At 40th annual Heart Run, runners share spotlight with fundraisers

Joe Hebert never got to see the army of runners and walkers that  shows up every year in his honor at the Alaska Heart Run. Hebert died in December 2012 at age 33 after open heart surgery and 148 days in the intensive care unit of a Spokane hospital.

At the Heart Run four months later, 160 people formed a team called "Joe's Army" and raised about $16,000 for the American Heart Association.

Aubrey Virgin and Jeff Sherman are more fortunate. At Saturday's 40th annual Heart Run at UAA, they'll get to witness the show of love and support they have inspired among friends and family members.

Teams are a significant part of the fundraising aspect at the Heart Run, a 5-kilometer timed event and a 3-kilometer untimed event that has raised more than $4 million, with another $250,000 or more expected to come in this year.

The race attracts many of Alaska's fastest road runners. Last year's winners were Jake Moe, the overall winner in 16 minutes flat, and Caroline Kurgat, the women's winner in 18:11.

The Heart Run also draws dozens of people, young and old, who wear red hats that identify them as survivors of strokes and heart complications.

This will be the fourth Heart Run for Virgin, a 9-year-old from Palmer who was diagnosed with Kawasaki disease at age 2. She's the reason for the "Kickin' Kawasaki" team, which has raised nearly $3,000 this year.

It's the first Heart Run for Sherman, an 11-year-old from Anchorage who is heading to Seattle next week for further testing after being diagnosed with a heart condition a month ago.

Sherman's "Jogging for Jeff" team has raised far more than mom Megan Sherman's modest goal of $300. The team has raised $1,385, and Rabbit Creek Elementary, where Megan is a teacher, has raised an additional $2,060.

"My principal came to me and said he wanted to start the team in my honor," Megan said. "We've gotten some of Jeff's friends signed up and he has asked them to do it for him since he can't do it."

Jeff is an athlete who played baseball last summer and has sneaked into P.E. class a couple of times during the last month, even though his cardiologist has told him he can't play sports for now. He'll be sidelined Saturday — he and his mom will man the Rabbit Creek tent — but it promises to be a big day for him anyway.

"I think it'll be such a nice thing for my son to see this visually before we take off," Megan said. "I'm hoping it'll feel empowering. I hope that I'm not too emotional, but even the thought that my school has 100 people that have signed up and my family is flying in from Nome and Kotzebue — hopefully it won't be too emotional."

Amanda Hebert, who is the team captain for Joe's Army, said the Heart Run is always emotional, but in a joyful way.

"It's happy," she said. "It's always great to see everybody out. It's a good thing. A good family tradition."

Hebert, who is married to one of Joe Hebert's cousins, said the army is smaller than that first year, when it was 160 members strong. About two dozen people will run or walk this year, she said.

"We are small and mighty," Hebert said. "We have a small footprint now, but we make our presence known with our donations."

Joe's Army this year raised about $7,500, she said, which puts the team's six-year total over the $70,000 mark.

Besides all of that money, the army marches to raise awareness too.

"With something tragic like that, it's a good way to keep the awareness going," Hebert said. "Joe was only 33 and we didn't suspect that he had anything wrong with his heart until it all started."

One of the messages Joe's Army hopes to send is that heart disease isn't something that only happens when you are old. Even someone who is young and seemingly healthy needs to pay attention if something doesn't feel right.

"Everyone should follow their instincts," said Shannon Virgin, who did just that several years ago when Aubrey, then 2, had a fever that shot up to 104 degrees.

"I felt like they were going to tell me it's just a virus. To be perfectly honest, I thought my husband might be mad at me — a $200 (doctor) bill over nothing," she said. "The next thing you know we're being admitted."

Aubrey had other symptoms besides the fever — swollen hands and feet, red eyes and lips, a strawberry tongue.

"It was amazing how fast they set in," Shannon said. "She (was) diagnosed within 48 hours of the onset of symptoms."

Aubrey was diagnosed with Kawasaki disease, "which we found out later no one has ever heard of and is the No. 1 cause of acquired heart disease in kids."

"From then on," she said, "we made it our mission to raise awareness and do what we could. It's amazing that most people have never heard of it, so for us it's a big thing to raise awareness and give back. Without the American Heart Association and their funding toward finding a treatment, we may not have Aubrey today."

How to register

There are two more chances to sign up for the 40th annual Heart Run — Friday from 4:30-7:30 p.m. at the King Career Center and Saturday before the race from 7:30-9 a.m. at the Alaska Airlines Center.

The timed 5K begins at 9:30 a.m. and the untimed 5K and 3K begin at 10 a.m. at the Alaska Airlines Center parking lot.