Student heart attack survivor finds new ways to give back

By Matthew Meyerhofer

Suffering from a heart attack can be dispiriting and debilitating, but according Santa Clara junior Greg Geibel, surviving a heart attack can be a source of motivation and inspiration.

"You're just incredibly appreciative for what you have," Geibel, who survived a heart attack as an infant, said .

Moved by a sense of thankfulness for where he is today and a desire to do what he can to combat heart attacks, Geibel has dedicated himself to raising money for heart research, hoping to do something to help prevent heart attacks in the future.

"My Dad's CPR and the research of the American Heart Association helped for my survival," he said. "I feel I need to repay that."

In the last four years, Geibel said he has raised nearly $70,000 for the AHA.

"I'm just incredibly fascinated by fulfilling other people's needs," Geibel said. "That's ultimately what service and compassion are about, and it's what gets me up in the morning."

Before the attack, there were no signs that he had a heart condition, and to this day Geibel and his family do not know the cause of the attack.

"It's kind of a medical mystery," Geibel said, "There's really no explanation for it."

As a result of the attack, Geibel's right leg is slightly shorter than his left and his left arm is a somewhat weaker than his right. Nonetheless, Geibel says he doesn't let the heart attack get in the way of his life.

"In the grand scheme of things, that's pretty minor," he said. "I'm just thankful to be alive."

Beginning in high school, Geibel raised money by doing heart walks for the AHA when he attended Menlo-Atherton High School.

"I was asked to speak at one of the heart walks three or four years ago, and I remember giving a speech asking CEOs and CFOs to get involved in community service," Geibel said. "I explained my story and read a poem I wrote, and I remember a lady crying. Then I realized the power of words and I that I can impact other people's lives."

When Geibel was in high school, he found he could often get generous contributions simply by sending letters to families of his fellow students asking for donations.

"That was incredibly successful because parents would just send money in," Geibel said.

When Geibel first came to Santa Clara, he used similar methods to raise money. He wrote some letters asking for donations in connection with the heart walk and had them distributed to faculty members, but this time he didn't have the same success.

At the beginning of his sophomore year, Geibel decided to go directly to students for support. The first program he helped develop was a benefit concert at CandJ's, a local bar, last spring.

Geibel set up a day for the concert with the owner of CandJ's and found two bands to play for free. Between a $3 entrance fee and a silent auction, the benefit raised nearly $2,000. He said he felt empowered by that success.

After the accomplishment of the benefit concert, Geibel began looking for new ways to get students involved in raising money for the AHA. It was suggested that students might respond enthusiastically to a bowling tournament, so Geibel organized one.

According to Geibel, the tournament, "Geibel's Gutterballfest," raised almost $10,000.

"Ultimately, it was fun. I was amazed to see the fun on all the guys' faces. Two guys came up to me after the tournament and said it was the greatest event they'd participated in at Santa Clara."

Following the bowling tournament, Geibel organized a miniature golf tournament, dubbed the "Hole-in-One for Heart Disease." The tournament, which took place in March, raised several thousand dollars for the AHA.

Rather than working through the university itself, Geibel said he has been successful by working primarily independently, with the added organizational support of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, which helped organize the bowling tournament and miniature golf event.

According to Geibel, his fund raising events helped make the Santa Clara chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha the most successful in the nation in raising money for charity last year.

Geibel said his successes have given him a very positive attitude toward pushing to make a difference. He said he has been consistently inspired by people coming together to make a helpful contribution in his effort to raise money.

"I'm incredibly fascinated how people are more than willing to get involved and help out," he said.

Geibel also said raising money can be a lot of fun when the right attitude is taken in doing so.

"If you're just with a group of friends and you kick around ideas, the ideas grow into things," he said. "You realize that you're touching people's lives and it's all going to a great cause."

A second bowling tournament is in the works, tentatively scheduled for October, and Geibel also is thinking of organizing a black-tie benefit for the following spring. He said that up to this point, he has been very successful in finding corporate sponsors for the events, so all of the student donations go directly to the AHA.

Geibel, a finance major, says he has no firm plans as to whether or not he is going to make a career out of raising money for the AHA. He did say, though, that when he leaves Santa Clara, his fund raising wouldn't slow down.

"Just because I graduate doesn't mean I'm going to let up at all," he said. "I think it actually opens the door to bigger and more successful events."

û Contact Matthew Meyerhoffer at (408) 554-4546 or mmeyerhofer@scu.edu.