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Recognizing June 10, 2024 as American Heart Association Centennial Celebration Day in the City of Philadelphia.
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WHEREAS, The American Heart Association was established in June 1924 and has 100 years of milestones in the prevention and treatment of heart disease; and
WHEREAS, Since the American Heart Association’s founding in 1924, deaths from cardiovascular disease have been cut in half; and
WHEREAS, The Association’s Scientific Sessions, held annually since 1925 except when suspended due to World War II, has become the largest annual cardiovascular meeting in the United States and a leading international destination for the cardiovascular health community; and
WHEREAS, In 1947, the American Heart Association launched its first public education heart fund campaign in celebration of National Heart Week, and in 1948 the Association reorganized, becoming a national voluntary health agency; and
WHEREAS, In 1948, the American Heart Association awarded its first research grant, which has grown to an organizational investment exceeding $5.7 billion in cardiovascular medical research, making the American Heart Association the leading nonprofit funding heart and stroke research - second only to the U.S. government - and funded 15 Nobel Prize winners, including 10 whose Association-funded work led to the Nobel Prize; and
WHEREAS, In 1956, Dr. Ancel Keys, with American Heart Association support, first linked dietary fat with cholesterol, and this discovery spurred the Association to assume a leading role in urging people in America to change their eating habits; and
WHEREAS, In 1956, the American Heart Association published its first scientific statement on smoking and heart disease which has led to decades of tobacco control efforts both in public education and public policy to reach the “Tobacco Endgame;” and
WHEREAS, Since the 1960s, the American Heart Association has worked to save lives with CPR, though actions including: educating medical professionals and laypeople on how to effectively perform CPR, advocating for policies that require CPR training as a graduation requirement, and creating the Nation of Lifesavers™ with the goal of doubling survival from cardiac arrest outside of a hospital by 2030; and
WHEREAS, In 1981, the American Heart Association elevated the voice of cardiovascular patients and families, researchers and communities in Washington, D.C. through the establishment of a federal office initially focused on reducing tobacco use and increasing investments in research, and has continued ever since to support public policies to improve health, including increasing access to quality health care, improving healthy affordable food, and expanding opportunities to be active nationally and through expanded efforts working with policy makers in every state and in communities across the nation; and
WHEREAS, In 1998, the American Heart Association established the Stroke Division, now known as the American Stroke Association, committed to saving people from stroke, the second-leading cause of death in the world and a leading cause of serious disability; and
WHEREAS, The American Heart Association launched the Go Red For Women campaign in 2004 with the launch of National Wear Red Day to raise awareness that heart disease is women’s number one killer and urging action to prevent it; and
WHEREAS, On June 10, 2024, the American Heart Association celebrates 100 years of progress and a vision for of health and hope for all; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That we hereby recognize June 10, 2024 as American Heart Association Centennial Celebration Day in the City of Philadelphia; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to local representatives of the American Heart Association, as evidence of the sincere sentiments of this legislative body.
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