Team HOPE

Welcome to Team HOPE!

Here we are again! Thanks for visiting our team page to learn our team's story and (hopefully) make a donation! Our team is organized in honor of my amazing little lovey, Hope. Hope is in 1st grade this year at Wildwood Elementary School in Amherst, MA. For someone that never expressed interest in school and would prefer to spend her time sprinkling sunshine willy nilly, the structure of first grade surrounded by actual human beings has been great for her. She loves her friends, her teachers, an is excited about the things she does in school.

Hope wants to grow up to be a modelartistrockstar/bugscientistfarmer. And she probably will. In addition to being a part time diva, she is kind and compassionate, brave and opinionated, and not easily derailed - there's a drummer in her head and music in her soul and she is happiest when dancing along to it. She also is still dancing at Shooting Star Dance Center. Hope is a cuddle bug who brings so much love and joy to our hearts and touches the lives of all who enocunter her. She is truly a force to be reckoned with. She told me just today that if she ever had to come up with a password it would be "joyfulforever" WHAT?! (Please dont hack her future accounts) She blows my mind daily with her positive attitude, her ability to recognize the element of choice involved in such relentless joy, and her commitment to embodying that choice as central to her identity and the energy she WANTS to bring to the universe. I don't know whether living with a chronic illness has somehow played a role in the development of her smile muscles, but the fact that she does live with CF is central to my hope for a cure and participation in Great Strides - the largest annual fundraiser benefitting the CF Foundation.

There are approximately 30,000 Americans living with cystic fibrosis. They are moms, dads, sisters, brothers, daughters, sons, friends and co-workers who struggle every day just to breathe. Hope is one of them. Every day we, her family and friends, wake up knowing that something besides her amazing light plays a role in what Hope's future - and present - looks like. Something our love cannot fix. Something our guidance, counsel, and cumulative years of wisdom and experience cannot mitigate. Please help us ensure that Cystic Fibrosis - this microscopic piece of Hope's DNA - does not limit her access to opportunites or in any way prevent her from realizing her potential as a powerful force in this world. Healthwise Hope is still doing very well, she was able to start Pulmozyme and Trikafta in August and consistently has PFTs above 100%. Mask wearing has continued to bless us with another winter free of pesky ear and siuns infections and the antibiotics associated with them.

By becoming a member of our team and making a donation, you are joining a growing group of people committed to finding a cure for cystic fibrosis. Together, we are adding tomorrows to the lives of people living with CF by supporting the search for a cure.

Great Strides is a fun, family-friendly event that raises awareness and support for people with CF and their families.