‘Survivor, not a victim’

There were seven of them, once laid low by heart disease and stroke, but now walking tall on the runway in the Island Hotel ballroom.

Wearing stylish red dresses from numerous designers, the survivors strutted their stuff Thursday in a fashion show as part of the “Go Red for Women Luncheon,” an event put on by the American Heart Assn. to raise awareness of heart disease.

Throughout the day, attendees raised money for heart health, learned about healthy eating, and heard from keynote speaker and actress Cloris Leachman.

Though few realize it, heart disease is the leading health threat against women, according to the event’s organizers.

Such events can touch anyone, said Vandna Mittal, who survived a stroke when she was 15 and lost the use of her left arm.

She talked of the pain of being a clean-living, honors student who had to hear paramedics suggest she might have been using drugs, and the humiliation of having a shaved head as a 15-year-old girl.

“That’s really traumatic for a teenage girl in high school,” Mittal said.

But nothing would stop her, she said. “I am a stroke survivor, not a victim,” she said. “I’m going to play tennis even though I can’t move my left arm. I’m going dancing, too.”

MICHAEL ALEXANDER may be reached at (714) 966-4618 or at [email protected].