The Southern Tier Heart Walk held its kickoff event tonight at Visions Federal Credit Union in Endwell. 

Attendees could learn more about the event and celebrate the achievements of the last few years. 

The event also had a presentation with a variety of speakers including Natalie Weiss, a Binghamton University research scientist who received funding from the American Heart Association.

Her work deals with 3D cardiac tissue models to look at cardiac diseases outside of the body. 

"Using the American Heart Association funding we really have the power to do a lot of experiments and really accelerate drug development and new treatment," she said. 

Weiss also spoke about what it means to have community support. "I mean it's amazing. I'm really glad to see there's a lot of people who are passionate about this like I am and just see that we have a lot of support." 

The Heart Walk is on April 23rd at Otsiningo Park. You can register here.