RECENT AED DONATIONS:
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Honoring a Fallen Shipmate
On Tuesday, May 31, the family of FCA2 Adam Pecaut gathered on the quarterdeck of Naval Station Mayport (Jacksonville, FL) to present an AED (Automated External Defibrillator) to the base in hopes of saving a future life. Two years ago, their son, FCA2 Adam Pecaut, who served on USS Thomas Hudner (DDG 116), tragically died during a run on the base beach. “On behalf of the Lion Heart Heroes Foundation we present this AED to Naval Station Mayport in honor of my son,” said Donna Pecaut. 
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Meeting Community Needs
Naval Support Activity Mechanicsburg, a small logistics base in Pennsylvania, needed new battery packs and two more AEDs to serve their Navy families and community adequately. Thanks to your generous donations, the Lion Heart Heroes Foundation was able to meet that need, and here is the thank you letter that we received. Bravo Zulu! 
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Check out this article in
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The April 2022 issue of the Marine Corps Gazette.
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President Biden signs the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2022. It includes expanded Cardiac Screening!
NDAA, Section 733 (pg. 258) PILOT PROGRAM ON CARDIAC SCREENING AT CERTAIN MILITARY SERVICE ACADEMIES expands the cardiac screening that was piloted at the US Naval Academy to other academies: West Point Military Academy and the Air Force Academy. Cardiac screening of 4,095 Midshipmen at the Naval Academy found 87 with abnormal screens. Of these, 19 had cardiac issues that could result in serious cardiac events. Six were cured, 11 will be monitored over time, and two were medically separated.
This comes as a result of our meeting with Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) in November 2020. Lion Heart Heroes worked with the Military Personnel Committee and they wrote markup #733, PILOT PROGRAM ON CARDIAC SCREENING AT CERTAIN MILITARY SERVICE ACADEMIES, which was included in the House version that passed on September 23, 2021. The Senate and the House then worked to reconcile their separate versions of the NDAA. The Senate passed the final version on December 15. Now that the President has signed the NDAA for FY 2022, the military academies will start screening their students with EKGs (see p. 258 in the 910 page pdf). The data they find will be used for our next step: expanding cardiac screening to the Military Entrance Processing Stations (MEPS) in future legislation. It is such a long process, but we're making progress!
This comes as a result of our meeting with Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) in November 2020. Lion Heart Heroes worked with the Military Personnel Committee and they wrote markup #733, PILOT PROGRAM ON CARDIAC SCREENING AT CERTAIN MILITARY SERVICE ACADEMIES, which was included in the House version that passed on September 23, 2021. The Senate and the House then worked to reconcile their separate versions of the NDAA. The Senate passed the final version on December 15. Now that the President has signed the NDAA for FY 2022, the military academies will start screening their students with EKGs (see p. 258 in the 910 page pdf). The data they find will be used for our next step: expanding cardiac screening to the Military Entrance Processing Stations (MEPS) in future legislation. It is such a long process, but we're making progress!
We Were on the Cover of Bonney Lake Neighbors!
John and Laurie Finlayson, founders of The Lion Heart Heroes Foundation, were featured in the November 2021 issue of Bonney Lake Neighbors. The article covers the story of the sudden death of their son, Marine Lance Corporal David Finlayson, the impact on their family, and the work they have done through Lion Heart Heroes. Click on the image to read the article.
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Gold Star Mothers donate an AED in memory of SN Andrew J. Adams
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When Laurie met Gold Star Mom, Kim Hayes, at a TAPS retreat in Atlanta, we shared our sons' stories. As Kim learned that David died of Sudden Cardiac Arrest, she explained that there was another Gold Star Mom in their Southwest Florida chapter whose son, Andrew, had died the same way.
Fast forward a few years, and Laurie finally met Maricel when traveling to Florida for the Parent Heart Watch Conference in 2020. There, the seed was planted to donate an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) in Andrew's name. It took another year for all the pieces to fall into place. The Gold Star Mothers of Southwest Florida received a significant donation that enabled them to purchase a Cardiac Science G5 Powerheart AED to donate to Venice High School, where Andrew had participated in the JROTC program. ABC-7 Television out of Fort Myers, Florida, covered this story. Here is the updated link. The ceremony took place on February 26, 2021. |
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A new article in Military.com helps spread awareness!
