Press Releases

Share This Press Release

GARY E. BIE, CPA, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT AND CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER AT THE NASSAU HEALTH CARE CORPORATION, INVITED TO SPEAK AT THE EIGHTH ANNUAL AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION GO RED FOR WOMEN LUNCHEON, TO DISCUSS DAUGHTER’S SUCCESSFUL OPEN HEART SURGERY, SEVENTEEN YEARS AGO FOLLOWING PREMATURE BIRTH

February 11, 2009
Contact:  Shelley Lotenberg
(516) 572-6055
shelley@numc.edu

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

GARY E. BIE, CPA, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT AND CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER AT THE NASSAU HEALTH CARE CORPORATION, INVITED TO SPEAK AT THE EIGHTH ANNUAL AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION GO RED FOR WOMEN LUNCHEON, TO DISCUSS DAUGHTER’S SUCCESSFUL OPEN HEART SURGERY, SEVENTEEN YEARS AGO FOLLOWING PREMATURE BIRTH

SPOKE ABOUT THE MIRACLE OF HIS DAUGHTER, ALI, WHO SERVES AS AN INSPIRATION TO ANY CHILD BORN WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES

East Meadow, NY…..Gary E. Bie, CPA, senior vice president and chief financial officer for the Nassau Health Care Corporation, was the guest speaker at the Eighth Annual American Heart Association Go Red for Women Luncheon, where he discussed, his daughter Ali’s successful open heart surgery seventeen years ago, following a premature birth.  The Heart Association recognized several survivors and celebrated “the opportunity to make people’s lives and those of their families even more heart healthy by taking a proactive role in winning the battle against heart disease and stroke,” according to Lynn Berry, WNBC-4 News reporter who served as MC and introduced Gary Bie at the luncheon. 

Bie discussed the true miracle of his daughter, Ali, who is now a healthy seventeen year old junior in high school, musically talented, playing bass in the orchestra, a cantor at church, a member of the class executive board and running track for the high school.  “Today I celebrate my daughter, Ali, an exceptional student and a true inspiration to any child that has had any type of developmental disability.  She is a true miracle,” said Gary Bie.

During his remarks, Bie recalled how tragedy had struck his wife Ellen and him, when Ali was born prematurely through emergency C-section at 30 weeks gestation, with multiple birth defects, requiring abdominal surgery and heart surgery to repair an AV canal defect, essentially a hole in the middle of the heart.  The family stayed with Ali at the hospital for four months before bringing her home and then having to return to the hospital two months later for open-heart surgery.

“This period in our lives was certainly the most tragic event that Eileen and I had ever dealt with.  However, through this crisis, all the members of our family came together to support us during this extremely trying time,” added Bie.  “Through this support, we were able to deal with the emotional and physical drain we endured, not only during the surgeries, but the years following what included intensive home health care, early intervention programs necessary to care for an infant with these issues.”

Gary Bie will also be one of the honorees at the year’s American Heart Association Annual Joel Hamroff Memorial Golf Outing and looks forward to introducing his daughter, Ali at the golf outing in June.