| 21 April 2017, Beirut: Heartbeat organized its annual gala dinner on Friday the 21st of April 2017 at BIEL, as a fundraising initiative to treat children with heart disease. | |
| One thousand guests attended this event, among whom Mrs. Leila Solh Hamade, Mrs. Hraoui, His Excellency Mgr. Caccia, Mr. and Mrs. Gebran Bassil, Mr. and Mrs. Selim Jreisaty, Mr. and Mrs. Jamil Mouawad (former president of Ecuador), Mr. and Mrs. Fouad Makhzoumi and many other social and political figures of the Lebanese jet set. |
The gala dinner was hosted by its loyal ambassadors Maxime Chaaya, Daniella Rahme, and Wissam Breidy, and featured an hour show from the “Zapping with the Stars” concert. Auctions on exceptional items followed the show and the event was closed by the highly anticipated lottery on valuable gifts.
The main “Zapping with the Stars” concert followed the gala dinner on Saturday and Sunday. A concert tribute to seven all-time great artists – Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, Dalida, Jean-Jacques Goldman, Beyoncé, Coldplay, and Zaki Nassif – covering more than five decades of music, from the sixties till the latest twenty-first century chartbusters. Put together as a TV show, the concert included also a selection of recent hits, used as bridges from one artist to another, in the form of advertisement breaks on TV.
The concert featured more than 30 singers and musicians who took part in this event, among them well-known regulars as well as newcomers who recently joined the Heartbeat family. In addition to Caracalla Dance School who performed a Lebanese and American choreography, under the artistic direction of Alissar Caracalla, the Heartbeat troupe handled the rest of the choreographies led by Lea Chahine. While Dr. Ramzi Ashoush, president of Heartbeat, was the Music Director and arranger and show creator, the stage directors from Cats Production were Kristian Abouanni and Manel Mallat.
Dr. Victor Jebara, Heartbeat’s Vice President stated: ‘Since the first concert in 2005, over 50,000 people attended the Heartbeat shows, and thus saving the lives of more than 2,500 children suffering from heart diseases, with over 300 lives saved every year. Heartbeat results could not be achieved without the full support of its volunteers, and dedicated partners and loyal fans.’
Heartbeat –La Chaine de L’Espoir is a Lebanese humanitarian association that was founded in 2005 by a group of Medical Doctors from Hotel-Dieu de France with the sole purpose of helping the children with heart disease who could not afford getting the proper treatments. Worldwide, 1% of children are born with heart malformation, which is equivalent to nearly 600 cases per year in Lebanon. If not treated, these diseases are the first cause of death before the age of 1 year. However if detected on time and adequate treatments are given, the survival rate exceeds 95%.
Donation
Heartbeat-Bank Audi (Sofil Branch)
Account No. 325179 / IBAN: LB49 0056 0003 2517 9462 0020 0902