Spring O₂breathe Walks Raise More Than $130K

Thanks to the support of the pulmonary hypertension community, six PHA O₂breathe walks raised more than $130,000 to support PHA’s programs and services. 

The Tampa O₂breathe Walk and 5K kicked off our spring fundraising season on Feb. 16, raising $14,893. The top individual fundraiser was Casey Perez, who raised $3,612. Perez hosted a tag sale with sales with family and friends to help fundraise for her team, Her PHight is Our PHight.   

The Houston O₂breathe Walk on March 22 was the largest O₂breathe Walk this year with 182 participants. The event raised $24,288 and featured heartfelt remarks from Barron “Coach Bear” Honea and Nick Herrera, who have pulmonary hypertension. 

The second annual AnMed O₂breathe Walk in Anderson, South Carolina took place on April 23 and more than doubled the previous year’s fundraising total, raising $17,519. Participants enjoyed a walk and chair aerobics at the AnMed North Campus.  

The Greater Washington, D.C., O₂breathe Walk raised $26,106 on May 3. The walk had strong support from health care professionals, including teams from two PHA-accredited PH Care Centers: INOVA Lung Services of Fairfax, Virginia, and George Washington University in Washington, D.C.  

Also on May 3, PHA held the Southern California O₂breathe Walk. The event featured inspiring remarks from Marisela Navarro, who is thriving with PH since starting a new medication this year. The event included a raffle and raised $15,146. 

The Boston O₂breathe Walk closed out the spring walk season on a high note, with moving remarks from family members of people with PH. Three powerhouse teams – Tipperogues for Terry, Because of Sarah and P.S. PHighters – each raised more than $7,000, helping push the event’s total to more than $34,000. 

O₂breathe walks return in September, starting with the first Cincinnati O₂breathe Walk on Sept. 6. Visit the calendar of upcoming O₂breathe walks.