$10,000 for CF by October 31, 2009. Help us find the cure!!

Our Story: When our daughter Clare was born in 2007 we thought she was the healthy normal baby everyone prays for. We were thrilled! Her cousin Elliot was born only a few weeks earlier. Eventhough she was small, Clare grew just as we expected her to. Elliot didn't grow and didn't thrive. His doctors and parents urgently searched for an answer. When Clare was two months old Elliot was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis. He began treatments and in a few months was beginning to catch up to his cousin in size and weight.

Clare has always been very similar to Elliot in size and weight, coloration. We are thrilled at how well Elliot has been doing with treatments. Recently Elliot even passed Clare in weight.

There was always this little fear in the back of our minds that Clare and Elliot were too similar and that we should have her tested for Cystic Fibrosis. But our fears seemed more like a fear of the boogyman than reality. We were reassured time and again that she was growing normally and staying on the growth curve even though she was small. Having Clare checked for CF felt like checking for monsters under the bed.

This last march Clare was playing playing outside and fell down a short set of cement steps. She turned upside down in the air and landed on her head. We rushed her to the ER where they did a CT scan to determine if she had internal damage of any type. She was fine, at least her skull, brain and forehead were. They could see from the scan that her sinuses were extremely enlarged and full.

The doctors told us that it was probably an acute sinus infection. The ENT Dr. checked her out and disagreed. She's had no fever, only a clear runny nose and no lethargy or other signs of being sick. "She's not sick", he said. He thought the ER might have been mistaken and overreacted. When he looked at the CT scan he knew they weren't.

The suspicion was a mucus plug or nasal polyps. Both of which are very common in people with CF. It was after hearing this that we told them that there is a recent history of CF on her dads side of the family. We scheduled the Sweat Test and and MRI for the next week.

We brought her in for testing on the following Friday at 7:30 am and were finished by noon. We were so sure the results would be normal and turn out negative. We didn't expect the results until the following Monday, but the doctor called at 4:15pm that same afternoon.

He told us the devastating results. The Sweat Chloride Test was positive. We were sad and shocked about the situation.

Over the past few months we have felt a tremendous amount of love pouring in from family, friends and neighbors. We already knew a little about CF through Clare's cousin Elliot; now we are getting to know it personally. Help us as we support the search for a cure.

Please help us meet our fund-raising goal this year of $10,000 by October 31st. Your generous gift will be used efficiently and effectively, as nearly 90 cents of every dollar of revenue raised is available for investment in vital CF programs to support research, care and education.

Making a donation is easy and secure! Just click the "Click to Donate" button on this page to go to make a donation that will be credited to my team. Any amount you can donate is greatly appreciated!

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a devastating genetic disease that affects tens of thousands of children and young adults in the United States. Research and care supported by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation is making a huge difference in extending the quality of life for those with CF. However, we continue to lose precious lives to CF every day. That's why your help is needed now more than ever to ensure that a cure is found sooner - rather than later. To learn more about CF and the CF Foundation, visit www.cff.org.

Together, we can make a difference in the lives of those with CF! Thank you for supporting the mission of the CF Foundation!