The Bill Neches Heart Camp for Kids

Hi everyone! My name is Rey Ravi, and I am raising money for the Bill Neches Heart Camp for Kids. The Heart Camp is a unique annual summer event that provides an opportunity for patients of UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh with congenital and acquired heart disease to enjoy a week of camp activities in a safe and fun environment, led by clinicians and camp counselors, whom many are former or current patients graduated from the camp. Pediatric congenital heart diseases, although rare, are the most common birth defect in the United States, impacting about 1% (~ 40,000 patients) per year. The Heart Camp provides many children and their families who may feel isolated with their condition to connect with others like them and participate in activities that they might not be able to do outside of the camp. All in all, this event isn't just a summer camp, it's a close-knit and crucial community led by clinicians and volunteers with huge hearts to make this possible.

While I used to work at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center as an Artificial Heart Engineer, I have continued to remain in the cardiac device space because I know the impact of these products on patients' lives. From being bedside with patients adjusting parameters on their devices to innovating the next iterations of technologies that will give them autonomy and improved quality of life, I am passionate about this cause. And anything you can donate will go towards that for so many patients.

To raise awareness and for this cause, my friend, Alex, and I are biking from Pittsburgh to Washington, D.C., for a distance of almost 400 miles in 5 days. We appreciate any donations you can make, and there are some incentives we've built in advance for people donating:

$1,000 Dye Rey's hair

$2,500 Wax Rey's legs

$5,000 Rey wears a costume while biking

$10,000 Shave Rey's head (yes, I am committing to that if we achieve it)

We hope you can donate and follow us on this journey, and thank you for your support in advance!

Rey & Alex

#forthekids