Hearts Unite the Globe's Summer of 2019 Audio Newsletter

Hearts Unite the Globe is full of news! Tune into this episode of Heart to Heart with Anna to hear about all of the activities in which HUG members are participating. In this episode of Heart to Heart with Anna, learn about upcoming training opportunities/retreats being sponsored by HUG -- retreats in Central Texas, Jerusalem, Israel, and Tuscon, Arizona!

You'll also hear about a special award presented to Anna Jaworski (Host of Heart to Heart with Anna and HUG's Executive Director) during the Mended Little Hearts annual CHD Symposium. Tune in to discover what CHD conferences will be held during the rest of 2019 and locate information about the conferences on https://www.hug-podcastnetwork.com/scheduled-events-calendar.html. In this episode, you'll also discover why Anna chose to create a Facebook birthday fundraiser and how it turned out. Also, tune in to hear about why Michael Liben (Host of Heart to Heart with Michael) decided to volunteer to work with HUG and why he continues to work with HUG 3 years later.

In the final segment of the program, you'll discover why people enjoy volunteering with HUG. You'll also find out why HUG has a Patreon page and how you, too, can be a HUG Patron by visiting https://www.patreon.com/HearttoHeart and signing up to be a member!

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Transcript

spk_0:   0:00
One of the things that we talked about a lot in the grief community is post traumatic growth, which is something you don't hear much about because it's not always newsworthy. People who sometimes go through serious traumatic experiences find that after they've been wounded for a long time, something changes in them and they start doing things that the otherwise have not have considered doing. So for me, one of the things is this podcast, and another thing is becoming involved with the question of organ donation and trying to get people to sign up.

spk_2:   0:40
Welcome to heart, to heart with Anna, and this is a very special show that we are doing today. We have a live studio audience, and I want to welcome everyone who came today. We're going to have a great show, and we're going to be talking about all of the different news items that have popped up in 2019. 2019 has been an incredibly busy year, and the rest of 2019 is going to be even busier. It's summer time right now, and it's time to think about retreats. August 4th is going to be the very first Central Texas hug retreat. And I'm so excited because today our event planner, Jen and Thompson, is in the studio with us. Hi, Janet. Hi, Anna. Janet, what will we be doing at our fabulous head retreat way

spk_4:   1:30
are going to have a very good training for our volunteers and we're going to have some fun activities to get to know each other. And we'll have delicious food to boot.

spk_3:   1:40
Absolutely. I think that's probably gonna be the most fun. Part is we're going to be making as Sunday. Everyone will have their own opportunity to add whatever they like to their Sundays. It will be able to get to know each other, too. You will see who likes Caramel, who likes chocolate and why we will be having a lot of fun getting to know each other during our hug retreat. But what really excites me is it's a chance for people to learn some of the programs that were using with hug, such as asana, track it forward and team up these air programs that are really easy to use, aren't they, Janet?

spk_4:   2:15
Yes, they are. But

spk_3:   2:16
they're not easy to use if you've never used them. before, are they, Janet? No, there are. No, I get it. I have discovered they are got intuitive. Are they, Janet?

spk_4:   2:27
No. Especially not for May.

spk_3:   2:30
But that's OK, because we'll be learning together. I'll be doing some training and it'll be a lot of fun. Janet has already picked out a bunch of great little prizes, and it will be something you won't want to miss. But what if you can't come to Central Texas? Michael, Michael Lee been of heart to heart with Michael. Tell us what we're going to be doing in October.

spk_0:   2:52
So we're going to be reading in Jerusalem. Here in Israel were a small but lively band. We know each other well. It's been put out there. Now. I'm gonna have to produce food.

spk_4:   3:01
Uh, I'm not afraid

spk_3:   3:05
you shouldn't because I have had your pretzels. I have had your holla and it's worth traveling to Jerusalem just for that.

spk_0:   3:14
Just for the food,

spk_3:   3:15
just for the food.