Navy Doctors are Bringing Back This Medical Screening to Prevent Sailors' Sudden Deaths, by Patricia Kime, published 9/20/20. Great exposure about the need for ECG screening and the improvements in ECG technology in the last 18 years, with some personal stories. Let's keep military hearts beating!
THE FIRST MILITARY CARDIAC SCREENING WITH ELECTROCARDIOGRAMS HAS TAKEN PLACE AT THE NAVAL ACADEMY!
A midshipman 4th class, or plebe, from the United States Naval Academy Class of 2024 receives an electrocardiogram. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Dana D. Legg/Released)
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Here's the article from DVIDS:
Naval Health Clinic Annapolis and Uniformed Services University: Partners to Reduce Sudden Cardiac Death. The US Naval Academy recently finished evaluating 1,178 plebes, the entire freshman class, with specialized ECGs used for young athletes. They found 26 (about 2%) who needed further evaulation, and of those, 19 were cleared. Ultimately seven midshipmen were found to have heart conditions that required treatment and follow-up. These fantastic results were presented to our congressman who has assigned his team to work on it. |
Article promoting Cardiac Screening of Military Recruits has been published!
The potential benefits of modern electrocardiogram (ECG) screening for military applicants is described in "Cardiovascular Screening in the U.S. Military: Time to Reconsider the Elecvtrocardiogram" by Charles Magee, MD and Mark C. Haigney, MD. The pdf can be downloaded here.
The Inspector General of the DoD has announced a Pilot Study of Medical Protocols at MEPS!
We are excited about this new project by the Department of Defense. What started as an evaluation of the medical resources at basic training has evolved into a look at the medical protocols and their relation to deaths among recruits. The reannounced objective is to "determine the effectiveness of medical protocols at the recruit training centers in the DoD." www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2019/12/10/dod-inspector-general-is-looking-into-recruit-deaths-at-military-training/
Here is the announcement from the IG and the list of commanders that it went to:
media.defense.gov/2019/Dec/06/2002220997/-1/-1/1/D2020-DEVOPA-0007.000_REDACTED.PDF
Here is the announcement from the IG and the list of commanders that it went to:
media.defense.gov/2019/Dec/06/2002220997/-1/-1/1/D2020-DEVOPA-0007.000_REDACTED.PDF
Pictures from our first Fundraiser Event, Heartbeat for Heroes Motorcycle Ride and Concert!
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Blog posts broaden our exposure
Avive Life wrote up our story. https://www.avive.life/post/laurie-s-fight-to-keep-brave-hearts-beating
Lion Heart Heroes was also featured in Emerg-a-Center's #WhyItMatters campaign. emergacenter.com/whyitmatters-lcpl-david-finlayson/
Lion Heart Heroes was also featured in Emerg-a-Center's #WhyItMatters campaign. emergacenter.com/whyitmatters-lcpl-david-finlayson/
spring 2019
We’ve been busy meeting with Washington state congressional offices to tell our story and raise the issue of the need for screening of recruits with ECGs.
After a number of deaths during physical fitness training at various bases around the country, Laurie was interviewed by Gina Harkins at Military.com about the work the Lion Heart Heroes Foundation is doing. Here is the story that resulted: Group Pushes Military to Give EKGs Before Boot Camp to Stop Sudden Cardiac Deaths.
Two recruits died this year just eight weeks apart during the final fitness run at the Navy’s boot camp, Recruit Training Command at Great Lakes . We contacted the local television station, WKRG, and did a Skype interview. Alabama Naval Recruits Death Drawing National Attention. Our hearts break for these families enduring such sudden loss of their loved ones.
Two recruits died this year just eight weeks apart during the final fitness run at the Navy’s boot camp, Recruit Training Command at Great Lakes . We contacted the local television station, WKRG, and did a Skype interview. Alabama Naval Recruits Death Drawing National Attention. Our hearts break for these families enduring such sudden loss of their loved ones.