Berger and Green Attorneys at Law Award Heart Disease Scholarship to Meredith Labuda, Ballwin, Mo.

    PITTSBURGH, PA, August 12, 2020 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Berger and Green Attorneys at Law, a Pittsburgh-based personal injury law firm, has awarded its annual Heart Disease Scholarship to Meredith Labuda, 18, of Ballwin, Mo. Miss Labuda recently graduated from Parkway South High School in Manchester, Mo., and will attend St. Louis University this fall.

Berger and Green has been helping people with medical disabilities for more than 40 years. Heart disease is still the number one cause of death in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and children who have heart conditions or congenital defects must forge a difficult path. That's one of the reasons why the firm established its annual $1,000 scholarship for one deserving student per year in 2017.

Miss Labuda was born with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, a condition in which the left side of her heart cannot pump blood into the body. She required several surgeries to mitigate the defect. Miss Labuda's moving essay was centered around her last surgery. She described her emotions and observations, which moved from self-concern and worry to compassion for other pediatric patients and ultimately gratitude for the nursing staff.

"When my nurses walked into my room, it was like the sun coming out after a rainy day,'' she wrote.

The nurses were so inspiring that Miss Labuda has decided to pursue a pediatric nursing career at St. Louis University.

Like many of the scholarship applicants, Miss Labuda is a high-achieving student. She graduated summa cum laude and is a member of both the National Honor Society and Key Club. She was a Vacation Bible School leader and served as a counselor or leader for various hospital pediatric camps.

She was also selected to attend the Parkway 2016 Presidential Inauguration Trip to Washington D.C. as well as a two-week trip through Rome, Normandy, and Paris celebrating the U.S. World War II military forces on the 75th anniversary of D-Day.

She is the daughter of Brian and Christine Labuda.

The Heart Disease Scholarship is only one of many Berger and Green community commitments. The firm is involved in many Pittsburgh charities, including Take Steps for Crohn's and Colitis Walk, the holiday toy drive called Stuff a Bus and the Neighborhood Legal Services Association's Equal Justice Campaign.

For more information on the Berger and Green scholarship, visit our website.

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