In 2023, Ilisa Juried and her husband, Raji, moved to a townhouse in Valencia by FivePoint because the area is safe, has good schools and open space, and offers a healthy lifestyle. The couple wanted a place they could call home. They found it.
“We’re so close with all the neighbors here,” Juried said during a recent telephone interview. “We’ve really made sure that we have groups that look out for each other, and we do things together. We’ve built that community, which is so important for me having a child — to have that around her. We want to stay here long term, build our future here. Living here, you have the opportunity to see that you’re investing in something that’s going to continue to grow.”
Juried was born in Queens, New York, and she was raised in Parkland, Florida. At age 18, she was performing — dancing — for a group of 500 elementary school students near her home in Florida when a strange feeling came over her. She told herself at the time to just keep going.
All she remembered after that was being on the ground and looking up at a crowd of people hovering over her.
“I didn’t know what was going on,” Juried said. “I was rushed to the hospital, and they kind of just dismissed it. They didn’t think there was anything heart-related with an 18-year-old. I was super skinny at the time — I was doing modeling and dancing on tour. And so, they just kind of thought, ‘Maybe she’s just anemic or needs to eat more.’”
And with that, the hospital released her.
Six weeks later, Juried was with her mother in New York City to sign a potential record deal. While in a subway station, waiting for a train, she spotted a crew of dancers performing for the public.
“I told my mom, ‘I want to go in. I want to jump in and start dancing,’” she said. “And so, I did. And about 15 seconds in, I started feeling that exact same feeling again that I had six weeks prior.”
Juried’s mom was video recording the dancing, not seeing what her daughter was feeling. Juried then grabbed her mother’s arm and collapsed. She’d later learn that she had gone into cardiac arrest.
Once her mom saw there was a problem, she screamed out, asking if anyone in the station knew CPR.
“Three random strangers came out of nowhere and started giving me CPR,” Juried said. “And they didn’t stop until the paramedics got there 30 minutes later. It just so happened that two of those women were nurses. That was a major saving grace. And then the third person — nobody knows who he was. He was a German gentleman who was counting in German while they were doing CPR.”
Juried said that once paramedics showed up, the German man disappeared. Nobody, she said, knew what happened to him. Many have told her that they believe he was an angel.
Juried was then rushed to the hospital. Some thought she wasn’t going to make it.
“I ended up being there for over a month and a half,” Juried said. “It was pretty crazy.”
Ultimately, Juried would get an implanted defibrillator to keep her from going into cardiac arrest again. She still has one in her chest to this day. It’s not the same device. She’s had it replaced a few times over the years. But it’s become a part of her life.
Juried works as a singer, songwriter and motivational speaker, performing all over the world. She speaks at American Heart Association events and at churches, sharing with others her story and how she was saved. It was her work in the entertainment business that brought her out to Southern California in 2008.
In May 2023, Juried and her husband welcomed their daughter, Yarah, into the world. A month and a half later, they moved into their townhouse in Valencia by FivePoint. Juried and her husband eventually want to expand their family, and they feel comfortable knowing that their kids, should they have more, will all be able to walk to school safely.
The family enjoys time at the parks, and they take multiple walks a day and spend a good amount of time at the Valencia Town Center mall. They also spend a considerable amount of time at Target, Juried said with a giggle.
“And, oh my gosh, parking is great,” she added. “One: You don’t have to pay for parking out here. Yeah, it’s completely different out here. I mean, there’s no comparison.”
Juried still works in the entertainment industry. Her husband also works in entertainment and in ministry. In the next year, the couple will be looking to go from their townhome to a house in Valencia, though they hope to keep the townhome as a rental.
In the meantime, Juried is becoming more on the move. She said that after doctors discovered her heart condition, she’d stopped so many of her physical activities, including dancing professionally. Since moving to Valencia, however, she’s again become engaged in a more physical lifestyle, enjoying outdoor activities — especially sunrises and sunsets — thanks to the area’s open space and fresh air. The change has reignited her motivation to stay active.
“One of the things that I talk about when I’m speaking in public,” she said, “is how important it is to be an advocate of your health.”
Overall, Juried said, that’s exactly what she and her family are doing in Valencia.
“Community Inspired” is a new editorial series focusing on people who are strengthening our community and essential to the future of the Santa Clarita Valley. The monthly series — and accompanying podcast — is presented by Valencia by FivePoint.
