Past Events
From annual Galas and Letters from Angels campaigns to numerous cardiac health awareness events and generous donations, we're grateful for the contributions of our many fans and followers. Take a look at some of the amazing ways that For Elysa supporters have fulfilled our goals of Education, Light & Research over the years.
2022
February
- Letters from Angels was looking a bit closer to our “normal” this year, with gift bag and valentine card deliveries again being allowed (with some restrictions and changes) across many pediatric healthcare facilities. Our friends and fans came out BIG again this year, providing over 1,000 gift bags and many thousands of cards to over 15 healthcare facilities across the US.
2021
February
- Letters from Angels: We had a modified format for our 8th annual event, as many hospitals and healthcare facilities had new procedures for donating in light of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Through the use of direct delivery Amazon wish lists and other creative strategies, and with LOTS of help from our friends and fans, we were able to provide thousands of gifts to inpatient children across the country.
- A study out of the Mayo Clinic partially funded by The For Elysa Foundation was published in the Journal of Clinical Medicine. “Sex Differences, Genetic and Environmental Influences on Dilated Cardiomyopathy” presents the idea that genetic defects may not appear as a heart problem until infection with a virus in particular brings them to the forefront. Implications for future research and guidance for prevention of sudden cardiac arrest in otherwise healthy kids presented by this article are enormous!
- We achieved the Guidestar Platinum Seal of Transparency, recognizing the For Elysa Foundation as a top-level non-profit organization. Our organization is 100% volunteer-run, so 100% of donations are directed to fulfilling our mission.
- Ollie’s Branch program begins providing vital virtual mental health support to Kansas City heart families. In collaboration with the Ollie’s Branch founding organization, the Ollie Hinkle Heart Foundation, and Children’s Mercy Kansas City, we are so honored to be able to kick off this program and fund crucial mental health resources to support heart families.
- Light the Way for our 5th annual fundraising gala, back in person and better than ever! We raised over $35,000 to help fund the Ollie’s Branch program here in KC for the next 6 months. We are so grateful to all of our generous donors!
- The first ever Rutlader Gravel Fondo, sponsored by the Blue River Bicycle Club in Kansas City, was held on Oct 16. All proceeds from the ride, with 25, 50, or 100k route options, benefitted For Elysa. We had a great time in the beautiful Fall weather cheering on hundreds of cyclists for this inaugural event!
- For this first time this year, we were honored to participate in a PICU ethics forum through Children’s Mercy Hospital, sharing our perspective of Elysa’s healthcare journey and providing vital feedback on support of bereaved families to PICU staff.
- 2021 has proven to be a really tough year for all of us, but especially those with critically ill children. The stresses of Covid-19 protocols on families and children with extended hospital stays has been immense. Through your kindness and generosity, we were honored to support 20 Heart Center families with $200 gift cards each to brighten their holiday season and bring light and hope to a very challenging time.
- We are honored to continue to share What Matters Most with the physician and graduate nurse residency programs at Children’s Mercy Hospital, discussing opportunities for care improvement of children with critical illnesses as well as providing support to families during times of stress and crisis.
2020
February
- Letters from Angels campaign: We had a fantastic 7th annual event, sharing Elysa's LOVE and LIGHT within 20 different healthcare facilities across the US and England! We had approximately 1700 gift bags delivered – another For Elysa record! We are so grateful to all who participate in this annual event.
- This month we honored 3 different amazing leaders in our community – all under the age of 18 – who spread the message of myocarditis awareness For Elysa! We love our young ambassadors who share vital healthcare information and created fundraisers to support our mission.
- What a month! For Elysa was honored to sponsor 50 boxed lunches from Talk of the Town Leawood and deliver them to the hardworking frontline healthcare workers at Children’s Mercy Hospital helping to fight Covid-19 in our community.
