indianapolis, Columbus, Pittsburgh, and Philidelphia . Nels wants everyone  who is able and willing to join him on this journey for as long as they would like.

Nels was born with a Congenital Heart Defect (CHD). His defect was called Partial Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Return. He also had an Atrial Septal Defect. Nels had corrective open heart surgery a few months before his third birthday. His heart has been very healthy since that surgery.

One in one hundred kids is born with a CHD. Of these, 10 percent won't live to see their first birthday. Each year nearly 100,000 kids world wide die in their first year of life. Thousands more won't live to adulthood. Twice as many kids die from CHDs than all forms of childhood cancer combined. Nels wants these statistics to be common knowledge until they aren't true anymore.

There is good news! Because of research the number of CHD deaths has decreased by thirty percent in the last decade. CHD research is terribly underfunded. Imagine what could happen if more money was funneled into this research.

Your gift of any amount will help save lives!

Also, ask your place of employment if corporate matching is available and double the gift!

 Follow Nels' training and events at www.athletes4heart.blogspot.com. Please tell at least two people about this blog!

-Nels S. Matson

 

Donating through this website is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to support my fundraising efforts.

If you would like to donate by check directly to Children's Heart Foundation, just send the check to:

The Children's Heart Foundation
PO Box 244
Lincolnshire, IL 60069.

 Put "Bike4CHF" in the memo of your check and email me the amount at ihavegumption@gmail.com so I can put in "amount raised offline."

Many thanks for your support -- and don't forget to forward this to anyone who you think might want to donate too!