Gift of Life International, a Manhasset-based group providing life-saving cardiac treatment for children across the globe, is eyeing treatment for its 50,000th child and will be launching a campaign headquarters to raise money and awareness for this milestone.

“It gives us an opportunity to tell that story and the sequence that will lead up to a 50,000th child coming here,” Gift of Life founder Robbie Donno said.

Gift of Life was established in 1975 when the Manhasset Rotary brought 5-year-old Grace Agwaru from Uganda to Roslyn’s St. Francis Hospital for life-saving heart surgery. Since then Gift of Life has saved the lives of thousands of children from more than 80 countries.

Donno said Gift of Life provides help to families and children who have no other means to provide life-saving measures for their child, oftentimes with the threat of death looming over them. He called Gift of Life a “miracle” to these families who face no other options.

Now they are anticipating a new milestone of treating their 50,000th child later this year. Donno estimated the 50,000th child will arrive for treatment sometime at the end of August or September.

The headquarters for this milestone will be located at the old Chocolate Works store on Plandome Road and will be unveiled at a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 5 p.m. Sunday during Manhasset’s Al Fresco. The campaign headquarters will be open for two months.

The organization will be selling $2 hearts to raise money for treating children in its “buy a heart/save a heart” campaign. Hearts will then be displayed in the store window.

Donno said this is intended to get as many people from the community involved as possible.

“We hope to cover the walls and windows with hearts so that when the child and mother arrive, they will feel the love of all the good people involved,” Manhasset Rotary President John Kennedy said in a statement.

But the headquarters’ purpose extends beyond just raising money, Donno said, as it will also raise awareness of the notable people within the Manhasset community who have made it possible for Gift of Life to continue treating so many children.

Gift of Life is made possible by the collaboration of multiple organizations and individuals, Donno said. This includes the Rotary Club of Manhasset, the Manhasset Chamber of Commerce and local hospitals like St. Francis.

“It speaks to the nature of the people that are here,” Donno said. “This is a great community to live in and to work in.”

Donno said Gift of Life unifies individuals under a common denominator: the love people have for their children.

“What’s started here in Manhasset, we’re now doing 5,000 children a year,” Donno said. “So it’s taken us 48 years to do 50,000 children. If I eat my fruits and vegetables, I may last long enough to see the 100,000th child. So when you look behind you, you’ve changed the lives of a lot of people.”