About Us

OUR MISSION

Illuminate Congenital Heart Disease

affecting children in Venezuela by

linking services that ensure access to

medical treatmets and provide care.

OUR VALUE

Hope - lead by example to show how life can and will get better.

Charity - create experiences for our donors that energize their charitable giving.

Compassion - provide encouragement in every encounter and understanding in every setback.

Commitment -  make a positive impact  every day to our patients and their caregivers.

Who we are

Our president and founder is a congenital heart survivor who was born in Venezuela and has lived the last 34 years in the USA. She has lived her life with CHD and knows the struggles with receiving proper care.

More than 6000 children are born every year in Venezuela with CHD and more than 80% of those require surgery in the first year of life. 2000 children are on a waiting list at any given time and many die while waiting. Due to a national health system in crisis, most of these children do not ever receive proper care. 

Estrellita de Belen Foundation was established to provide help to these underprivileged children. Our foundation provides aid to these children and caregivers through funding for basic care and treatment, medical supplies, and nutritional supplements not subsidized by the government of Venezuela.

We work with parents, caregivers and local volunteers to meet the immediate needs of our little heart warriors. We are committed to the best possible care by identifying the most competent local medical professionals in the region. We are continually growing our support network to reach all areas of Venezuela. 

What we do

Our main purpose is to support congenital heart children in Venezuela through fundraising and charitable donations.

The money we raise goes directly to pay for medical treatment, medications, nutrition and supplies.

About

I’m Belen Blanton, President of Estrellita de Belen Foundation. I was born with a congenital heart defect called tricuspid atresia causing me to now suffer from Eisenmenger Syndrome.

 I now dedicate my life to fight for children with congenital disease of heart in my country of Venezuela. The situation in my country has more than 4000 children born annually with congenital heart defects. 80% of these kids require surgery before their first birthday.

Of the 2000 children currently awaiting surgery, many will die before receiving care. Our foundation provides the resources to aid the families through appointment scheduling, medical supplies, and nutritional supplements and even necessary procedures to repair their little hearts.

Our vision is to live in a world where every child has a mighty heart.

Belen Blanton

Early in 2021, Estrellita de Belén Foundation developed a project in partnership with Ascardio, a cardiovascular clinic. This clinic is located in Barquisimeto, Venezuela’s third largest and one of its oldest cities. This clinic boasts uninterrupted care for over 43 years treating more than 100,000 patients a year, while providing academic and social work in the region. 

Our resident partner is Dr. Bartolome Finizola M.D, who received his medical degree in Cardiology from Universidad Centro-Occidental Lisandro Alvarado located in Barquisimeto. Dr. Finizola specializes in Interventional Cardiology at Ascardio. He is a member of the Venezuelan cardiology society, a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology, and is the President elect of the Venezuela Heart Foundation. 

Through this partnership, Ascardio provides low budget procedures for the children assisted by our Foundation. The Doctor and staff provide the lifesaving procedures for our children which would otherwise be impossible. This team are all true angels!