Lee County Heart Ball tickets now available
May 10 event includes gourmet dining, dancing and auctions

Tickets are now available for the Lee County Heart Ball, a gala event to raise funds to combat the No. 1 killer in America - heart disease. Heart Ball 2008 is a blacktie evening event of gourmet dining, dancing, silent and live auctions, and outstanding entertainment, with proceeds benefiting the American Heart Association.

The ball is from 6 p.m. to midnight on Saturday, May 10, and will be held at Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort Spa at 5001 Coconut Road in Bonita Springs. Tickets are $400 each and can be purchased by calling Laurie Mahoney at the Heart Association's Bonita Springs office at (239) 495-4913.

"The event theme is 'Heart Throb,' focusing on our guests who have really big hearts in helping the Association to raise muchneeded money to continue its important work," said Mark L. Morris, chairman of the event. "They're really the stars of the show."

The American Heart Association is the nation's premier volunteer health agency dedicated to reducing disability and death from the nation's No. 1 and No. 3 killers: cardiovascular diseases and stroke. The organization is pleased to report that heart disease deaths are down by 25.8 percent and stroke deaths have been reduced by 24.4 percent since 1999. This means that the American Heart Association's strategic goal for coronary heart disease has been achieved, and for stroke nearly achieved - ahead of time. The goal was to reduce coronary heart disease and stroke deaths and risks by 25 percent by 2010.

Visit the American Heart Association online at www.americanheart.org.