Dear Marilyn,

In just a few days our Chicago Marathon team will take to the streets of the Windy City in pursuit of a cure for paralysis (and of course the finish line)! Led by the founder of Spinal Cord Injury Sucks, Geoff Kent, these incredible athletes have been training for months to prepare for this day; we are so grateful that they have chosen Unite 2 Fight Paralysis as their designated charity. While a few of the competitors have met or exceeded their fundraising goals, many of them could use a boost to help get them over the finish line.

Each of them has his or her own fundraising page where you can read personal stories and learn about the racer's connection to spinal cord injury. Several are wheelchair racers, taking up the sport post-injury. This event happens only once a year, and provides an opportunity for you to support not only our charity but also a group of outstanding individuals who race for a cause bigger than themselves. 

Boost a Racer

Jordan Hirstein	Jackie LaTart	Izaiah Hernandez	Mary Grace Nora	Wayne Brunk
Jamie Friederich	Ruby Dennis-Weber	Ben Hulin	Matt Davis	Jenni White
Eddie Signer	Jon Grum	Geoff Kent	Steve Trout	Gregg Osborn

Go Team SCIS/U2FP

What an outstanding Working 2 Walk Symposium we had in Bethesda. In the words of a first-time attendee,

"My husband and I are only 2.5 years out from his injury and still have so much to learn. This was our first W2W and we loved it. Being surrounded by others who understood us and could share experiences and advice was so encouraging. We were also very engaged and inspired by many of the presentations, in particular those regarding science and research."

Happily we have a number of resources to share with those of you who were unable to join us, as well as for those who were there and continue to process the experience. Kate Willette's Live Blog captured the presentations and atmosphere in real time. Videos of the speaker presentations are being uploaded as we finish the review and editing process. As of this writing, you can now view both "Confessions of Amateur Activists" and Dr. Justin Brown's presentation on "Peripheral Nerve Surgery". Photos of the conference are posted on U2FP's Facebook page (be sure to "Like" us if you don't already).

The conference coincided with the release of a new book by Kate Willette, Don't Call It A Miracle; The Movement to Cure Spinal Cord Injury. It's a 238-page book that is beautifully illustrated, and explains the basic biology of the injured cord, what approaches the scientists are taking to heal, mend or bypass the nervous system, and what a non-scientist can do to speed things along. Hard copies were distributed to all Working 2 Walk attendees, and both the print and .pdf versions are available at NO CHARGE by following this link. Many thanks to the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation for funding this project.

Cheers,

Marilyn

Unite 2 Fight Paralysis     3078 Eliot Dr     Hood River OR 97031      u2fp.org

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