Cindy ParseghianDear Friends,

I find myself reading often the following quote I keep on my desk by Robert H. Goddard:  “The dream of yesterday is the hope of today…and the reality of tomorrow.”

Looking back, we find it hard to believe that it has been 22 years since our children were diagnosed with NPC; while sometimes it seems like a lifetime, often it feels like only yesterday. And though Michael, Christa and Marcia are no longer with us, we can still hear their laughter, see their sparkling eyes and feel their little arms hugging us. While we miss them unbearably, they inspired a legacy of hope.

Hope lies at the heart of the support from people around the world who have reached out to touch our lives and the lives of all NPC families around the world.  Their unflagging love and unprecedented generosity are also the basis for hope in Parseghian Fund-sponsored research in 75 labs around the world—research that may have implications not only for those with NP-C, but for those with other cholesterol metabolism disorders, as well as Alzheimer’s.

To all of you have given their support, we salute you. You have not only built the APMRF alongside us; you have built a legacy of hope for families of children living with NP-C and other genetic neurodegenerative diseases—a testament to the strength and resilience of the human spirit and to the miracles that can be accomplished when people come together with a goal for life.

And, to those of you who are just learning about our cause, on behalf of NPC families around the world who look to the Ara Parseghian Medical Research Fund as their hope in finding a treatment through medical research, we invite you to please…join us in this valiant effort.

While some might say we have been defeated by the deaths of our three angels, this is not the case.  As Jacob Riis, reformer and photographer once said, “Some defeats are only installments to victory.”  We know our three children would want us to continue this fight for all the other children and young adults afflicted with NP-C disease.

With your support, we will continue the legacy of hope that will lead to an ultimate victory.  Thank you very much.

Sincerely,

Cindy K. Parseghian
President