The Laura Hart Burdick Foundation has made a gift to create an Ambassador Program at the Center for Thoracic Transplantation at St. Joseph’s. The funds were raised by Laura’s 5K Run/Walk held March 21.
Laura Hart Burdick was diagnosed with leukemia in 1992. Although she was declared cured in 1997, Burdick learned a year later that her lungs were irreversibly damaged. In 2003, she underwent lung transplant surgery at Stanford Medical Center and returned to Arizona to live a full life with her husband, Jon.
In September 2005, at the age of 33, Burdick died of an intractable lung infection. Because Phoenix did not have a lung-transplant, Burdick had to travel to California for surgery, rehabilitation, and regular checkups, tests, and hospitalizations. The goal of the Laura Hart Burdick Foundation is to support lung transplant patients in the Valley.
Proceeds from Laura’s Run are being used to create an Ambassador Program at the St. Joseph’s transplant center, the Valley’s only lung-transplant center. The program will provide patients undergoing a transplant evaluation with a knowledgeable companion to help them navigate the evaluation process. The Ambassador Program will also offer qualifying patients assistance with lodging expenses.
The Fourth Annual Laura’s Run is planned for March 27, 2010.
