The Mighty Oakes Heart Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports families of children with congenital heart defects (CHDs), is hosting its inaugural ‘A Mighty Night’ Gala on March 9, 2019. This special night is aimed at raising money to help offset mounting costs associated with the care of children with CHDs. As part of the event, MOHF is offering interested donors the chance to win a Genovese Jewelers $9,000 diamond and ruby-studded bracelet when the enter the charity’s raffle contest from now until March 9, 2019. Ticket purchase is open to all, regardless of whether they are attending the gala, Each ticket costs $100 and the winner will be drawn at the gala.

 “The MOHF team has a strong desire to help as many families as we can,” notes Brittney Weis, Director of Development. “For the past several years, we have only been able to help between 60 and 70 families per year. We have an ambitious goal to double that number, which is why we are encouraging people to enter our raffle. With such a great prize, this is not one to miss!”

The emotional and financial challenges presented by CHDs can be especially daunting. When a newborn is diagnosed with a congenital heart defect (CHD), life changes instantly for the family. Suddenly, in addition to staying strong for their loved ones, parents must find a way to cover multiple new costs, from medical procedures and medication to lodging in case the healthcare provider is far from home. At the same time, they need to keep up with the all the everyday costs of living, which could include mortgage payments, car payments and utilities.

As an example of how the funds raised by the raffle contest – and other donations – are leveraged, the MOHF has specified the following Fund-A-Need Levels:

• $3,000 – Average cost of a grant to a family, which supports a few months of bills including mortgage and car payments
• $1,500 – Gives a family peace of mind that their mortgage payment has been covered during time away from work, allowing them to remain present at the bedside for their child
• $500 – Covers a family’s car payments for two months, enabling them to keep their means of transportation to and from the hospital
• $250 – Covers the cost of lodging for families who must travel far from home for their child’s medical care
• $100 – Purchases three Boppy pillows that provide a safe and comfortable way for a family to bond with their CHD-affected child, connected to IV lines and tubes

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