Sudden Cardiac Arrest / Mid-State Christmas

Peyton Walker was a 19-year-old studying to be a physician’s assistant at King’s College in 2013.  She enjoyed the outdoors; snowboarding, rock climbing and four-wheeling.  The Camp Hill native passed away unexpectedly early in her sophomore year.

Peyton died of Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) related to a congenital heart condition called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.  SCA causes more than 600,000 deaths annually and is the second leading cause of death in people under 25.

In an effort to understand SCA, the Mechanicsburg-based Peyton Walker Foundation facilitates heart screenings, CPR and defibrillator training and scholarship opportunities for students studying healthcare.  On Monday’s Smart Talk, we’ll talk with Julie Walker, Peyton’s mother and the director of the foundation and Dr. Mike Bosak from UPMC Pinnacle – Pinnacle Health Cardiovascular Institute.

Also, Christmas is a week away and the region’s communities are putting together a number of events for the family.  Smart Talk will talk about the parades, shows, tree-lightings and caroling events with Joe Cliff of Discover Lancaster, Andrew Staub of the York County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau and Rick Dunlap from Visit Hershey & Harrisburg.