I was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at just 18 months old. At the time, my parents were told my life expectancy was 19 years and to prepare for a future that might never include college, a career, or motherhood. Today, I hold a master's degree, work as a nurse practitioner, and am raising a little boy who is my whole world. None of that was guaranteed.

CF has shaped every chapter of my life. I grew up in and out of hospitals, lost my youngest brother Bailey - who also had CF - at just four years old, and have faced multiple life-threatening lung infections as an adult. There were seasons when survival wasn't promised, when treatment was brutal, and when the future felt painfully uncertain.

I started hiking during one of those seasons - not because it was easy, but because I needed something that reminded me I was still strong, still alive, and still capable of choosing hope. Step by step, the mountains became my therapy, my training ground, and my proof that my body - even with CF - could do hard things.

Thanks to research funded by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, treatments have changed dramatically. Medications that didn't exist when I was born now allow me to breathe easier, work, hike, and be the mom I dreamed of becoming. But not everyone with CF benefits from these therapies yet - and that's why this work isn't finished.

I'm hiking this year for myself, for my brother, for my friends living with CF, for those we've lost, and for my son - so I can keep showing up for him for decades to come.

Every mile I walk and every dollar raised brings us closer to a future where CF truly stands for Cure Found.

Thank you for believing in that future with me - and for helping me climb toward it, one step at a time.