- Come Together, KC … virtually! Our 4th annual fundraising gala was held online this year, complete with auction, music, and fun video clips from a variety of For Elysa supporters. Despite some challenges with the new (temporary) format, we were thrilled to raise enough money to fund 3 different myocarditis-related medical research grants!
- Holiday LIGHT. With the help of our amazing donors, we were able to provide gift cards to 17 families at the Heart Center of Children’s Mercy hospital to shine some hope during this holiday season.
2019
February
- Letters from Angels campaign: We had a fantastic 6th annual event in 2019, spreading Elysa's LIGHT and love to 16 healthcare facilities across the US and for the first time to Peru! Hundreds of families benefited from our amazing fans and their generosity, and Mickey and Minnie Mouse even got in on the fun of distributing Valentine care packages. Thank you to all who contributed!
- What Matters Most: We were honored to again present Elysa's healthcare journey and discuss opportunities for improvement in care delivery with the resident physicians at Children's Mercy Hospital.
- World Awareness Day: Students at Smoky Hill High School in Aurora, CO again chose the For Elysa Foundation for their World Awareness Day project. They shared information about hands only CPR, AED use, and warning signs of cardiac compromise and myocarditis with their peers. The students also hosted a fundraiser for our foundation. We are so grateful for your hard work and continued support!
- What Matters Most: For the first time this year, we were asked to present Elysa's healthcare journey to the graduate critical care nurse residency program at Children's Mercy Hospital. By discussing potential missed steps in care and areas for future improvement, we are hopeful that this next generation of pediatric nurses will continue to be the expert eyes, ears and hearts needed to optimize care of critically ill children.
- Donation from Sounds True: So many thanks to the amazingly generous people at Sounds True in Louisville, CO and our incredible Colorado neighbor, Robbyn, who coordinated this donation! We received 50 beautiful hardbound copies of the empowering picture book “I Am a Warrior Goddess” along with 50 sunny yellow tote bags, t-shirts and double sided posters. PLUS, there is a fantastic free PDF download on their website with activity ideas, conversation starters, coloring sheets and more. Children’s Mercy was thrilled to receive this donation, and we came home and ordered a copy of the book for our 3 girls at home -- the message of strong minds and strong bodies is one that cannot be overstated!
- 3rd Annual For Elysa Foundation Gala: Come Together KC was the theme of our annual fundraising event, celebrating all things KC and of course, Elysa! We had a wonderful evening with record-breaking attendance, and we were able to share our work and mission with so many, while enjoying a great evening under the stars. Best of all, we raised over $20,000 for pediatric myocarditis research!
- What Matters Most: We were once again honored to present Elysa's healthcare journey to the graduate critical care nurse residency program at Children's Mercy Hospital, discussing potential missed steps in care and areas for future improvement as well as opportunities for supporting bereaved families.
- Gift Gallery: We were honored to be a recipient of the Cure of Ars Gift Gallery community foundation grants supporting local children’s charities.
- A Holiday Hand: Because of our generous donors, we were able to support 10 heart families at the Children’s Mercy Heart Center with gift cards to cover groceries, essentials, and holiday gifts.
2018
February
- Letters from Angels campaign: We had another record-breaking campaign, supporting 14 different healthcare facilities across 12 U.S. cities -- THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts! From school classes to workplace valentine making stations, Scout troops to sports teams, churches to Mom groups, hundreds of Earth Angels participated in our campaign. It is so heartwarming to see the time, effort and love poured into these valentines and the amazing LIGHT being spread around the country in our sweet angel's honor.
- World Awareness Day: Many thanks to the students at Smoky Hill High School in Aurora, CO who chose the For Elysa Foundation for their World Awareness Day project. They shared information about myocarditis, AED/CPR use and warning signs of potential cardiac compromise with their peers. Additionally, they hosted a bake sale fundraiser for our foundation. We are so grateful for your work and support!
- Run for Little Hearts in Kansas City: We returned to the Run once more and hosted a For Elysa educational booth to distribute information about myocarditis and cardiac warning signs. We also participated in the 5K and kids' dash and met other amazing heart families, What a great day!
