Hi all!
Thank you for supporting my fundraising efforts. Your contributions will be supporting a very good cause.
I have decided to run the Boston Marathon this April to support an organization that our family has been deeply involved with – ‘Friends of LADDERS’ (FOL). LADDERS (Learning and Developmental Disabilities Evaluation and Rehabilitation Services) is a multi-disciplinary clinic dedicated to helping children and adults with neurobiological disorders: Autism, PDD, Rett syndrome, learning disabilities, Attention Deficit Disorder, seizures and headaches.
Our oldest son has been diagnosed with Pervasive Development Disorder (PDD) which is categorized as an Autism Spectrum Disorder. We have been actively involved with the LADDERS program for the past few years and they have proved to be a significant resource for our son and our family.
Autism is a complex neurobiological disorder that affects 1 out of every 150 children making it more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined. It occurs in all racial, ethnic, and social groups and is four times more likely to strike boys than girls. Autism impairs a person's ability to communicate and relate to others and symptoms can range from very mild to quite severe.
Although difficult to objectively assess, Autism can usually be diagnosed by age 3.
Currently, there are no effective means to prevent autism, no fully effective treatments, and no cure.
Friends of Ladders, Inc. is an organization of parents, civic leaders, businesspersons, professionals, and other volunteers committed to providing support to the LADDERS program and to raise funds to underwrite expansion projects. Aware of the reality that children with developmental disorders including PDD/Autism cannot always be adequately serviced through healthcare or education dollars alone, Friends of LADDERS hopes to bridge the gap by raising private funds.
In addition, Friends of LADDERS provides educational and outreach forums for parents and professionals.
I hope that you will support my efforts by giving a generous gift and, in doing so, help give assistance to an organization that has done so much to support children with Autism and related disorders.
Thank you!
*I would like to recognize additional contributions made by the following:
The Markey Family, The Maney Family, The Robinson Family, The Horrigan family and GSK, Dr John Michaels, The Bernstein Family,
Paul and Joanne Sartori, Geoff and Elinor Juviler, Patricia Ryan
Thank you all for your support!