Magdalena Jistel

Our story began 8 years ago when our daughter Vivian was born. She was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. We had no idea how much our lives would change. Vivian was only 3 weeks old when we got the call from our pediatrician. We learned about her diagnosis from the Texas newborn screening. We were told that this rare disease affects approximately 30,000 Americans. At the time Vivan was born, the average life span of a CF patient was 37 years old. Can you believe that in 7 short years, because of the money raised to go towards groundbreaking research and medicine, we are now looking at the late 40s for an average life span! We’ve come so far, but there is still so much work to do.

When Vivian turned 6 she became eligible to take Trikafta, the most groundbreaking CF drug treatment to date. Thanks to Trikafta and the other daily treatments, Vivian is thriving. None of these medical breakthroughs would be possible without fundraising efforts like Great Strides.  

Aaron and I will continue fighting the fight against this disease until we have a cure for Vivian. Please consider donating to my Great Strides fundraising campaign today! Your gift will help add tomorrows to the lives of people with cystic fibrosis by supporting research and medical progress towards a cure. Please help me reach my fundraising goal! 

Will you join us?

Great Strides is a fun event that provides a fantastic opportunity for family, friends, students, and colleagues to come together to make a difference in the lives of people with CF.

To participate, just click on the "Join our Team" button. From there, you can make a donation and start fundraising.

By joining our Great Strides team and making a donation, you will be part of a tenacious and passionate group of peo