Jeremy Woodward is a two-time open heart surgery survivor and tireless advocate for heart-related illness and heart healthy living. Tedy Bruschi, former Patriots linebacker, survived a stroke and is now a tireless advocate for stroke awareness and survivors. So it’s only natural that Woodward was selected to join “Tedy’s Team,” a group of runners training to complete the Boston Marathon and raising money for the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association.
The 2015 Boston Marathon will take place on Monday, April 20. “Tedy’s Team” participates in the marathon each year with the goals of fighting against stroke and honoring both the survivors and the loved ones lost to America’s No. 4 leading cause of death. In addition to raising money for the American Stroke Association, Tedy’s Team seeks to raise awareness of stroke and recognition of its warning signs, reaching as many people as possible in its message of recognizing the warning signs and acting appropriate when seeing them – calling 9-1-1 immediately.
For Woodward, this cause is near and dear to his heart, literally. Having a congenital heart defect causes an increased risk of stroke. Already an advocate for heart related illness, Woodward felt that helping to raise awareness of strokes was an easy decision. “I was given the gift of a second chance after surviving my heart failures. I’m happy to pay that gift forward by running to raise money and awareness because it means saving people’s lives.”
Every 45 seconds, someone suffers a stroke and every 3.1 minutes, someone will die of a stroke. 29 percent of people who suffer strokes are under age 65. (Tedy Bruschi was only 31.)
To support this cause, you can sponsor Woodward by clicking the link to visit his personal donation page tedysteam2015.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=1112833&supid=415214568.
For more information about Tedy’s Team, and their work with stroke awareness, please visit heart.org/HEARTORG/General/Tedys-Team.
