Attendees of the fundraiser got to enjoy various carnival games ring toss and cornhole, provided by Cricket Wireless.
Submitted photo
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NAZ CHD Awareness and Family Planning held a coloring contest at the event, where kids were able to color in the CHD ribbon. Founder Autumn Biggs said the pictures will be posted on the organization’s Facebook post and the winner will receive a prize.
Margaret Roarty | Times Leader
NAZ CHD Awareness and Family Planning held a fundraiser at the former Coal Street Park, now the Martin Luther Kin Jr. Memorial Park, where attendees enjoyed food, shopping vendors, face painting and more.
Margaret Roarty | Times Leader
WILKES-BARRE — NAZ Congenital Heart Defect (CHD) Awareness and Family Planning held a festival over the weekend at Coal Street Park to spread word of the organization’s efforts to support children and families living with life threatening conditions.
The event featured tons of local craft vendors, face painting, live music, carnival games and more.
There was even a coloring contest where kids were invited to color-in a picture of the congenital heart defect awareness ribbon. The pictures will eventually be posted to the organization’s Facebook page where users can vote for their favorite and the winner will receive a prize.
“We just want to let families know that we’re out here and we’re here to help,” said NAZ CHD Founder Autumn Biggs, adding that on Saturday alone she was able to connect with two new families who have children with CHDs.
According to The Children’s Heart Foundation, congenital heart defects are the most common birth defect in the United States, affecting nearly 40,000 babies yearly. CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics states that congenital heart defects are among the second leading cause of death for children ages 1-4.
Biggs founded the organization four years ago and was inspired to do so because of her 13-year-old son, Najair, was born with transposition of the great arteries (TGA).
This congenital heart defect occurs when the two major arteries that carrying blood away from the heart, the aorta and the pulmonary artery, begin from the wrong ventricle.
Biggs said her son is stable for the moment, but has been having trouble breathing and will require more open heart surgery in the near future.
“That’s why he’s not here today. He was here yesterday. He was pale by the time we went home, so he didn’t come today,” Biggs said.
Overall, Biggs said her organization’s goal is to offer financial support to families and help advocate for them.
That includes giving them gas money when they need to travel for doctors appointments and surgery and helping families through the paperwork process of applying for medical daycare and Head Start programs.
NAZ CHD also puts goodie bags filled with toys together for children who’ve recently had surgery.
“I answer the phone as much as I possibly can for our families to give advice or support,” said Biggs.
As the organization grows, Biggs hopes that it will eventually get enough funding to pay for hotel stays for families and maybe even buy a family a car, which she said is a necessary thing to have if your child has a heart defect.
“Sometimes, you have to go the emergency room in the middle of the night and you don’t quite need the ambulance, but you still need to go. If you’re a single parent with other kids, what do you? A car is a need for our families, not a luxury,” Biggs explained.
As Biggs works to support children and families locally, she hopes that the medical system overall will evolve to help prevent infant deaths by making it mandatory to screen for congenital heart defects before birth.
NAZ CHD Awareness and Family Planning’s next scheduled event will be its annual heart Gala, which will take place on Feb. 8, 2025.