American Heart Association: Charlotte Heart Walk

September is always a hard month for me and my family. To most, it represents the start of new beginnings with school and fall with the cooler weather, pumpkin flavored everything, and football.

To me, it represents loss, grief and sadness with the passing of my brother on Sept. 26, 2010 due to heart issues. I make no secret that this has changed me greatly. Losing my brother made me reconsider all of the decisions I had made in the past and really start to live more intentionally in my life. This has not only changed my outlook on life but who I am today and who I want to be in the future.

I've been wanting to get involved with the American Heart Association (AHA) but never knew when or how. In late July, I got an email through work about volunteer opportunities and one was for the AHA Heart Walk on Sept. 20th, 2014. This timing was eerily close to my brother's passing and I knew I had to be involved.

I started campaigning and sharing my story on my heart walk page in late July. I shared my story with my teammates at work (since I was joining through my company's involvement in the walk) but was hesitate to share with others for fear of putting myself out there and how others would react. I finally got brave enough to send an email to close family and friends the week of the walk and post to Facebook the night before the walk. I must say, I had no idea how much support I'd get from everyone I know!

With the support of my amazing co-workers, family, and friends, I managed to raise over $900! I was blown away with the support of everyone around me. It is so humbling to hear others share their stories of heart disease and how it has affected their lives as well.

This heart walk has helped me grieve the loss of my brother in such a positive way. T and a few of our friends did the walk together.

Team JPC at the Charlotte Heart Walk

Crowds of walkers before the start of the walk

My friend Erin made a beautiful sign in memory of Justin - such a sweet and thoughtful gesture that meant the world to me!

Erin's amazing sign

T held my hand especially tight when we walked over the finish line and I started to cry because I was so overwhelmed with emotion. This was such a special experience for me and I am so thankful and humbled to have been able to be a part of it.

Finish line selfie

Thank you to all that donated and made this experience so much more special to me. I am looking forward to many more heart walks in the years to come as a positive way to honor and remember my brother.