2023 ‘Go Red for Women’ Luncheon Filled with Fierce Generosity
The Event: Go Red for Women Luncheon
The Cause: American Heart Association
Event Date: May 4, 2023
Location: Westin Kierland Resort & Spa
Event Chair: Riana Kielly
Passion Speaker: Sharla Fisher
National Sponsor: CVS Health | Local Platform Sponsor: HonorHealth | Luncheon Presenting Sponsor: UnitedHealthcare
Notable Moments: The theme “May the Fierce Be With You ” resonated throughout the event as guests were treated to a heartfelt story told as a poem by Marlana-Patrice Pugh Hamer to kick off the program (we’ve shared it below!). In true Go Red tradition, guests wore red as they experienced several stories emphasizing the warning signs for heart disease and stroke as well as healthy habits to easily incorporate into today’s busy lives. To give thanks for the generosity shown throughout the paddle raise, the Arizona Diamondbacks gifted tickets to everyone who made a contribution. It was a powerful day of giving back to the American Heart Association!
Photos courtesy of George Tenney | Jenny Kaufman of Xposed Capture Photography
May the FIERCE Be with Us!
By Marlana-Patrice Pugh Hamer*
The stormtroopers are coming again!
Boarding up our windows,
blockading our homes
with a million sandbags
will not stop them
from raiding our villages
disrupting our lives!
They have already come
for too many of us.
Taken us to their Leader!
- Retired Teacher, Louvenia Pugh, my mother. Died of congestive heart failure. Told she was TOO old for a pacemaker. Died at 84.
- Actress Susan Lucci. Survived surgery for blockages she thought were “nothing.” Now 76.
- Singer, Toni Braxton. Survived emergency heart surgery last December. Not her first time on the table. Now 56.
- TV Producer, Nneka Garland. Died of a Heart Attack just this week. A Black woman in her prime. Only 49.
- Actress, Jenny Garth. Survived leaky heart valves. Has a family history of heart disease. Now 51.
- Poet & Retired Teacher, Marlana-Patrice Pugh Hamer. Survived a Hypertension, Stage 2 episode. Spent 5 Hours in EMS. Later took multiple heart tests including one for stress. Given New Meds. Blood Pressure, Cholesterol, Heart. All fine for now. But stormtroopers are still detaining me. I’m watching them right now. I’m over 60.
Those Stormtroopers! Such menaces!
Still ready to steal more women of all ages
and races from their homes! Their jobs! Their families!
Casualties growing more and more each day,
but it does not have to stay this way:
Exactly 1 out of 3 women DIE each year! —
are dying from heart disease or stroke.
More than all cancers combined!
This is not a 1 out of 3 women’s battle.
This is everyone’s battle.
So put on our Red Jedi robes and prepare our lightsabers.
Be ready day and night to confront our enemies.
They are sneaky enough to show up, day or night,
to attack us silently. Ready to kill us.
We must be ready to fight even when they
make our chests hurt,
make us lose our breaths,
make our arms ache,
make us break out in cold sweats,
make us feel nauseous,
make us lose our heads.
make our HEARTS STOP BEATING!
Yes, talking about the deadliest leader,
not Darth Vader. Talking about taking out
the Meanest and the Evillest LEADER!
The Number One Killer of ALL Women!
HEART DISEASE!
To win this epic fight,
we have to know our enemy.
Know about all their tricks
that might take us by surprise.
While in our first trimester.
Even during menopause.
Do our research thoroughly,
Learn all the signs.
Learn how to listen for the beats,
Never missing any beats
in our strategy.
Use our Jedi minds over matter.
Work together to finally
outmaneuver. Then conquer.
Always think. Always act like Jedi,
but our hearts are still HUMAN.
No amount of money has
made us immortal.
And yet, we can still live
while learning how
to keep our beats.
We can beat this disease!
Our Red Jedi robes on. Our lightsabers up!
Let’s teach the world what
FIERCE in combat REALLY means.
Let’s FIGHT with all our MIGHT!
EVERY DAY! EVERY NIGHT!
Let’s conquer the ominous,
most omnipresent enemy!
Mean, Evil, Dreadful HEART DISEASE!
May the FIERCE be with us!
May the FIERCE be with us!
May the FIERCE be with us!
May the FIERCE be with all of us!
Disclaimer: * Marlana-Patrice Pugh Hamer owns the copyright to the entire poem.
