About Baby Hearts Press

Anna & Frank Jaworski

In July 2013 Anna got a phone call that would change her life. Josh Bernstein from VoiceAmerica called Anna to talk about the possibility of being the Host of a talk radio show. That phone call was the beginning of Anna's life as the Host of "Heart to Heart with Anna." Anna really enjoyed working with the Voice America staff but for financial reasons, she had to leave at the end of her first season.

Anna moved the show to BlogTalkRadio in 2014. Anna learned how to sound engineer her own shows and published 242 episodes on that platform before moving to Spreaker. Introduced to Buzzsprout at a Podcast Movement conference, Anna decided to have her podcast available on both Spreaker and Buzzpsout. By 2023, over 420 episodes of “Heart to Heart with Anna” are available on these two platforms.

In 2016 Hearts Unite the Globe, the nonprofit organization supporting “Heart to Heart with Anna” launched two additional podcasts and created the HUG Podcast Network. “Heart to Heart with Michael: A Podcast for the Bereaved Community” and “Heart to Heart with Nicole and David” both debuted in 2016. Anna is the Executive Producer of both podcasts.

As of 2023, the HUG Podcast Network has over 500 podcast episodes. The network currently produces four podcasts (“Heart to Heart with Anna,” “Bereaved But Still Me” (formerly known as ““Heart to Heart with Michael”),“Guerreros del Corazón,” and “The CHC Podcast: Congenital Heart Conversations.”)

Owners and founders of Baby Hearts Press are Frank and Anna Jaworski. They are the parents of an adult who was originally diagnosed with a complex, congenital heart defect known as hypoplastic left heart syndrome. As a concerned mother, Anna looked for resources to help her understand her son's condition. In 1994, those resources were nowhere to be found, so Anna started writing resources and making them available to parents everywhere. Frank was BHP’s first illustrator, bringing complex heart surgeries and conditions to life through simplified diagrams.

Anna's first book was Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome: A Handbook for Parents. The book has been reviewed by Library Journal twice and has become a staple in many hospitals that treat children with hypoplastic left heart syndrome.

While preparing Alex and Joey for Alex's second open-heart surgery, Anna sought resources to help her older son, Joey. At the time Joey was a toddler and he was extremely affected by being separated from the family during Alex's first, emergency surgery. Anna hoped to find a book to help Joey through Alex’s second surgery and hospitalization. She couldn't find the resource she was looking for in print. After Alex recovered from his second open-heart surgery, Anna decided that she needed to put together a resource for families like her own. My Brother Needs an Operation tells Joey's story about having a brother in the hospital while he was left behind.

Thanks to the Internet, and with the support of fellow Heart Mom, Jane Hunt, Anna decided to create a book for heart mothers telling their stories. The result was The Heart of a Mother.

Next, Anna started working on The Heart of a Father: Essays by Men Affected by Congenital Heart Defects. This companion book to The Heart of a Mother contains essays and poems by over 50 men from around the world. Many of the men were husbands to the women who wrote for The Heart of a Mother so readers can see what happened to the children they were introduced ten years later. After Bob Daigneault (Anna’s father) became the co-editor, the book was finally published in 2009.

After publishing several books, Anna was asked to speak at some CHC/CHD conferences and events. This required her to learn more about public speaking and to overcome her fear of public speaking. In 2001 Anna joined Toastmasters International and today she is a Distinguished Toastmaster, which is the highest designation any Toastmaster can earn. With the help of her Toastmasters training, Anna has spoken across the United States and Canada.

Anna has written numerous articles and contributed to two medical textbooks, a nursing journal, and a cardiology journal. She has served as a witness in a federal court case. She has also had the joy of personally meeting people from around the world—Heart Parents, Grandparents and Heart Warriors she is happy to call friends.

Awards

Awards

The Mended Little Hearts 2019 Tita Hutchins Award

Mom’s Choice Award for My Brother Needs an Operation

Distinguished Toastmasters Award

Anna’s Distinguished Toastmaster medal