When the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation asked me what my goals were for the 2017 Volunteer Leadership Conference (VLC), I said I wanted everyone to walk away from the experience informed, inspired, engaged, invigorated, and in-step -- dancing and working together. I hope we hit the mark.

The theme for this year's conference was "TeamMATEs for a Cure", and two teammates took time to share their VLC experiences: Bonnee Binker, from Miami, Fla., who has been to the VLC for six years, and Megan Kanofsky, from Los Angeles, Calif., a newcomer attending the VLC for the first time.

Because of volunteers like Bonnee and Megan, families like mine have hope that a cure will be found. We came together for the conference to celebrate success, remind ourselves how far we've come, and to make plans for the future -- and that's exactly what we did.