- What Matters Most: We were honored to again present Elysa's healthcare journey and discuss opportunities for improvement in care delivery with the resident physicians at Children's Mercy Hospital.
- Diagnostic Error and Cognitive Bias: The University of Colorado and Children's Hospital Colorado produced a video based on Elysa's healthcare journey, highlighting the concept of cognitive bias and its impact on accurate and efficient diagnosis of critically ill children.
- 2nd Annual For Elysa Foundation Gala: We had a wonderful evening of live music, wine flights from a local KC vineyard, authentic Italian food and an incredible prize raffle, all to benefit the For Elysa Foundation and our efforts to Educate, spread Light and promote Research about viral myocarditis and other causes of pediatric sudden cardiac arrest. We were thrilled to surpass our goal of $10,000 to fund the work of Dr. Carmen Sucharov from the University of Colorado, who is conducting a 2-part study to identify novel biomarkers and targets of therapy specific for children. Thank you for helping us make this research a reality! Thanks, too, to the amazing staff at Travois who generously donated their incredible venue and helped with the organization of our event.
- A Holiday Hand: Because of our generous donors, we were able to support 14 heart families with over $2,500 for rent, groceries and holiday gifts.
2017
February
Travois | Blue Scope Steel | Sporting Kansas City | Abella Psychotherapy and Consulting, LLC | Jackson County Sports Complex Authority | Hitch Fit | Little Light | Nolte’s Bridal | Tequila Harry’s | SSOR | Boulevard Brewing Company | Sanders Warren Russell and Scheer LLP | KC Power and Light District | Going to the Dogs | The Upper Crust Pie Bakery | Grainger | Bar Method KC | Indigo Wild | Kendra Scott
And to our recognized donors:
Gold: Nick and Clare Blasi, Kira Blasi, Paul and Katie Cowan, David and Cathy Evers, Matt and Kristiana Evers, Bob and Anne Hackman, Andy and Katie O’Hara and Mike Pelzer
Silver: Josh and Mandy Browne and Jerry and Jackie Wankum
- Letters from Angels campaign: Many thanks to our amazing fans who helped spread LOVE and LIGHT to children in 7 hospitals around the country! We are so grateful for your help sharing Letters From Angels in honor of our Elysa's 7th birthday.
- Run for Little Hearts in Kansas City: We hosted a For Elysa educational booth and distributed community education about myocarditis and cardiac warning signs, participated in the 5K and kids' dash, and met some other great heart families. It was another wonderful, family-friendly event!
- Annual Pediatric Advanced Practice Nursing Conference in Overland Park, KS: We had the opportunity to meet more than 200 Advanced Practice Pediatric nurses within the Kansas City metro area and share Elysa's story as well as information about myocarditis and our foundation mission.
- Inaugural For Elysa Foundation Gala: We had a wonderful evening of education about our foundation, music, food, drinks, and a fun raffle to raise money for myocarditis research. As a result of your great generosity, we exceeded our goal and raised $10,500 during our Gala. We are so grateful for all of your help and support!! Thanks, too, to the amazing staff at Travois who generously donated their incredible venue and helped with the organization of our event.
