MILWAUKEE — Veterans Park was filled Saturday with attendees for the Milwaukee American Heart Association's Wisconsin Heart and Stroke Walk, to raise funds to advance life-saving research, increase CPR education and shoot for equitable health for everyone.
Some decided to run in the 5k, which had a $45 entry fee, but once the runners crossed that finish line, they got a finisher medal.
The walk did not have a registration fee and began a little over an hour after the run.
On top of a Kid's Zone, a Survivor Area, music and all sorts of fun, pets were allowed to attend, too!
The event featured several speakers like the event chair Tom Westrick, the featured survivor of a heart-related illness Matt Pemberton and Cyreia Sandlin of WISN12 to emcee.
Ordinary, everyday tasks alert many to heart-related illnesses, and Pemberton is no different. He was shoveling snow back in 2020 when, all-of-a-sudden, he felt a shortness of breath, according to a release.
Pemberton was using a KardiaMobile device he got at a GE HealthCare staff meeting and the reading from the device let him know something might be wrong. He decided to keep shoveling, but another concerning reading brought him to go to the doctor.
Tests at the doctor's office showed he had a 90% blockage of his left anterior descending artery. This artery is sometimes referred to as "the widow maker."
Pemberton went through open-heart surgery just after his 49th birthday and the procedure was successful.
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