Mary Sandstrom (center) of the La Cueva Volunteer Fire Department accepts an automatic external defibrillator (AED) from Buffy Bergquist (left) president, and Barbara Blair, secretary of the Los Alamos Heart Council. The AED is a portable device that can save the life of a person suffering sudden cardiac arrest. This is the second AED that the Heart Council has donated to the La Cueva Volunteer Fire Department. This AED will be based out of the Thompson Ridge substation in the Jemez Mountains.

The Heart Council has also given an AED to Ghost Ranch, Pajarito Ski Hill, and two each to the Los Alamos Senior Center, and the Los Alamos Police Department.

One of several missions of the Heart Council is to support heart related education in the schools. This has been accomplished in the past by giving out awards at the annual county science fair, and giving money to the elementary schools to help fund their walking programs. Most recently we helped to fund several wellness programs at Chamisa Elementary School. These programs include a running program and a nutritious eating program, which range from grades kindergarten through six. We are hoping that by intervening at a young age and teaching children how to develop and live a healthy lifestyle, many of the lifestyle-relate diseases later in life can be avoided.