More than 1,000 people gathered at the Alaska Airlines Center in Anchorage on Sept. 19, 2026 for the American Heart Association's Alaska Heart Run & Walk. The event was organized to celebrate survivors of heart disease and stroke, support the Association's lifesaving mission and raise funds for research, education and local impact initiatives.
Organizers combined a public celebration with community education, offering participants opportunities to learn Hands-Only CPR and to engage in activities designed to raise awareness about cardiovascular disease and stroke. The release notes that the event both honored survivors and aimed to build readiness among Anchorage residents to respond to cardiac emergencies.
The Anchorage event raised $227,000 and counting for the American Heart Association. Those funds are designated to support research, educational programs and local impact initiatives, according to the event release. Fundraising came from a mix of company teams, community teams and individual participants who supported the Association's mission.
The fundraising total reported in the news release reflects local philanthropic support for AHA priorities; additional details about the allocation of funds beyond general categories (research, education and local impact initiatives) were not reported in the source.
A central component of the Alaska Heart Run & Walk was Hands-Only CPR training offered to participants. The AHA described this as part of building "a community of lifesavers in Anchorage ready to act in a cardiac arrest emergency." Chrissy Colucci, American Heart Association – Alaska executive director, was quoted saying: "Alaskans have a long tradition of stepping up when others need help. By giving more people the confidence and skills to perform Hands-Only CPR, we're working toward creating a culture where more people have the confidence to act in a cardiac arrest emergency.”
The release also cited findings from the Association's 2024 CPR Perceptions Survey. That survey reported that 39% of respondents said they felt "extremely confident" or "very confident" in their ability to perform CPR, an increase from 33% in 2021. The release characterizes that rise as equating to approximately 17.7 million more adults reporting high confidence in their CPR skills. Despite this improvement, 61% of respondents still did not report high confidence in acting during a cardiac emergency, which the AHA highlighted as evidence of the need for continued CPR training and awareness.
The news item did not provide additional methodological details of the CPR Perceptions Survey in this release; those details were not reported in the source.
The day included a festival area with photo opportunities, blood pressure screenings, Hands-Only CPR demonstrations and a tribute wall where participants could remember people lost to heart disease and stroke. Participants could choose a 5K race or non-competitive 3K and 5K walking options.
The release named top fundraising companies and teams as well as top runners. Top fundraising employers included Alaska Heart & Vascular Institute, Providence Alaska and Gemini Executive Professional Coaching. The top community team was Donovan's Hope. The top runners named in the release were Sebastian Szweda Mittelstadt, Brendan Hill and Josean Olivieri. The release also provided a link to full running results, which were published on the event timing partner's site.
Photographs accompanying the release showed participants departing the start arch and walking the route; captions identify the images as from Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026 and credit the American Heart Association.
Locally, the Alaska Heart Run & Walk was sponsored by Alaska Heart & Vascular Institute and Providence Alaska. The release lists the event's leading company fundraisers and community team but does not detail individual donation amounts or the full roster of sponsors beyond the local sponsors named.
For people seeking Hands-Only CPR instruction or wishing to donate through the Alaska Heart Run & Walk, the release directs readers to AlaskaHeartRun.org. The news item did not provide a step-by-step description of the online donation process or of CPR training curriculum beyond the Hands-Only CPR demonstrations offered at the event.
The release closes with the American Heart Association's organizational description: it is a longstanding nonprofit devoted to advancing longer, healthier lives through research funding, public health advocacy and educational resources. The release states the Association is supported by more than 35 million volunteers globally and works across science, policy and care to improve cardiovascular and stroke outcomes.
Media inquiries were directed to Amber Moak at amber.moak@heart.org. For public inquiries the release listed the AHA phone number 1-800-AHA-USA1 (1-800-242-8721). The release also referenced AHA and ASA websites (heart.org and stroke.org) and AHA Alaska affiliate contact points and social media channels for further engagement.
All facts, quotes and figures in this summary derive from the American Heart Association news release about the Alaska Heart Run & Walk published Sept. 19, 2026. Where the release referenced survey results or fundraising totals, supplementary methodological details (for example, full survey methods or detailed fund allocation) were not reported in the source and therefore are not included here.