spk_0:   3:17
Wait for the main course, But we're going to get together and basically were more concentrated on planning on things. The future programming for the future. One of the really good things about this is that as young as hug is, and this small is, it is. It's really very big, and it's far flung literally around the world, and we have people on at least three continents. If you think about it. We've got people in North America. I've got people here Israel, which is right on the edge of Asia, and then we've got people also in Australia. So one of the really nice things is that if you can't get to hug, hug can get to you. And I think that's really helpful for us because it makes us feel that we're much more connected. And if you're willing to come out here, it's sort of forces us to be better and that we have. You know, the teacher's coming. We got to do our homework. We gotta get our stuff in on time. You don't need our deadlines.

spk_4:   4:12
No, but it is

spk_0:   4:13
a lot more serious when you know that there's somebody you know looking out and and those of us here, we really respect it because we are doing what we're doing. A heart tart with Michael. We're doing it because we're driven to do it. We're doing it because we have a sort of feeling of being a messenger, that we need to do this. It's a very special program, but it makes us feel good to know that we're part of an organization that's much wider than that. And if not for the technology, we'd be out here alone, as would people in other countries. So we're very pleased to be a part of this. It's very special for us to be a part of something that big and that important.

spk_3:   4:48
Well, I appreciate you finding a place for us to do the training and for you to kind of spearheaded. I can't wait to meet your daughter in person. She's already been volunteering with hug, but I know that she'll be fabulous. She did a bunch of training for those of us who aren't as savvy as superior is on social media, says Superior, and A Tae did some training with us, so I hope they'll both be at our hug retreat in Jerusalem. I'm also hoping we'll meet Rachel Greene, who has been another volunteer who lives in Jerusalem. She actually translated a script for us into Hebrew for our very first Hebrew show, and she's a fabulous volunteer. Plus, we might get a chance to meet Michael's sister. What do you think, Michael? Is there a good chance?

spk_0:   5:31
I think there's a reasonable chance that we'll meet one of them. The other one tends to go away about that time of the year, but there is a reasonable chance we'll find one. And I just want to point out that both of my sisters are avid listeners and they will have something to contribute because they listen to all the programming and you know what they have to say about it. So that's what important, because in a sense, it's our only real live contact with listeners other than friends who, what's at me and tell me nice things. But it's really important to sort of sit face to face and get feedback from listeners just in case. Maybe we're missing something.

spk_3:   6:02
Absolutely. It's amazing how our listeners have had so much influence on us over the years. I think it's very easy to see that heart to heart with Anna and her tart with Michael have certainly changed over the years, and that's in large part due to the feedback that we get from our listeners. So in October, if you are in Jerusalem, you're going to want to come to the hug. Retreat. Please get in touch with Michael, even or me. But that's not all, friends. We're also going to be doing a hug retreat in Tucson, Arizona. Unfortunately, our producer of heart to heart with Michael Nancy Jensen, is not here today, but she will be in Tucson, Arizona, and we will be conducting a hug retreat on November 21st in Tucson. I'm really excited because Rita Scoggins and her daughter, Victoria, will be attending that retreat as well. So if you live in the Tucson area and you want to come to

spk_2:   6:55
that retreat, please let us know we will be sending out more information suit. So that's what's going on

spk_3:   7:01
as far as training.

spk_5:   7:04
Hi, my name is Jaime Al Croft, and I just published my new book, The Tin Man Diaries. It's an amazing story of my sudden change of heart. As I went through a heart liver transplant. I can think of no better way to read the Tin Man diaries than to cuddle up in your favorite hearts. Unite the Globe sweatshirt and your favorite hot beverage, of course. In your hearts Unite Blow mug, both of which are available. The hug, podcast network, online store or visit hearts unite theglobe dot take this hot industry. We're offering us a mechanical hot, and he said, now that I've had enough to give it to someone worthy, my father promised me a golden dressed twirling held my hand and asked me where I wanted to go. Whatever strive for conflict that we experienced in our long career together was always healed by humor.

