About us
According to the Nemours’s Pediatric Hospital, 1 in every 120 babies born in the United States each year has a congenital heart malformation making these the most common type of birth defects. With 40,000 babies affected annually, heart defects are 60 times more common in the US than childhood cancers. Central Florida’s Give Kids The World Village reports serving close to 5,000 critically ill children and their families each year, many of which are “heart” kids. One of these children was my cousin, Tyler Schnacky, who was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome. Sadly, my cousin passed in 2015, at the age of 15, only a few days after his heart transplant. Formally established in early 2022, my Hope for Heart Kids Community Service Initiative serves these children and their families, provides education about congenital heart defects to our community, and ultimately seeks to help in the advancement of research on congenital heart defects that can extend lives and reduce deaths.
What is “hope”? Hope has many faces. Hope is a friendly smile and an ear to listen. Hope is sharing your time in comfortable silence simply to keep someone company who might otherwise sit alone in a hospital room. Hope is making connections to help improve the circumstance of others in your sphere of influence. Hope is raising funds to lift the heavy financial burden off a family caring for a critically ill child and to support the ongoing research towards a cure. To be all of this and more is what Hope for Heart Kids aspires. Bringing hope to One child at a time. One life at a time. One future at a time. Hope for Heart Kids is a registered 501c3 not for profit.
Our Mission
To educate the Florida community about Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome and other birth related heart defects and to collaborate directly with community partners to help advance critical research and to provide solutions for the many needs of this community of children and families via fundraising, donating our time, and providing positive, encouraging interactions.
Our Vision
To serve the diverse needs of families and children in Florida who are impacted by congenital heart defects and to actively support "advancing the science" related to in utero heart defects in order "to reduce deaths" and foster happy, healthy lives for these children.
About our founder
Noelle Schnacky
Noelle Schnacky is a high school senior and founder of Hope for Heart Kids. She is dedicated to educating her community about congenital heart defects and supporting affected families and children. Her community service focuses on serving Florida's children with heart conditions. She collaborates with community partners to raise awareness and funds, volunteers her time, and speaks at events to educate and inspire her generation to be part of the solution. Noelle is passionate about placing the Hope for Heart Kids Children's Book collection in the libraries of local, state, and national children's hospitals to encourage families facing congenital heart defects. (See Support tab to donate a set of books to your local Children's hospital). She feels blessed to have the opportunity to positively impact her community.
