My Great Strides Story
Maureen Riordan
Maureen Riordan
I feel like I say the same thing every year, but it is incredibly hard to believe that this will be our 21st Great Strides walk for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation – our first walk was when Megan was just about 5 months old.
2024 into 2025 was a difficult year for Megan. She wasn’t feeling her best and we kept eliminating what could be wrong but not finding what the real issue was. Her lungs were great, her pulmonary function tests were high, so what was going on??
In the Fall, for an “away from campus” program, Megan was in Woodland Park, CO (not far from Colorado College) at a program called TREE (Teaching and Research in Environmental Education). It was extremely fulfilling for her, especially as she was teaching 5th graders and high schoolers in what I like to call their “Outdoor Ed.” Unfortunately, Megan’s health continued to decline in the Fall, to the point where she was having difficulty getting work done and was unable to read.
Turns out, she had very blocked sinuses, one on her optic nerve. I’ll skip the middle part of testing and waiting, but we are very grateful that Northwestern was able to get her in for sinus surgery in January. While she is still healing, she is doing so much better and is back on campus to start Block 6 on Monday, February 17. Our gratitude that she chose the Block Plan of Colorado College is immense. She missed block 5, so she needs to make up only one class.
Since we began, Team Megan has raised over $1,200,000, and we know that Team Megan has made a difference in so many lives. Alyftrek, a life changing drug that improves upon Trikafta from 2019, was approved by the FDA on December 20, 2024. Alyftrek treats the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis and it has proven to slow the progression of the disease and prevent the decrease of lung function.
But we are not done. We still need a cure. So, we are asking you, once again, to support Team Megan. A donation of any kind would be greatly appreciated.
Maureen Riordan - Chicago Great Strides
We will be walking in Chicago on Sunday, May 18 at Montrose Harbor. If you are interested in walking with us, you can sign up to walk or just let me know at maureenmriordan@gmail.com.
We are continually grateful for the outpouring of love and support. Thank you so much! Love,
Frank, Maureen, Megan and Kelsey
2024 into 2025 was a difficult year for Megan. She wasn’t feeling her best and we kept eliminating what could be wrong but not finding what the real issue was. Her lungs were great, her pulmonary function tests were high, so what was going on??
In the Fall, for an “away from campus” program, Megan was in Woodland Park, CO (not far from Colorado College) at a program called TREE (Teaching and Research in Environmental Education). It was extremely fulfilling for her, especially as she was teaching 5th graders and high schoolers in what I like to call their “Outdoor Ed.” Unfortunately, Megan’s health continued to decline in the Fall, to the point where she was having difficulty getting work done and was unable to read.
Turns out, she had very blocked sinuses, one on her optic nerve. I’ll skip the middle part of testing and waiting, but we are very grateful that Northwestern was able to get her in for sinus surgery in January. While she is still healing, she is doing so much better and is back on campus to start Block 6 on Monday, February 17. Our gratitude that she chose the Block Plan of Colorado College is immense. She missed block 5, so she needs to make up only one class.
Since we began, Team Megan has raised over $1,200,000, and we know that Team Megan has made a difference in so many lives. Alyftrek, a life changing drug that improves upon Trikafta from 2019, was approved by the FDA on December 20, 2024. Alyftrek treats the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis and it has proven to slow the progression of the disease and prevent the decrease of lung function.
But we are not done. We still need a cure. So, we are asking you, once again, to support Team Megan. A donation of any kind would be greatly appreciated.
Maureen Riordan - Chicago Great Strides
We will be walking in Chicago on Sunday, May 18 at Montrose Harbor. If you are interested in walking with us, you can sign up to walk or just let me know at maureenmriordan@gmail.com.
We are continually grateful for the outpouring of love and support. Thank you so much! Love,
Frank, Maureen, Megan and Kelsey
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