spk_6:   7:56
Heart to heart With Michael Please join us every Thursday at noon. Eastern As we talk with people from around the world who have experienced those most difficult moments,

spk_1:   8:07
you are listening to heart to heart with Anna. If you have a question or comment that you would like to address our show police in an email to Anna Dworsky at Anna at heart to heart with anna dot com. That's Anna at heart to heart with anna dot com Now back to heart to heart with.

spk_3:   8:25
I'm very excited to announce that Hug was the recipient of the Tita Hutchins Award, which was given out by mended little Hearts at their CHD symposium in 2019. This is a very big deal for us. It's the first time for us to receive an award like this and this award. The Tita Hutchins Award is given to a person or an organization that is not part of mended little hearts but who has worked with mended little hearts. And I was very honored to receive that award on behalf of Hearts Unite the Globe. So thank you to all the volunteers who have helped make hug what it is. And thanks to mended little hearts for acknowledging us and for appreciating our work together, we helped put together the very first CHD leadership summit, and I've been assured by Jody Smith that this is not going to be the last time we had this leadership summit. So I hope that next time even more leaders will be there. It was a full house. It was amazing. But we know that there are more organizations out there and we could all be working together and coming together during that leadership summit is a great way to do that. Let's talk about some other ways that we can come together, and that would be some upcoming conferences. First of all, next month, August 2019. The podcast movement conference is happening in Orlando, Florida, and I'm excited that I will be recording a show with Laura Ryan, who is a fabulous hug volunteer and a former guest host and guest on heart to heart with Anna. So if you're in the Orlando area, you might want to let me know, because we might have a little meet up, especially with our patrons. We want to get too together with our patrons every chance we can. We'll also be attending the Blogging Mom conference in Sandusky that Sandusky, Ohio, in October. I'm looking forward to that, and one of the conference is that I have attended for golly, I don't know at least three years in a row is the adults living with Congenital Heart Disease Conference or the A L C H D Conference right outside of Boston, Massachusetts. That conference is coming up on October 26th and I really hope a lot of people will attend that conference. Usually it's a very nicely attended conference, and they bring in the best of the best doctors as speakers, doctors, psychologists, social workers, they always put together a great panel that is just made up of adults living with congenital heart disease, and people in the audience can ask them anything they want to. It's a fabulous conference, so I really hope that a lot of people will attend that conference. And then there's the fifth annual Adult Congenital Heart Symposium in Houston, Texas. That one will be on October 12th so you can see there are lots of conferences coming up. Feel The beat at Mayo Clinic is also on October 12th so there are lots of opportunities for people to get together in the congenital heart defect community. Do check out at congenital heart defects dot com. If you go to the drop down menu, there is a calendar there. And Brenda Figaro Li, who is our Web master, does a fabulous job of updating information on our calendar every time we find out about another conference or an activity and the CHD community would put it up there, so you'll want to check out congenital heart defects dot com, go to the drop down menu and choose our calendar. If you're wondering if there's something happening near you now, it is July, and I just had a birthday. I decided to have another fundraiser. We did this last year, and I had another fund raiser and a very, very awesome person. My husband said that he would match up to $500 of donations for people who contributed to this fundraiser. My goal this year was $650 thanks to so many awesome contributors, but especially Sandra Shots, who donated the last $68 we needed to meet our goal. We did meet our $650 goal. Frank is going to have to pay his $500 hug is going to get over $1000 again this year. Thanks to all of you. I really appreciate and love you all. Thank you. Thank you so much. That was really exciting to see it happen. I'm going to talk about being a volunteer for hearts, unite the globe just a little bit because I think it's an exceptional opportunity to give back to the community. But I know that our host, Michael Liban, wants to talk a little bit about what volunteering with hug has meant to him, and especially some of the extra training that he's been afforded as a volunteer. Take it away, Michael.

