Big hearted employees encouraged to help hearts with valentine appeal

This month, the British Heart Foundation (BHF) is really taking Valentineís Day to heart and urging generous employees to support its BHF Valentine Appeal by giving a ëGift of an Hourí. All money raised from the Appeal will help fund much needed BHF Heart Nurses and the BHFís Heart Information Line.

By donating just one hour of your salary this Valentineís Day, you can help the BHF to care for and support more heart patients and their families across the UK. It couldnít be easier ñ just visit bhf.org.uk/valentine and we will even calculate the sum for you. So thereís no excuse not to get involved - even for those workaholics strapped to their desk from dusk till dawn!

There are lots of other ways to get involved in the campaign for both individual workers and big hearted businesses. To find out how love is all around you this Valentineís Day, visit bhf.org.uk/valentine and explore the different ways you can bring love to your workplace:

- Bosses who want to spread good will can order a free Love Note pack from the BHF by calling 0870 126295, encouraging their caring employees to write their own Valentine message and for 1, stick it to the poster supplied and display for all to see!

- Whether youíre mad about Madonna or crazy for Queen, the BHF music themed sweepstake poster is the perfect way to get involved. Just ask your colleagues to pay 1 to guess which famous love song is concealed under the scratch off record on the poster. With 50 songs to choose from - thereís bound to be a choice that melts your heart.

- For those who want to make a more personal donation, givealovenote.com is a great way to show your loved one you care with a personalized, saucy Valentine message.

In the UK today, there are over 2.6 million people living with coronary heart disease. For some this can be very frightening and debilitating, and many donít always receive the support and care that they need. Last year, BHF Heart Nurses were able to help 50,000 of these heart patients and the charityís Heart Information Line provided support and information to 13,000 callers. We want to help even more ñ but we need your help.

Jackie Skeel, Head of Fundraising Promotions at British Heart Foundation adds, ìBy donating just one hour of your salary you really can help us to make a difference and care for even more heart patients and their loved ones. We hope that businesses from Brighton to Belfast get involved this Valentineís Day ñ together we can beat heart disease.î