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Some people have a calling so strong that it simply cannot be ignored. For Richmond, Virginia native Eric Edwards, that calling was to help people and felt an inexplicable draw to the medical field. After several experiences shadowing various physicians while in high school, that calling led him to join the local rescue squad and become an EMT right out of high school while simultaneously pursuing his medical degree at Virginia Commonwealth University. Working in and studying the emergency medical field, he saw firsthand how crucial CPR and urgent medication delivery methods are in the chain of survival.

Not only did this realization motivate Eric to become a CPR instructor educating those in his community, it also spurred a brief hiatus from medical school where he teamed up with his twin brother to launch a pharmaceutical company that went on to invent an epinephrine injection device for the treatment of allergic emergencies (anaphylaxis) as well as an emergency injector to treat a person who has overdosed on opiates. Eric went on to not only finish medical school but also obtain his PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences, all while continuing to ride on the ambulance and support in training other advanced life support providers as a medical director.

During his calls as a first responder, Eric was exposed to the most vulnerable patients in need of life saving care, and he frequently encountered people with uncontrolled blood pressure and other health challenges that stemmed directly from inequities in access to healthcare. In addition to the health disparities he encountered through his profession, Eric and wife Autumn were both touched by heart disease in their own close circles of family and friends. Both of their fathers suffered, and recovered from, massive heart attacks and their world was rocked when a close friend and employee of their then company died on a business trip from sudden cardiac arrest. “When it’s personal and happens to a loved one,” said Eric, “it’s different. It makes it real.”

When just a few years ago they were approached to get more involved with the AHA in Richmond, Eric heeded the calling to help others was once again and he came to Autumn with the opportunity. Despite initial hesitations based on their impossibly busy schedules as working parents of three teens, Autumn was on board. “No wasn’t even a choice,” she said. “We felt like the work of the AHA was so important, it felt like perfect timing.” The two dove in head first, making a substantial three-year corporate gift from Eric’s current medication manufacturing company that focused on blood pressure education in the community. The couple then stepped up as chairs of the 2022 Richmond Heart Ball and wanted to ensure they were leading their community by example. “We wanted to play a significant role,” they said. And so they began to explore various options to make a personal contribution to the campaign as well. When their financial advisor floated the concept of a DAF – a Donor Advised Fund – they were unfamiliar but intrigued. “There were a lot of great reasons to consider giving through a DAF,” said Eric. In addition to the tax benefits, they enjoyed knowing that through a DAF, their gift would be invested and would increase over time. “What better way to show our commitment to a cause we really believe in than through a process that allows our contribution to grow above and beyond the initial investment.” They also were particularly interested in being able to advise where the funds would be used, in their case in funding research and addressing health disparities in their community.

The Edwards say they would highly recommend others to look into giving through a DAF. “The process is easy to do, seamless, and it’s a unique way to have a greater impact that just a single gift.”