Support Clan Gillespie @ Step Forward to Cure TSC 2017

To make a donation online now, please visit our group page. 

On June 10, 2017, Join Clan Gillespie and other individuals and families affected by TSC as we join together to increase awareness of tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) and share their stories of hope. Whether you are close to the disease or simply looking for an inspiring charity event, LIDS Step Forward to Cure TSC walkathon is a great way to experience the power of standing together and giving back to the community.

Join the excitement! You can register to walk with us, be an “angel” walker, or make donations securely on our group page. There is lunch provided, kids’ activities, TSC resources and much, much more! This year’s walk promotes super heroes across the country. Individuals, families, friends and supporters are all encouraged to participate dressed like their favorite hero, be it a cartoon character, doctor, teacher, sibling, parent, etc.- just come as you are! We urge you to become a Super Hero of the TS Alliance.

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a rare genetic disorder that causes tumors to form in vital organs; TSC is also the leading genetic cause of both autism and epilepsy. To learn more about tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) click here. With your help, we can be heroes to the 50,000 Americans with TSC as well as their caregivers and loved ones.

We choose to fight, not only for Ethan, Elsie, Naomi, and Esther, but for the 1 in 6,000 kids born with TSC every day…50,000 in the U.S…over 1 million worldwide.  Tuberous sclerosis complex, or TSC, is more common than Lou Gehrig’s disease and Cystic Fibrosis. There is no cure. Yet!

Ours is a story of determination. Our stunningly small group of parents and adults with TSC, through sheer will and passion, have brought this disease to the brink of a breakthrough.  We are joined in our fight by aunts and uncles, brothers and sisters, grandparents and friends, co-workers and colleagues. We’re asking you to join us in the fight to find a cure!  Please help support our family who has refused to give up and refused to take no for an answer, even when faced with the daily challenges of seizures, autism, ADHD, facial disfiguration, anxiety, behavioral problems, and other medical complications.

We’re making HUGE strides in finding a cure for TSC.  Here’s what we know now we didn’t know just two short years ago:  TSC is what’s called a “linchpin” disease. This simply means the genetic pathway involved in TSC is the same pathway affecting more than a dozen major diseases and disorders, including autism, epilepsy, cancer, and obesity.  We’ve got a long way to go, but recent clinical trials of a new drug actually show the symptoms of autism disappearing in mice. We’re in a race against time and our resources are strained beyond their limits!

Many, many thanks!

Christopher

To make a donation online now, please visit our group page.

 

Moscow and Leipzig

Well, I decided to spring for the pay WiFi here in the pension in Leipzig to check e-mail and give you all an update. I think some of the shops have free WiFi but I’m lazy, worn-out, or both. It’s 8:38 p.m. but my body is unsure if its not really 11:38 p.m. (Moscow) or 2:38 a.m. (Novosibirsk.) I can’t blame it. Time zones are natural but rapid movement between them is not. We left our apartment in Novosibirsk at 4:15 a.m. on Monday. We landed in Moscow around 9 a.m. It took us until 11:15 a.m. to get on our way from the hotel to make way to Red Square. The traffic report was horrible. Thankfully it was a little off. We arrived at Red Square around 1 p.m. I’m getting ahead of myself. The hotel is bizarre. Apparently it was built for the 1980 Olympics. It didn’t have an elevator for the first three stories. It was basically three separate buildings with two bars and a restaurant. More bizarre is that the place probably had 900 rooms and we saw maybe 20 people the whole time we were there. Oh, and it was in the forest and in a gated community. Weird.

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Novosibirsk X

The class is over. I love sitting in a chair for forty-five hours a week, two weeks in a row. I enjoyed the content of the “Theological Ethics” course immensely. Its implications permeate through the entirely of the Holy Ministry and the lives of the church’s people. We engaged many topics including creation, birth, marriage, and end-of-life. Prof. Pless laid significant groundwork for a Biblical and distinctly Lutheran theological ethic in the first week. In the second week we addressed specific topics operating within this theological ethic.

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