spk_0:   13:09
One of the things that we talked about a lot in the grief community is post training growth, which is something you don't hear much about because it's not always newsworthy. People who sometimes go through serious traumatic experiences find that after they've been wounded for a long time, something changes in them and they start doing things that the otherwise have not have considered doing. So for me, one of the things is this podcast, and another thing is becoming involved with the question of organ donation and trying to get people to sign up. But in all of that hug had the foresight to send me to a grief conference in Israel last January, and two really important things happen there. First of all, we were able to sign up Ah, bunch of guests, the kind that we hadn't had before. So most of our guests this year not all but many of our guests this year are not only bereaved in one way or another, but they're also experts in the field of psychologists. They're psychiatrists. Were there their therapists, all kinds of people who work with grief professionally, and so we've been able to get a lot of that into our programming. Where is up to now? We have been sharing stories and matching them with people who needed to hear stories. We're still doing that, but we're also giving a professional view on grief and things that you can do in your own life to work through grief. I found that a very validating experience because the first year and 1/2 that we were doing this program, we were sort of flying on instruments. We were guessing we were making assumptions about how things are based on our own experience, which is very valid. And when I got to this convention and I was literally the only one there who was not a psychologist, I found that everything we had been doing actually is more. That's right. Everything we've been saying from the heart is actually professionally correct. We don't presume to give advice, we don't presume to be doctors and we don't presume to offer therapy on our program. But it is nice to know that when we talk about things with people, when we offer our own opinions about things with people or in the short videos that I've made, things that I've said are actually proper to say, And that's been a really good thing for us, for all of us involved in the program that has a lot to do with hugs, foresight in looking for a convention that I could get too easily and sending me. And I think that's something that we should consider not just for the retreats that we have, which I think you're wonderful and they're excellent, and they're all about how we do things. But the more conventions, the more activities that you can go to outside A you're bringing hug to the rest of these places, and b, you're going to get a lot of validation, and you're gonna get a lot of knowledge that you might need to have. So that's been really good,

spk_3:   15:38
right?

spk_0:   15:38
Really good for us.

spk_3:   15:39
Yeah, that was great. What's exciting to me, Michael, is you just did a program on acro balance and how ballots in the person's mind, body and spirit are all connected. Wasn't it awesome program with Honey Seed us?

spk_0:   15:54
It was because she deals with grief, she deals with families. And when she's dealing with chakra balance, she's getting parents and kids to do things in her studio that involved building trust,

spk_3:   16:07
right? Right. And it's totally different than any other show you've done. And you've done over 30 shows now, haven't you?

spk_0:   16:13
You know, I think I have. Wow,

spk_3:   16:15
isn't that Isn't it also that you've done that many shows? Michael,

spk_0:   16:18
I just want point out the origin story of heart to heart with Michael.

spk_3:   16:22
Okay.

spk_0:   16:22
After being interviewed on heart to heart with Anna after I lost my daughter and I said, I'd like to do a series on bereavement, but I'm not bereaved. Would you do? It s So how many do you want? She said I want one. A month at 1 12 20 Yearsworth. I said, I'll give you three, and I'm still alive after the 3rd 1 will do. Well, 12. And now we're in our third year. So, speaking of post traumatic growth, this is the thing.

spk_4:   16:45
Yeah, Yeah.

spk_0:   16:46
This has brought me someone out of a shell. This has brought me to doing something that I believe is meaningful. And another thing is that we discussed this early on I stepped into a hug board meeting and we were a little bit intrepid. What to do with this program. It was different than anything that I get done before, and it wasn't necessarily bound to the C H D community. It could go outside so far, as far as I wanted to take it, they've let me go, for which I'm very thankful. And I said, Look, if we help only one person, we've done our job and I am that person you've already done And that's true what I'm getting from the feedback when I'm getting from responses through what's happened, responses through the email and we're helping people. Or at least we're giving other people in sight. And that's good thing. It is a good

spk_3:   17:32
thing it is. It's a great thing, and I think that you still have many, many more shows in you. Michael.

