Dear Family and Friends!
It’s a new year, and we’re approaching it with renewed hope and excitement! After two years of virtual events, the Great Strides Walk will once again be in person this year. Our CF community is energized to be back together to celebrate advances and work toward our common purpose. This past year we hit a milestone that was difficult to imagine when Will was first diagnosed – the median age of people with CF hit 50! This is thanks to all of the therapies that have been developed over the last 40 years, including the latest drugs that have benefitted Will and many others. Those therapies are directly connected to the money we, as a CF community, have raised over the years. You are such an important part of that community – your support both financially and personally provides us with such love and support, keeping us going in this work!
Hidden in these numbers, however, is the fact that there are others who have not yet been able to benefit from these new therapies. As a community, we won’t let these children, adults and their families down. We will continue to raise money to find a treatment for all! We also don’t know the long term effects of current therapies, so we strive for an ultimate cure for cystic fibrosis. This dream is why we continue to organize the walk and continue to reach out to you, our friends and family, to support us in our dream.
This year, we are proud that Janie has stepped up as the Great Strides Ambassador for our walk. In addition to leading her own team, she has come together with other ambassadors throughout the chapter to advocate for our walks, spread the word through social media and brainstorm unique fundraising methods and ways to tell the CF community story. As a CF sibling, she brings a unique perspective, and, as you can imagine, she brings great energy and love. All this while teaching kindergarten and preparing for her wedding to her wonderful fiancé, James, who, aside from being a great guy and a Mets fan, has been committed to our walk since we’ve known him.
Will is in his third year in Chicago with his fabulous partner, Roxy. While pursuing his filmmaking training, Will had a part-time job tutoring math. As the pandemic hit, Will continued that work on-line. This past year, Will was asked to come on full-time as a tutoring center director. As the environment for film work starts opening up, he is able to pursue some of those opportunities as well. We admire his dedication to working diligently with his students and families during the pandemic, all while taking care of himself and staying healthy.
We appreciate you all so much and send you lots of love!
Amy and Greg
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IMPORTANT NOTE ON ATTENDANCE AT FOUNDATION EVENTS:
Updated June 15, 2022. To reduce the risk of COVID-19 the Foundation is taking steps to host safe events for our community. Please be advised that events may be subject to change at any time based on guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and local health officials.
To minimize the risk of COVID-19 infection, we ask that attendees at CF Foundation events follow these steps:
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