Katie Whaley’s lifelong journey has taken her from life-saving heart surgery as an infant at Children’s Hospital of Orange County to her role today as part of the Disneyland team that puts on the massive CHOC Walk in the Park that helps families when they need it most.
“It’s hard to explain the feeling and energy of CHOC Walk until you experience it,” Whaley said via an email interview. “For me, it’s an overwhelming feeling of community to be part of this group all coming together to celebrate and support an organization that has touched all participants in one way or another.”
The CHOC Walk in the Park returns to Disneyland on Sunday, Aug. 20 for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered the Anaheim theme park.
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Whaley’s CHOC success story symbolizes the mission and purpose of the hospital and the goal of the annual Disneyland fundraising event that raises millions for pediatric research, education and programs.
Whaley’s story starts with Minnie Mouse visiting her in the CHOC pediatric ICU when she was a patient in 1994 and continues to today with her working alongside Mickey Mouse and Disney’s other famed characters who line the CHOC Walk route encouraging walkers along the 5K journey through the parks.
“My favorite part is always seeing the volunteers and cheer squads lining the walk path supporting and cheering on the walkers,” said Whaley, 29, of Aliso Viejo. “That spirit mixed with participants in fun costumes and the opportunity to see some favorite characters creates a truly unique atmosphere.”
Whaley had surgery at CHOC when she was six months old to fix an issue with a vein coming off her heart that was wrapped around her trachea. The vascular ring, as the anomaly is known, was cutting off Whaley’s ability to breathe.
“We waited months for a diagnosis as it’s a challenging issue to identify in a young baby,…
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