spk_0:   17:38
I hope so. And one of the ways that we're gonna find out is if we get more volunteers because from our volunteers would also not only get the leg work that needs to be done, but you also get ideas.

spk_3:   17:47
Absolutely, yes, There are many more great shows to come I can't wait to see what a heart to heart with Michael is going to produce in Season four, because that's right around the corner. But

spk_2:   17:57
first we have to finish Season three, and it would be fabulous if we could have some more volunteers to help us

spk_7:   18:12
Forever by the Baby Blue Sound collective. I think what I love so much about this CD is that some of the songs were inspired by the patient's many listeners will understand many of the different songs and what they've been inspired. Our new album will be available on iTunes. Amazon dot com. Spotify. I love the fact that the proceeds from this CD are actually going to help those with congenital heart defects join Music Home

spk_3:   18:40
Tonight Forever.

spk_6:   18:50
Heart to Heart With Anna is a presentation of hearts, Unite the Globe and is part of the Hug Podcast Network Hearts Unite The Globe is a nonprofit organization devoted to providing resource is to the congenital heart defect community to uplift in power and enrich the lives of our community members. If you would like access to free resource, is pretending to the CHD community, please visit our website at www congenital heart defects dot com for information about CHD, the hospitals that treat Children with CHD summer camps for CHD survivors and much, much more.

spk_3:   19:27
What can volunteers D'oh Michael, tell us some things that volunteers could do?

spk_0:   19:31
Volunteers can pretty much do anything. Volunteers can spread the word Volunteers can send her links to all their friends and family and everyone they ever stood next to an elevator. Volunteers can help us produce means they can help us get names out to different platforms. They can help us create visual sound bites, which sounds like Chinese. But actually they're not that difficult to do and wants to make them. They can get them out to everybody. They can talk it up. They can pass out cards that could do anything

spk_4:   19:58
to

spk_0:   19:58
help get the word out. One of the differences between our two programmes is that you have all the congenital heart defect sites and support groups, and you can go out there and really push hard. Our program deals with grief. It's not appropriate, and a lot of people aren't ready to talk about grief on support groups that are all about life and going forward and struggling. But surviving. So our access to the world is a lot more complicated. Everybody, you know, everybody you know has been touched by grief. At one point in their life, everybody, whether it's a grand parent or somebody closer or just a friend or an associate or someone or everybody has been touched by grief. We want to spread awareness, empowerment, money of some help. You want people to know they're not alone. We want people to know that there's someone who has a story similar to theirs,

spk_3:   20:48
right, and a volunteer can do that. Our volunteers can also be host a guest host once you could be a guest. So there are lots of different ways that people can help. They can help with transcriptions. We would love to have a transcript of every single show for our hard of hearing members or people who just like to follow along with the written transcript. It's really not that hard. There's a program called Timmy that we use, which will do a rough voice to text transcript, but it's about 80% correct. So we really need a human being to go through and clean up that transcript so it doesn't read oddly, and we know that when we're doing these recordings that sometimes somebody's name or a specific car defect or procedure may be very unusual and Timmy won't get it. So we need somebody who is part of our community. Who knows what those jargon e words might be and can help us make some clean transcripts. So, yes, there's lots of different ways. Are volunteers can help. One of the reasons why we're doing these hug retreats is to do their training that you need so that you could be a viable volunteer and so that you can get the most out of your hug experience. I have one more quick announcement, and that is that we are now part of Patri on. For those of you who don't know Patri on is a special site that you can go to P A, T R E o and dot com, patriot dot com and patri on. You will see kinds of creators. There are a ton of podcasters. There are people who do all kinds of creating people who create games, people who create music, you name it. If it's the creation type activity, then patri on is a place for you to go to try and get people to help you out. So the people who help you out or called patrons We currently have four patrons for hearts unite the globe. And that would be Michael. Even Brenda Vignal. Roly Frank Dworsky, who is also in the studio right now. And then my son, Joey Dworsky. Frank, I would love for you to tell us why you became a patron.

