Our Great Strides Story
TeamHope is returning to Great Strides this year after taking a year off to attend a little known event called, "The Eras Tour" on walk weekend 2023. You've probably never heard of it - it didn't get much press.... Anyway, we're a little rusty but hoping to hit the ground running.
This has been big year for Hope. She'll be 9 by walk weekend. She loves bugs and animals and nature and her 11 pets. She is turning into a beautiful young lady (no surprise there!) She is in the process of getting her Big Wish granted by Make A Wish - a treehouse that will hopefully be ready for use by Walk Weenend! She is in 3rd grade now at Wildwood Elementary School and still dancing at Shooting Star Dance Center. She is even participating in the Acro Competition Team this year. Healthwise, Hope is AOK. She has had great PFTs, is on Trikafta, and growing fine...well, too fast for me but she's my baby. It feels good to be able to say she is not "on the radar" of any of her health care providers.
That being said, Hope is still a person with CF. And a person that is growing aware of the number of things she has to do that other people don't...like take her meds, do her breathing treatments, and prioritize her basic physical needs. Trikafta and the other medical advancements that are responsible for dramatically lengthening the lives of so many people with CF can feel like miraculous interventions in the lives of the families that shoulder this burden, but they are not true miracles. They are not cures. And they are not available to every person with CF. Funding the research that will widen the umbrella of modulator covered mutations or develop even brand new therapies is important. And Great Strides is the largest national fund raiser the CF Foundation sponsors.
Please DONATE. And please come walk with us. It's been a transformational year for Hope's awareness of her diagnosis. Make A Wish is providing her something she's really, really pumped to receive but she does understand WHY she is receiving it, and her health produces anxiety for her at times. Her village has to show up for her so she KNOWS she isn't in it alone!
We walk for a cure for all people with cystic fibrosis. By joining our team, you can help us end this disease!
To become a team member, click the “join this team” button. Once you register, it’s easy to donate and start fundraising.
Our team is determined to ensure that every person with CF can live a long, healthy life, without the limitations caused by their disease. We can’t wait for you to join us.
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IMPORTANT NOTE ON ATTENDANCE AT FOUNDATION EVENTS:
Updated July 5th, 2023
The CF Foundation is committed to ensuring the health and wellbeing of individuals attending Foundation events. Individuals attending CF Foundation events must abide by the Foundation's Event Attendance Policy www.cff.org/attendancepolicy, which includes guidance for event attendees living with cystic fibrosis.