Simona Pernot, a Romanian woman from Switzerland, working at Trafigura (an international company), along with a group of colleagues and Swiss friends, will run the Lausanne International Marathon, which will take place on 25 October 2015 for Romanian children with serious congenital heart conditions.
A fundraising campaign was launched on „Save a Heart” Association’s webpage, where anyone can help save suffering children in our country. Thanks to Simona, Trafigura Foundation will double the total amount of donations.
Established in 2007, Trafigura Foundation has developed 48 social responsibility programs in 35 countries, and since 2008 has supported these programs with over 38 million dollars. “Save a Heart” Association is the first and only organization in Romania that Trafigura cooperates with.
By the end of 2016, “Save a Heart” Association aims to save 45 children with congenital heart conditions. Since the beginning of this year, the Romanian NGO has raised money for 5 children who were operated at the Hospital Monza’s Cardiopediatric Center in Romania, where this type of surgeries can be performed with great success. The procedures were done by Dr. Mircea Cotul, MD pediatric cardiovascular surgery and Dr. Antonela Mure?an, MD pediatric anesthesia and intensive care. “Save a Heart” Association has also covered the costs for 20 other surgeries and treatments for children and young people with various malformations, joining efforts with more than 10,000 people and companies who donated over 260,000 Euros this year.
„I’m glad that Trafigura Foundation has accepted to double the amount collected through this fundraising campaign and I’m highly impressed that my colleagues and friends have joined the cause. Every amount is crucial in giving these kids a chance to live. I hope this action will stir many good people and together we will save many little hearts”, Simona Pernot said.
„We are very honoured and thrilled by Simona’s initiative and by Trafigura Foundation joining the project. We wish that, through this campaign and the donations made on www.salveazaoinima.ro website, we will save as many lives as possible. It is also an honour fo us to partner with national and internationally acclaimed medical facilities. Thanks to their outstanding physicians, many lives were saved. Our humanitarian campaigns have not only joined many Romanians (that live inside or outside our country), but also many foreigners from around the world. This shows that humanity still exists in the world and the lives of our children are worth fighting for”, Vlad Placinta, chairman of “Save a Heart” Association said.
“Save a Heart” Association was founded on the 17th of December 2012. It’s aim is to bring together a larger number of professionals from different fields, well trained, motivated, simple, honest and caring people, who can help in campaigns and projects meant to leave our children a valuable testimony that toghether, as a community are all we need for things to go in the right direction.