BPW/USA and Go Red for Women Launch “Healthy Heart Makeover” Grassroots Program

BPW/USA and Go Red for Women Launch “Healthy Heart Makeover” Grassroots Program
New Nationwide Heart Disease Education Campaign

Dallas, TX, July 21, 2006– Today members of Business and Professional Women/USA (BPW/USA) and guests will attend a breakfast sponsored by Go Red for Women of the American Heart Association, during the 2006 BPW/USA National Conference in Dallas, Texas. The breakfast will launch a nationwide grassroots initiative entitled Healthy Heart Makeover to teach and encourage workingwomen to advocate for a healthy heart through their personal, professional and political actions.

To implement this initiative, the American Heart Association will utilize BPW/USA’s network of 20,000 active members in 1,300 local organizations across 54 states and U.S. Territories. A training presentation was created specifically for BPW members to learn about the resources of Go Red for Women and to provide information at local meetings and within their communities.

“BPW/USA is thrilled to partner with the American Heart Association and Go Red for Women,” said Roslyn Ridgeway, national president of BPW/USA. “The Healthy Heart Makeover grassroots program is a unique opportunity for BPW to utilize its local organizations to educate women nationwide about how their professional, personal and political lives can help them maintain a healthy heart.”

The breakfast launch is scheduled for 8 – 9:15am in the Austin Ballroom of the Adam’s Mark Hotel. Molly Nolan, a strong advocate for the American Heart Association and heart disease survivor, will speak about her health struggles and successes.

“Women must maintain their own health to be both successful caregivers and business women. Therefore, women’s health is a top legislative priority for BPW/USA,” said Deborah Frett, CEO of BPW/USA. “Although heart disease is the number one killer of women, there is a lack of education and research regarding the impact on women and how to adequately treat it. For these reasons, BPW/USA supports and lobbies for the HEART for Women Act, bipartisan federal legislation that would improve the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of heart disease and stroke in women,” noted Frett.

Heart disease is the number one killer of women over the age of 25 and only 46 percent of women consider heart disease their number cause of death in unaided awareness. BPW/USA and American Heart Association are joining forces so that women nationwide can learn about heart disease and how to prevent it. The goal of the BPW/USA and the American Heart Association is to increase women’s awareness of heart disease and the number of women who know their personal risks for heart disease.

For information on the BPW/USA National Conference, please visit www.bpwusa.org/nationalconference.

BPW/USA, founded in 1919, is a multi-generational, bipartisan membership organization with a mission to achieve equity for all women in the workplace through advocacy, education, and information. Established as the first organization to focus on issues of workingwomen, BPW/USA is historically a leader in grassroots activism, policy influence and advocacy for millions of workingwomen. BPW Local Organizations provide members with professional development programs, networking, participation in grassroots activities and opportunities to support scholarships.