Travois | Blue Scope Steel | Sporting Kansas City | Abella Psychotherapy and Consulting, LLC | Jackson County Sports Complex Authority | Hitch Fit | Little Light | Nolte’s Bridal | Tequila Harry’s | SSOR | Boulevard Brewing Company | Sanders Warren Russell and Scheer LLP | KC Power and Light District | Going to the Dogs | The Upper Crust Pie Bakery | Grainger | Bar Method KC | Indigo Wild | Kendra Scott
And to our recognized donors:
Gold: Nick and Clare Blasi, Kira Blasi, Paul and Katie Cowan, David and Cathy Evers, Matt and Kristiana Evers, Bob and Anne Hackman, Andy and Katie O’Hara and Mike Pelzer
Silver: Josh and Mandy Browne and Jerry and Jackie Wankum
2016
February
- Letters from Angels campaign: In an amazing outpouring of love and support for Elysa, we were able to provide nearly 600 gift bags stuffed with Valentines, craft supplies, toys, stuffed animals, and gift cards for children in 4 pediatric hospitals across the country! Children's Hospital Colorado (Denver), Children's Mercy Hospital (Kansas City), Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital (Miami), and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital (Palo Alto, CA) saw our angel's light pouring through the halls as children opened their Letters from Angels. Many, many thanks to all who participated - we are SO proud of the growth of this project over the last 3 years.
- Run for Little Hearts in Lee's Summit, MO: We were proud to host an informational booth about myocarditis, warning signs of potential cardiac compromise in otherwise healthy individuals, and our foundation's efforts to address pediatric sudden cardiac arrest at this event. Over 1,200 people participated in the 5K, 10K, 1 mile memory walk, and Kids' Dash while visiting fun and educational booths at the lively pre- and post-race expo. Many thanks to all who participated!
- Hospital presentations: After meeting with the multi-disciplinary Heart Failure and Transplant Team at Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City last February to share Elysa's story, our foundation has been given the amazing opportunity to speak about myocarditis to the nursing staff at the same hospital. Over these three months, we gave five presentations titled "Sudden Cardiac Arrest Within Hours of Presenting to the Emergency Department: A Case Study" to hundreds of nurses and staff from the hospital and outlying urgent care clinics for continuing nursing education credits. We were honored by this opportunity and hope to spread awareness of the need for urgent diagnosis and treatment of this rapidly fatal condition in our children. View a recorded session here.
- Dream Dinners fundraising event in Overland Park, KS: Participants assembled wholesome meals to take home and enjoy, with money from each purchase going back to the For Elysa Foundation.
2015
January
- We’re on Amazon Smile! We are excited to announce that we are eligible to receive donations through the Amazon Smile program. Simply visit this link, designate The For Elysa Foundation as your charity of choice, and always start at www.smile.amazon.com when shopping. All of your usual Amazon setting are saved and fully functional (Amazon Prime, Amazon Mom, subscribe and save, etc), and our group will receive a quarterly donation of 0.5% of all purchases made on this site.
- MLS Medical Symposium presentation: Dr. Leslie Cooper, medical director of the Myocarditis Foundation, presented on myocarditis in the athletic population to the Major League Soccer Medical Symposium in Ft. Lauderdale, FL.
- Letters from Angels campaign: Many thanks to all our fans and followers who helped make this a success! For Elysa's 5th birthday we provided gift bags and Valentines to hundreds of kids at Children's Hospital Colorado and Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City.
- Heart walks around the country: Elysa fans have been representing at walks throughout the U.S. -- St. Louis and Denver fans even formed teams!
- Meeting with legislators in DC: For Elysa hit the ground running in Washington DC, meeting with legislators to educate them about myocarditis and ask for support for rare disease legislation and funding. We also had the opportunity to meet with other families affected by myocarditis, learn more about current research, and share experiences at the Myocarditis Foundation family support meeting in conjunction with the Heart Failure Society of America conference. Many thanks to all who support this important work!!
2014
- Highlight of the year: We are official! In Spring 2014, the IRS granted The For Elysa Foundation 501(c)(3) status as a nonprofit organization! Any and all donations made to our foundation are eligible for take write offs, and we now qualify for business matching gift programs. Use our Employer Identification Number (EIN) 46-3700138 on your company's matching gifts form to further increase your donation's impact.
- Inaugural Letters from Angels campaign: We provided children all over the country with an opportunity to bring light to patients in the two Denver children's hospitals. We collected hundreds of Valentines and small gifts from For Elysa supporters to brighten the days of more than 250 children and their families.
