Croí marks World Heart Day
"I used ♥ to: educate and empower individuals, families and communities to take control of their heart health and to make and maintain the changes that can lead to a longer and healthier life. "
Croí, the heart and stroke charity, was delighted to collaborate with some of the most iconic and historic buildings, organisations and landmarks throughout the west of Ireland to mark World Heart Day 2022, which took place on Thursday 29th September.
Buildings and landmarks illuminated in red for the evening, to share the important message that “Self-Care is Heart Care”, one of the core messages that the World Heart Federation has identified for this year’s World Heart Day campaign.
The iconic image of The Galway Hooker docked in the Claddagh basin is a sight that many will associate with Galwegian culture and the Wild Atlantic Way Ireland, was the first to light up in support.
To mark their commitment in promoting the importance of Heart Heath, the following buildings and landmarks illuminated in red on World Heart Day:
Galway: Croí House, Galway City Museum, The Browne Doorway on Eyre Square, Galway Cathedral, University of Galway, Bon Secours Hospital, Galway Garda Regional & Divisional HQ, ATU Galway City, ATU Connemara, Kylemore Abbey.
Mayo: ATU Mayo, Castlebar Tourist Information Office, The Linnenhall Arts Centre Castlebar, Castlebar Garda Station, Ashford Castle and Westport town bridges took part in the illumination initiative.
ATU Donegal, The Bridge of Athlone and the Trinity Arts Centre in Roscommon, Roscommon Garda Station, Carrick on Shannon Garda Station and Sligo town Garda Station also illuminated for the evening.
In addition to the building illuminations, On World Heart Day, Croí was to delighted to invite the public to Heartfest, a free and holistic cardiovascular health and wellness event that took place at Croí House from 10 am – 3 pm.
We opened the doors of Croí House for our first public event since 2019. The Croí Health Team provided heart health checks as well as information and general heart health advice. At Heartfest, public availed of free taster sessions of some of our most popular offerings such as our exercise classes like Back to Fitness, strength training and yoga; mindfulness and goal setting sessions with our Health Psychologist; and our Cardiac Dietitian hosted a Q&A session on eating for a healthy heart. Local community clubs and groups attended the event to highlight the many and varied activities available locally that contribute to overall heart health and wellbeing.
Heartfest finished with a free in person public talk which was titled ‘Self-Care is Heart Care – The Power of Knowing Your Numbers and Taking Action’, with experts: Dr Susan Connolly, Consultant Cardiologist; Dr Lisa Hynes, Health Psychologist and Croí’s Head of Health Programmes; and Frankie Lane, who shared his story of heart disease and recovery. The public talk was a hybrid event and there was the option to tune in from home live via a livestream link.
The campaign not only encouraged people to ensure their heart health is a priority, but also those around them, friends, family and colleagues. Croí’s aim is to educate and empower individuals, families and communities to take control of their heart health and to make and maintain the changes that can lead to a longer and healthier life.
For more information visit www.croi.ie/heartfest or call 091-544310.