Stories of hope.

"Because of your support, I can run, swim and ride my bike.
From my big heart to yours, thank you!"

- Madelaine, age 11

Madelaine has a great sense of style. This 11-year-old loves to wear fun clothes like polka dot tops - with designer blue eyeglasses to match. "I like to make up my own fashion as I go along." With her happy-go-lucky attitude, you'd never suspect that Madelaine has a serious heart condition called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy - an enlarged heart.

When Madelaine was six, she was at a skating rink when all of a sudden she had trouble breathing, her heart started to beat fast and she turned blue. She was immediately taken to hospital where they treated her condition. Then, when she was seven, surgeons performed open-heart surgery to remove a blockage in the heart cavity. "I found out about the operation a week before, and it really freaked me out. My mom and I cried about it." But the operation was a success and Madelaine has been making progress ever since.

Today, she likes to play with her dog Daisy and be physically active - running, swimming and riding her bike. But she has to take frequent breaks to let her heart rest. Rigorous physical activity can actually cause her heart to become even larger than it is now.

For several months now, she has been visiting schools in her area - a total of 50 so far - to tell her story. "I always point out that heart disease is not just an old person's disease - it can affect everybody. In my speech, I tell kids that they should be physically fit and eat healthy. I also thank the Heart and Stroke Foundation for everything it has done to help me and my family." When Madelaine grows up, she says she wants to be a clothes designer - a perfect fit for this perky fashionista!

Watch Madelaine's survivor testimonial to learn more about her amazing story.