Steve Michels

GREAT STRIDES 2024

Hello again family and friends!

It is that time when we send along a little update on Christina and ask for your help in making CF stand for ‘Cure Found.’

This will be our 29th year of watching Christina live with this disease. And just like everything in life, things get more complicated as we get older. Christina has always been open about her issues with CF, and has done an excellent job of explaining some of these complexities to you each and every year. 

But sometimes, we get tired of it all, don’t we? You need a vacation-but there’s never a vacation from CF. 

She has to get up every day and do her nebulizer treatments, followed by her therapy vest to keep the mucus from getting stuck in her lungs. She has to take her handfuls of medications before she can eat. She has to make sure her insulin pump delivers the correct amount of insulin for the food she will eat. And then, she has to do this again after a few hours. And again….and then it’s time to go to bed, and hope that she can sleep, because she’s utterly exhausted. 

You might ask how she does this, day in and day out. Sometimes we ask ourselves that same question. She’s amazingly strong and determined. 

You may also be wondering where is the progress in CF? Where is that cure??

Well, there have been many breakthroughs in the last 29 years. The most recent has been Trikafta, a triple-combination drug that helps many people function as if they do not have CF. Christina wrote about it in her letters over the last couple of years. 

But, CF is a genetic disease, meaning there are mutations in the genetic code that cause CF. 

And there are over 2,000 known mutations that cause CF! How do the researchers get to the point of curing a disease with that many genetic mutations??

That’s where you come in!! It takes millions of dollars to buy the science that it takes to research, develop, test, and get through clinical trials in order to finally arrive at FDA approval. That’s why we still fundraise to this date. We watch Christina take care of herself every day, but she is not living the life of most 34 year olds. Her life is solitary, and complicated. And we want more than that for her.

So, we ask you to join us in our ongoing efforts in fundraising for a cure for CF. 

The Annual Great Strides Walk to Cure CF will take place on Saturday, June 1st this year.

And we will be heading to the northern suburbs for our new location:

Independence Grove-North Bay Pavilion 

Libertyville, Il

Check in begins: 9 am

Walk begins: 10 am

Length of walk: 2 miles

We would love if you could join us!

We would also be so grateful for your donations, as always.

You can send us a check, if that is convenient for you, or you can click the link below. 

If you work for a company that has a Matching Gifts program, we would be very grateful if you chose to make your donation that way.

Now, as always, your donations and support can make a difference not only in Christina’s life, but for all CF fighters. Thank you for standing by our family as we face the many challenges that CF continues to present us.

Until it’s done-

Ronda and Steve