Tulsa Heart Walk
The American Heart Association's annual community walk in downtown Tulsa: survivor recognition, corporate teams, and pledged fundraising for cardiovascular research.
Tulsa's energy industry, including Williams Companies, ONEOK, and others, has long been one of the city's defining civic institutions. That corporate culture shows up at the Heart Walk. Teams come out in matching shirts with company banners, walking alongside heart disease survivors, their families, and community members supporting the AHA's mission. The 2026 walk's featured survivor, Barry "Coach" Hinson, an Oklahoma State University associate athletic director, underwent a routine coronary artery calcium screening with no symptoms and no warning signs. Doctors found a 90 percent blockage in his widow-maker artery and blockages throughout his heart, leading to quintuple bypass surgery. He has since become an outspoken advocate for preventive screening, sharing his story with the Tulsa community as this year's featured survivor. ESW manages full event operations for the American Heart Association's Tulsa market.
The Tulsa Heart Walk is part of the American Heart Association's national Heart Walk program, held in cities across the United States each spring, and serves as the signature event of the AHA's Heart Challenge program for corporate teams. The 2026 walk was held Saturday, April 11, at ONEOK Field, with gates opening at 8 a.m. and the walk starting at 10 a.m. on one and three-mile routes. Participants include corporate teams, heart disease and stroke survivors and their families, and community members, with the day built around survivor recognition, team fundraising, and Hands-Only CPR education.
The American Heart Association was founded in 1924 and has grown into one of the largest voluntary health organizations in the United States. Its Heart Walk program, held in cities nationwide, is the AHA's primary community fundraising vehicle. The Tulsa Heart Walk has run at ONEOK Field for years running: KTUL covered the 2023 edition, led that year by Matthew Gleeson of Crossland Construction, who said, "The Heart Walk is all about promoting the health and well-being of our community and supporting the AHA's mission to save lives." Fox23 Tulsa has covered the event in each of the following years as well, including 2025 and 2026, with Boeing serving as the 2026 walk's title sponsor.
Press Coverage
Fox23 (KOKI-TV)
Tulsa Heart Walk kicks off featuring survivor's life-saving message
"Coverage of the 2026 walk featuring Barry "Coach" Hinson's story of preventive screening and quintuple bypass surgery."
American Heart Association Newsroom
Heart survivor Barry "Coach" Hinson to inspire community at the 2026 Tulsa Heart Walk
"AHA announcement of the 2026 walk's featured survivor and his advocacy for preventive cardiac screening."
News On 6 (KOTV)
Thousands gather for Tulsa Heart Walk to fight heart disease, celebrate survivors
"Coverage of the 2025 walk gathering corporate teams, survivors, and families at ONEOK Field."
KTUL (ABC 8)
Tulsa Heart Walk kicks off for 2023
"Coverage of the 2023 edition, led by Matthew Gleeson of Crossland Construction."
I am living proof just doing a checkup saved my life. Heart disease is the number one killer, not just for men, but for women too. If I could tell everyone one thing, it's to go get screened.
Full operations for the American Heart Association's annual community walk in downtown Tulsa.
The Tulsa Heart Walk starts and finishes at ONEOK Field, home of the Tulsa Drillers, with the walk route itself taking participants out through the streets of downtown Tulsa and back to the ballpark. The event's production covers the full range: site setup and breakdown, participant and team registration flow, survivor recognition programming, vendor coordination, and the overall experience that keeps everyone moving through the event comfortably, including the Hands-Only CPR stations that are central to the day. ESW coordinates directly with the American Heart Association's Tulsa chapter staff throughout planning and execution.
Key Project Leads
“The Heart Walk is one of those events where you can feel the mission in the room. Watching survivors and their families move through a site our team built gives every part of the planning process real weight.”
“When thousands of people gather for a cause this deeply personal, our goal is to make the logistics completely invisible. We spend months dialing in the site flow, vendor schedules, and route details alongside the American Heart Association. By the time the event begins, our team is managing the operational heavy lifting behind the scenes so the staff, sponsors, and families can focus entirely on celebrating and supporting one another.”
“Survivor recognition is the heart of this event, so the site has to be built around it. We treat that staging and the CPR education stations with the same care as the walk route itself, because that's what people remember when they leave.”
The Tulsa Heart Walk brings together Tulsa's corporate community, survivors, and families each year for a walk that starts and ends at ONEOK Field. ESW manages full event operations on behalf of the American Heart Association's Tulsa chapter: site setup, participant and team registration flow, survivor recognition programming, and vendor coordination.
Annual
Community Tradition
Consistently covered by local Tulsa media as a recognized spring event
~200
Walkers
Corporate teams, heart disease and stroke survivors, and families walking together each year
AHA
National Program
Part of the American Heart Association's Heart Walk events held in cities across the U.S.
2023–26
Media Coverage
Covered by KTUL and Fox23 across consecutive years
The Heart Walk shows what Tulsa can do together. By supporting this year-round movement, we're not just raising funds, we're equipping more people with lifesaving skills and helping make Tulsa a stronger, healthier place. Our vision is for every home to be ready to respond to a cardiac emergency, and we're grateful to everyone who helped us take a big step toward that goal.
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