My family and I have been raising money for Cystic Fibrosis every year since I was born - this is our 42nd year participating!! Since I was born healthy, my parents wanted to give back to others by devoting our time every year to raising money for research. I am now passing this fundraising tradition on to my children, Julia and William, who were thankfully born healthy in 2015 and 2020.  

In 2022, I was honored and humbled to receive the Hero of Hope Award by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of WNY for the Rochester region, which is given to a volunteer without a direct connection to CF who furthers fundraising and/or awareness.

Cystic Fibrosis is a life-threatening genetic disease that affects the lungs and digestive systems of tens of thousands of children and young adults. Ten million Americans are symptom-less carriers of the defective gene that causes CF and although recently developed therapies have made a huge difference in treating the symptoms of CF, we lose one person to the disease every day. By making a donation to the CF Foundation you are ensuring that those living with the disease will live longer and more productive lives.

When the foundation was created over 65 years ago, children with CF were not expected to see their first day of elementary school. When my family started fundraising in 1983 the average life expectancy was under 20 years. Incredibly, in 2024, the life expectancy for people born with CF now is 53!

Remarkable progress has been made but we are not there yet. We will continue to fight until CF stands for Cure Found.

We will be participating in the Great Strides Walkathon in Rochester’s Genesee Valley Park on May 18^th and appreciate your support!

Thank you for your consideration, every little bit helps!

Linda