- Share a Good Deed For Elysa campaign: Fans were encouraged to do a good deed and share our info flyer. From bringing cookies to the local EMS station, delivering hot coffee to a teacher or donating time to a food bank, our supporters were beacons of light to help spread awareness and love in Elysa's honor.
- Donation from the Upper Crust Pie Bakery in Westport and downtown Overland Park, KS: These generous and sweet-hearted folks donated all of their tips from the month to The For Elysa Foundation. Thank you for your kindness!!
- World Awareness Project at Smoky Hill High School in Aurora, CO: Many thanks to the members of the Smoky Hill Freshman class who selected The For Elysa Foundation and educated hundreds of classmates about sudden cardiac arrest for their World Awareness project. From educational handouts to a bake sale fundraiser and taking informative posters to their school athletic training room, they made a positive impact on their school community in our angel's memory.
- Donation from Centennial 38, the supporters group of the Colorado Rapids: Centennial 38 made an incredibly generous donation of over $1500 to our foundation! After hosting a scarf sale with the image and statistics of Pablo Mastroeni, Rapids Hall of Fame inductee and new head coach, all proceeds were given to our foundation to further our goals of education around the topic of pediatric sudden cardiac arrest. Thank you for your support! View the news report video here.
- For Elysa shirt campaign: Our fans once again provided tremendous support for our summer shirt sale, purchasing 140 For Elysa t-shirts in a new design created by Patrick Cornolo of Speakeasy Tattoo in Chicago. Thanks to our generous supporters, we raised $1975, which will be matched by our foundation and donated directly to the Myocarditis Foundation to further research and education around viral myocarditis.
- Lemonade stands with our youngest fans: We know of at least two stands that raised awareness of myocarditis as well as money for our foundation. Many thanks to our little entrepreneurs in Chicago and Milwaukee for all of your support!
- Back-to-school cardiac awareness event in Denver, CO: We featured special info regarding cardiac health for kids, teens, and active adults, cardiac warning signs, CPR practice, and AED use at a Colorado Rapids game.
- Stella and Dot fundraiser event in Overland Park, KS: We hosted a unique pre-holiday shopping experience with lots of yummy treats from the Upper Crust pie bakery and the opportunity to view great accessories and jewelry in person.
- American Heart Association Walk in Miami, FL: The E Team is at it again in South Florida!
- 20th Anniversary Event at Cambridge Preschool in Pembroke Pines, FL: Many thanks to the Preschool for dedicating this event to the Myocarditis Foundation in memory of our sweet Elysa. They raised over $700 for the MF and spread awareness to many families in their community. Thank you to Christina Demers, Sandra Rojas, and Jasmine Spencer for representing the Myocarditis Foundation and For Elysa at the event.
- #GivingTuesday: Friends and fans of The For Elysa Foundation performed acts of kindness on this day.
2013
August
- Grant donation to the Myocarditis Foundation: The Kroenke Sports Charities and the Teammates for Kids Organization made a contribution in Elysa's honor. Read the full story here.
- Open Closets, Open Hearts fundraiser and cardiac awareness event in Denver, CO: Colorado Rapids fans had an opportunity to purchase new and gently used gear AND learn about cardiac health, with proceeds benefiting the Myocarditis Foundation. The event also featured a silent auction for "experiences with the players" as well as larger ticket items including signed cleats and jerseys. Read event coverage here.
- American Heart Association Walk in Miami, FL: Team For Elysa participated in the walk.
- Limited edition sale of "For Elysa" tech t-shirts: We nearly sold out of the shirts we ordered and collected many photos of Elysa fans wearing their shirts around town, in races, to sporting events and even trick or treating to raise awareness of the silent killer, myocarditis. Additionally, we raised nearly $2500 for the Myocarditis Foundation and The For Elysa Foundation.
- Pumpkin Pie 5K in Denver, CO: We had an amazing turnout of friends and family for this beautiful walk/run and Foundation fundraiser.