spk_4:   22:50
I became a patron, Anna, because it's one more way to support hearts, unite the globe and to let everybody know how important it is to become a patron for hug. I think that if we can encourage more people by our actions to join in, I think that it will provide a real base for support.

spk_3:   23:08
Thank you so much, Frank. And you know what, folks? It doesn't even have to be that expensive. Michael, can you please tell us why you became a patron?

spk_0:   23:18
Well, because I felt I needed to give something back. I do. This is a volunteer, and I get so much more than I put in. I figured this is the best way that I could without too much difficulty. be a regular donor. I chose a fairly small amount, but if 50 people chose that same amount, then we'd be doing all right. It makes me feel that I'm a part of the organization by paying in a little bit too organization. I feel like now I have a certain ownership. I'm part of this thing that I'm working for and not just a pretty face who shows up on Does this program me at least and Patron is basically membership into the organization is basically a way to buy a membership into hug. I'm not on the board for some very good reasons, mostly the difference of a distance of about 10,000 miles. I don't make decisions. I often have a lot of questions, and I probably make more trouble. But now, paying into it every month. I'm a member. I'm a part of that organization, and it's very good feeling. But more than that, it gives me a sense of partnership with everything else going on hug.

spk_3:   24:18
I love that and you're absolutely right. It does make you a partner, and you can do this friends for as little as a dollar a month. You can give $2 a month, you can get $5 a month. You can get $500 a minute, really can't give less than a dollar, but anywhere from a dollar upwards, you choose how much you want to give two hearts. Unite the globe. If you go to patriot dot com slash heart to heart, then you will find our page, and you'll see we have different benefits for the different levels. You have a chance to come to a show like today. Frank is the patron. I promised Frank that as a patron he would have a chance to talk during this show. When we do other programs, when I have a guest who is willing to do a talk back section, then we will have our patrons as the first people to ask the questions that that's one of the perks of one of the benefits to being a patron. If you buy in at a certain level. So yes, she become part of hug. You help hug to become sustainable. We would love to grow our network. Right now, we are a network of two. Hearts are with Anna, and heart are with Michael, but we would love to have a program in Spanish. We would love to have one for teens and Tweens. We'd love to have another show that is produced four adults by adults. We had heard 200 Nickel and David, but unfortunately that show was not able to be continued. And it's on hiatus right now. But there's no reason why we couldn't have another show that is four adults by adults with congenital heart disease. It will be much easier for the network if we can afford to pay some people to help. We need some assistance because it takes a lot of hours and a lot of volunteers to do this. So friends, please consider being a patron. Even if it's only a dollar a month, it does make a difference. So that concludes this really exciting news event about what's going on with Hug, and I want to thank French War Ski Janet Thompson, Michael Liban and Debbie Gilmore. Debbie. Before we go on, they put you on for just a moment and ask you why do you care about hug?

spk_4:   26:30
I hear about head in because it's done and run by my best friend.

spk_3:   26:35
Uh, I love you, Debbie.

spk_4:   26:40
I love you to an ER.

spk_3:   26:42
Well, thanks for being here today. Thank you. To all of you wonderful people. You wonderful supporters of hearts unite the globe heart to heart with Dan and heart to heart. With Michael, you're all fabulous. I hope everybody will tune in again next week. And until then, my friends, remember you are not alone.

spk_1:   27:02
Thank you again for joining us this week Way Hope you have been inspired on Empowered to become an advocate for the congenital heart defects community Heart to heart with Anna with your hose down, Jaworski can be heard every Tuesday at 12. Noon eastern time.